The Junge Union calls for markedly tougher rules on naturalisation in Germany. In a proposal submitted to the CDU federal party conference scheduled for February in Stuttgart, the party’s youth wing demands that most of the reforms introduced during the Ampel coalition be largely undone. The report on the paper comes from the “Handelsblatt” (Tuesday edition).
Specifically, the JU wants the normal minimum residence period before one can be naturalised to be raised again from the current five to eight years. It argues that the 2024 reform sent the wrong signals and eroded trust. For the CDU, the message must be clear: “Citizenship must sit at the end of an integration process”. Five years often does not allow many newcomers to be sufficiently integrated into the society.
The youth organisation also insists on stricter language requirements. It calls for the removal of most exceptions to the current B1 minimum level and for raising the required proficiency to B2. “Without good knowledge of the German language true integration cannot occur” the draft states.
Furthermore, the JU proposes tightening social and value‑based criteria. Citizenship should be granted only to those who recognise the constitution’s core principles – including gender equality, fundamental rights such as religious freedom, and a rejection of antisemitism and racism. Anyone who denies Israel’s right to exist or rejects equality should not be naturalised.
