An overview of the regions in which digital Naturalization has been introduced in recent months:
Digital Naturalization in Thuringia: These districts are already involved - more to follow
A lot is currently happening in Thuringia in particular. Three districts - Eichsfeld (since August 2024), Altenburger Land and Weimarer Land (both since May 2025) - have already introduced digital Naturalization. The basis is the so-called "one-for-all" model, which was originally developed in North Rhine-Westphalia and is now being applied nationwide.
According to dpa, a further five Thuringian cities and districts, including the state capital Erfurt, are planning to introduce the system in the coming months.
How much the processing times The extent to which the new procedure will shorten processing times cannot yet be said everywhere. While Altenburger Land speaks of an average of two months, no reliable data is yet available from the Eichsfeld district.
Despite the planned introduction of the digital naturalization process, there is a certain amount of scepticism in Erfurt. The city administration fears that the number of applications could increase significantly - but it remains to be seen how many of them will ultimately be qualified and successful.
Digital Naturalization in Hanover: possible completely online since September 2024
The Hannover Region launched the digital naturalization application on 20 September 2024. The service enables an end-to-end digital application including a quick check to pre-check the requirements.
In Hanover, digitalization is seen as a way of keeping processing times stable even as the number of applications increases - and demand is already high: over 3,000 people applied for German citizenship in the first month after the service went live.
Naturalization in Essen: Faster procedures thanks to new software and more staff
Essen also introduced a new, digitalized naturalization procedure in November 2024. In future, the initial consultation will be completely eliminated and documents will be uploaded directly online.
At the same time, the city increased its staff by almost 40 employees. In the long term, the city administration hopes to significantly reduce the processing time - from 1.5 years to around 4 months.
Naturalization in Saarland: Saarpfalz district digital since 2025
In the Saarpfalz district (Saarland), the digital application for Naturalization has been available since April 2025. Here, too, the process begins with a quick check to verify the requirements.
The application can then be submitted online and transmitted digitally. The solution is also based on the "One for All" model of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and is to be made available in other cities and municipalities in Saarland by the eGo-Saar team in the future.
In addition to the Saarpfalz district, digital Naturalization is also possible in three other districts in Saarland.
Naturalization in Germany: In which cities and districts is online application possible?
Digital Naturalization is part of a nationwide programme to simplify administrative processes. The so-called "one-for-all" solution was developed for this purpose. It helps cities and districts to offer the naturalization application quickly and uniformly online.
More than 65 cities and districts throughout Germany now use the system - and the trend is rising.
An up-to-date list of all locations where Naturalization is possible online can be found on the official website of the "Digital Naturalization"application service.
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