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GERMAN CITIZENSHIP

REVEALED: The new questions being added to Germany’s citizenship test

Foreigners who want to naturalise as Germans will soon have to tackle a range of new questions that are being added to the citizenship test. Here's what to expect.

Published: 27 March 2024 09:10 CET
Islamic conference Nancy Faeser
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) speaks at the Islamic Conference on Tuesday. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Britta Pedersen

As Germany prepares to introduce its major reform of citizenship laws, a slightly more subtle change is also on the way: the Interior Ministry has drafted a range of new questions to add to the citizenship test.

The news comes after months of pressure on the government to find a way to clamp down on anti-Semitism and racism while also loosening up the restrictions on citizenship.

According to Spiegel, there are 12 new questions that are likely to become part of the citizenship test, covering everything from the history of Jews in Germany to the founding of the state of Israel, as well as specific questions that tackle forms of anti-Semitism.

READ ALSO: Why Germany is shaking up citizenship test questions

Following an ordinance from the Interior Ministry, they will be added to the official selection of citizenship test questions, pushing the number of potential questions up to 322 (including 10 questions that are specific to your federal state). 

Of these, 33 are selected for each test, and you have to get at least 17 right in order to pass. 

We’ve listed the new questions below in English and have highlighted the correct answers.

Let’s see how many you can get right! 

Germany’s new citizenship test questions

Where do the majority of Jews who currently live in Germany come from?

1. Israel
2. Former Soviet Union countries 
3. The USA
4. From Western Europe

How many years ago was there a Jewish community in what is now Germany for the first time?

1. Around 300 years ago
2. Around 700 years ago
3. Around 1150 years ago
4. Around 1700 years ago

Who can become a member of the 40 or so Jewish Maccabi sports clubs?

1. Only Germans
2. Only Israelis
3. Only religious people
4. Everyone 

Which cities have the largest Jewish communities in Germany?

1. Berlin and Munich
2. Hamburg and Essen
3. Nuremberg and Stuttgart 
4. Worms and Speyer 

What is the name of the Jewish house of prayer?

1. Basilica 
2. Mosque
3. Synagogue 
4. Church

When was the state of Israel founded?

1. 1945
2. 1948 
3. 1922 
4. 1973

On what legal basis was the state of Israel founded?

1. A United Nations (UN) resolution
2. A resolution of the Zionist congress
3. A recommendation from the German federal government
4. A recommendation from the Soviet Union (USSR) 

TEST: Could you pass the German citizenship exam?

What is the reason for Germany’s special responsibility for Israel?

1. Germany’s membership of the European Union (EU)
2. Crimes committed under National Socialism
3. The German constitution (Grundgesetz) 
4. Christian tradition 

What is an example of anti-Semitic behaviour? 

1. Attending a Jewish festival 
2. Criticising the state of Israel
3. Holocaust denial 
4. Playing football against a Jewish team 

What do the so-called “Stolpersteine”, or stumbling stones, in Germany commemorate?

1. Famous German politicians
2. Victims of National Socialism
3. People who died in traffic accidents
4. Well-known Jewish musicians 

How can someone who denies the Holocaust be punished?

1. Cuts to benefits or welfare payments
2. Up to 100 hours of community service
3. They can’t be – Holocaust denial is allowed in Germany
4. With a prison sentence of up to five years or a fine 

Which act relating to the state of Israel is prohibited in Germany?

1. Publicly criticising Israel’s policies 
2. Hanging an Israeli flag on private property
3. Discussing Israeli politics 
4. Openly calling for the destruction of the state of Israel 

If you’d like to know more about the documents you need to apply for German citizenship – and how to do it – check out our explainers below:

Member comments

  1. So if new immigrants answer these questions correctly, that would solve the problem of antisemitism in Germany? What a childish way of “solving” this issue.

  2. Will I need to retake the test if I already passed the Leben in Deutschland test before the new questions were added? If so, that’s pretty frustrating considering the awfully long waiting times.

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For members

POLITICS

Citizenship reform: How a German minister you’ve never heard of is changing the lives of foreigners

Germany's coalition government is struggling. It's flagging in polls, sports few concrete policy wins, and its foreign policy is hotly debated. A notable exception is Interior Minister Nancy Faeser - a Social Democrat who remains a little discussed figure - despite overseeing legislation that hits at the core of Germany's identity.

Published: 8 May 2024 12:53 CEST
Citizenship reform: How a German minister you've never heard of is changing the lives of foreigners

After all, few things are as existential to a country’s identity as deciding who gets to be a national or who gets to settle there and be a part of its community.

As Germany’s Interior Minister since late 2021, Faeser has been responsible for overseeing historic legislation on both. At a time when other European countries are tightening up citizenship and immigration rules – even for skilled, well-integrated immigrants – Faeser’s German Interior Ministry is betting on more openness.

