Eighty-one years after the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany's Wehrmacht on 8 May 1945, a paradoxical development is reshaping transatlantic ties: growing numbers of descendants of Holocaust survivors from Israel, the United States, and elsewhere are applying for German citizenship. Driven by a mix of fear, pragmatism, and a changing relationship with Berlin, this trend has accelerated markedly since the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023.
Sharp Rise in Applications
According to Germany's Interior Ministry, 2,485 Israeli citizens were naturalised in Germany in 2021. By 2024, that figure had risen to 4,275. In Berlin alone, the number of Israeli citizens granted German citizenship reached 202 in 2024—roughly three times higher than a few years earlier, as reported by the German tabloid Bild.
Two legal provisions underpin these applications. Article 116(2) of Germany's Basic Law restores citizenship to those stripped of it between 1933 and 1945, extending the right to their descendants. Since 2021, Section 15 of the Nationality Act has also applied, covering individuals who were prevented from acquiring German citizenship due to Nazi persecution. These claims are neither time-limited nor restricted to specific generations, as Germany's Federal Office of Administration explains. While most applications initially fell under Article 116(2), Section 15 now accounts for the majority: 2,185 cases in 2024 were processed under this newer provision.
Bureaucratic Hurdles and Personal Stories
Eliyahu Raful, a 37-year-old Israeli born in Bnei Brak, moved to Berlin in October 2020 and successfully claimed German citizenship. He later founded Chafetz Chayim, an organisation that helps descendants of Jewish victims of Nazi persecution navigate the application process. Demand for the group's support has risen steadily, Raful said.
Raful experienced the gap between legal entitlement and bureaucratic reality firsthand. When he submitted his application in Berlin in 2020, he was turned away with the remark: "How are you going to get German citizenship if you don't speak any German?" Descendants of victims of Nazi persecution are not required to provide a language certificate. It was only after moving to Dresden that his application progressed, and he received his German passport in August 2023.
"We help with everything, from historical research to the final administrative procedures," Raful said. For him, Berlin is a deliberate choice. "Berlin is a place that constantly forces you to redefine things," he explained, adding that "for me, that is especially true of Jewish life. Precisely because Jewish presence here is historically not self-evident—almost paradoxical—the question of what it means to be Jewish in this place keeps resurfacing."
Shifting Demographics After 7 October
Raful notes that his clientele changed fundamentally after the Hamas-led attacks of 7 October 2023. Previously, it was mainly secular, internationally mobile Israelis who approached him. Since then, interest has spread to groups he would never have expected. "I have clients from Mea Shearim," he said, referring to the ultra-Orthodox neighbourhood in Jerusalem. "In times of uncertainty, people become less ideological and more practical."
Germany's Federal Ministry of the Interior confirmed this shift, with a spokesperson telling Euronews that the attacks and subsequent developments in the Middle East contributed to a further rise in applications. The trend also reflects a generational change: for older applicants, the memory of the Holocaust remains immediate; for younger ones, Germany is perceived less through direct memory than through questions of future security and belonging.
"Having moved between different cultural and religious worlds myself, I understand that belonging is rarely easy," Raful said. "For many applicants, citizenship is not just a document, but also a way to create stability and a possible future."
This development comes amid broader debates about European identity and security. For instance, Germany's push to end EU unanimity rule reflects a desire for more efficient decision-making, while concerns about antisemitism have prompted discussions in countries like Portugal, where the Israeli community condemned public support for a Kanye West concert. Meanwhile, the rise of Europe's ultra-rich, as noted in a recent report, underscores the continent's economic disparities.
Felix Klein, the Federal Government Commissioner for Jewish Life and the Fight against Antisemitism, has acknowledged the significance of this trend, though his full remarks were not available at press time. What is clear is that the path to a German passport, once unthinkable for many descendants of Holocaust victims, is now seen as a pragmatic step toward security in an uncertain world.
