German citizenship can pass through many generations. What matters is whether it was transmitted at each birth in the line, under the law then in force, and whether the records still exist to prove it. That is the question we work on.
Cologne on the Rhine, seat of the Bundesverwaltungsamt. For applicants living outside Germany, citizenship procedures of this kind are generally handled there.
How we work
Hannover combines archive and genealogical research, document preparation and case management for German citizenship procedures.
Questions of German nationality law arising in a case are examined by Fabio Werlang, a lawyer admitted in Portugal and Brazil.
Legal structure and professional informationGerman nationality law is not one rule but a stack of them, each in force on a different date. A family that fails under one provision often succeeds under another.
§ 4 StAG
German nationality passes by descent, and there is no fixed generational limit. What decides a case is whether citizenship was actually transmitted at each birth in the line, under the law in force on that date.
Read moreArt. 116 (2) GG
Those deprived of German citizenship between 1933 and 1945 on political, racial or religious grounds, and their descendants, may have it restored on application. No residence in Germany and no language examination.
Read more§ 5 StAG
For descendants excluded by earlier rules that discriminated by sex or marital status, such as children of German mothers born before 1975. Created in August 2021. The declaration must be made by 19 August 2031.
Read more§ 15 StAG
For those who lost German citizenship, or could not acquire it, for reasons connected to Nazi persecution that Article 116 (2) does not reach, and for their descendants. Created in August 2021.
Read more
Under § 21 of the 1870 nationality act, a German who spent ten uninterrupted years abroad lost citizenship. Registration in the consular register interrupted that period. The provision was repealed with effect from 1914.
This is why the emigration date matters so much, and why a consular registration found in an archive can decide an entire family line.
Under § 4 (4) StAG, subject to statutory exceptions, a child born abroad does not acquire German citizenship at birth where the German parent was also born abroad after 31 December 1999 and is habitually resident abroad, unless registration of the birth in the German civil register is applied for within one year.
Note the date belongs to the birth of the German parent, not of the child. It is the detail most often reported incorrectly, and getting it wrong changes the answer for a whole generation.
01
We search German and American archives for the documents your line requires: civil registers, church books, emigration and naturalization files, consular registers.
02
Certified translations, and the application assembled in the form the Bundesverwaltungsamt requires, with the lineage documented certificate by certificate.
03
We file with the Bundesverwaltungsamt in Cologne, arrange payment of official fees where applicable, keep the file under watch, and answer the authority's requests for further documents.
In our clients' words
These reviews were published by clients of Hannover Cidadania Alemã, the Brazilian company of the Hannover group, where the group's German citizenship work began in 2015.
5.0out of 5 on GoogleFigures read from the profile in August 2026. Reviews are reproduced as their authors wrote them. Square brackets mark the one change we make: we do not publish the name of an individual member of staff. Each review describes a single family's own case, and whether a family is entitled to German citizenship depends on its own line of descent and on the German authority that decides the file.
“I would like to thank the company for the excellent service during my German citizenship process. The entire team was professional, attentive, and very knowledgeable. They guided me through every step with clarity and patience, making a complex process much easier and less stressful”
Eduardo Grunthal
Review published on Google
“I had a fantastic experience with Hannover. Very professional and answer all questions immediately.”
Lilian Melchers
Review published on Google
“I highly recommend Mrs. Beatriz Werlang for helping me obtain German citizenship while living in the USA. Their expertise and guidance made the process seamless and efficient, without ever having to leave the US. I am extremely grateful for their excellent service.”
Madison Kenzie Rittenhaus
Review published on Facebook
“Excellent service! The team was professional, helpful, and highly efficient throughout my German citizenship process. They provided clear guidance, responded promptly to questions, and made the entire experience smooth and stress-free. I highly recommend their services to anyone pursuing German citizenship.”
Roberta Grünthal
Review published on Google
“Excellent service! The team was professional, helpful, and very efficient throughout my German citizenship process.”
Eduardo Doria
Review published on Google
“Every details posted accordingly with absolute perfect accuracy and in time as well”
Carlos George
Review published on Google
“My wife, Edith Zonenschain, has been attended very successfully by [a member of the team], concerning the research for necessary documents regading her German Citizenship obtention, in a really short time period. We believe she is an excellent asset for your company.”
Leon ZONENSCHAIN
Review published on Google
Tell us about your German ancestor. We will look at what records your family line would require and whether those records can be reconstructed, and we will tell you what the next step would be.
There is no charge for the document review, and it commits you to nothing.