March saw sweeping immigration reforms – designed to make it easier for skilled workers to come to Germany, bring their parents if they wish, and even come before having their foreign qualifications recognised by Germany’s notorious bureaucracy.

Skilled workers also have a faster route to permanent residence in Germany – after just 21 months in some cases.

Late 2024 will also see the introduction of the points-based Chancenkarte – or “opportunity card”. A German first, people with enough points could theoretically come to Germany without a firm job offer and look for work while already here. They might even be able to come if they don’t speak German yet – if they have enough points in other areas. In a country not normally known for its flexibility, Faeser’s Interior Ministry is showing much more of it in a bid to combat the country’s skilled labour shortage.

READ ALSO: The changes to Germany’s immigration rules in March 2024

Landmark citizenship reform

Many Local readers will also be familiar with another landmark piece of legislation from Faeser’s desk – Germany’s long-awaited dual nationality reform. After having seen repeated delays due to disputes between the three governing coalition parties, the Federal President finally signed and certified the new citizenship law in late March – starting a three-month countdown for the country’s bureaucracy to adapt to the new rules.

On June 26th, German citizenship law will allow people to hold multiple nationalities when naturalising and shorten the time someone will have needed to be in Germany before applying for citizenship from eight years to five.

Many people are becoming German

American Rick Hoffmann, Aussie-Italian Joe Del Borrello and Brazilian-Canadian Dini Silviera are looking forward to applying to becoming German following passage of the government’s dual citizenship reform. Photos: Rick Hoffmann, Joe Del Borrello, Dini Silviera

It’s not been without its controversy, with the country’s Christian Democrats (CDU) remaining vocal opponents until the end. CDU MP Alexander Throm described it as a “citizenship devaluation law” that has “the most wide-reaching negative consequences for our country” during the Bundestag session that saw the law’s final passage.

During that same debate, SPD MP Dirk Wiese pointed out a historical symmetry – namely that Faeser, a Social Democrat from Hesse, was responsible for passing dual nationality legislation that a CDU Premier of Hesse has originally torpedoed 25 years ago.

READ ALSO:

Throm was right about one thing. The results of Faeser’s legislation are likely to have long-lasting, far-reaching effects. Both the new law’s supporters and detractors can at least agree on its importance.

It may well end up being one of the longest-lasting legacies of the traffic light government. Even if the CDU take the Chancellery again in 2025 – as current polls would suggest – no other possible coalition partner is likely to agree to repeal the law. Dual nationality in Germany – and with it the acceptance of multifaceted identity – is likely here to stay, even if a future CDU-led government manages to tighten up immigration or asylum law in the future.

Nancy Faeser Boris Rhein

SPD candidate and Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and CDU candidate Boris Rhein in Wiesbaden, Hesse during the election campaign. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Boris Roessler

Faeser’s non-flashy style

Despite the weighty nature of the legislation she’s shepherded through her ministry and the Bundestag, Faeser isn’t known for grand pronouncements. She’s largely left it to others to make the public case for the dual nationality law’s importance, like parliamentary rapporteurs Hakan Demir (SPD), Filiz Polat (Green), and Stephan Thomae (FDP). She’s comfortable giving breakfast show interviews but rarely hits the evening talk show circuit.

A legislative workhorse, Faeser just seems to move on to her next task without a lot of fanfare for the one she just completed. The reason is likely equally unglamorous – she just has a lot to get done. Today immigration and citizenship reform, tomorrow proposals to tighten gun controls in Germany or issue visa bans for Russian athletes. She also found time to be her party’s top candidate in last autumn’s state election in her home state of Hesse.

Having never had a federal office before becoming Interior Minister, Faeser came from Hessian state politics, where she served as a member of the state parliament from 2003 to 2021, eventually becoming the Hessian SPD state party leader in 2019. At the time she became a minister in 2021, few Germans outside of Hesse had heard of her – never mind internationals.

Nancy Faeser smiles in November 2015 at the SPD state party conference in Kassel (Hesse).

Nancy Faeser smiles in November 2015 at the SPD state party conference in Kassel (Hesse). Photo: picture alliance / dpa | Uwe Zucchi

Media outlets both inside and outside of Germany keep their main focuses on politicians like Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck or Finance Minister Christian Lindner. With the controversy over Berlin’s strategy in Russia’s war against Ukraine, this is perhaps understandable.

But such a focus might sometimes miss another fundamental shift currently underway in Germany – as the country changes its approach to who gets to be a member of its national community. Nancy Faeser may well be one of the few members of the current German government to have a legacy that lasts well beyond her time in office.

Agree with her policies or not, that deserves more German and international reflection.

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