RE-ACQUISITION/RETENTION OF FILIPINO CITIZENSHIP (RÜCKERWERB DER STAATSBÜRGERSCHAFT)
Legal Basis: Citizenship Retention and Re-acquisition Act of 2003 (Republic Act 9225)
The Citizenship Retention and Re-acquisition Act of 2003 (Republic Act 9225) shall apply to former natural-born citizens of the Philippines, as defined by Philippine law and jurisprudence, who have lost their Philippine citizenship by reason of their naturalization as citizens of another country.
Corollary to the above, a former natural-born citizen of the Philippines who is abroad and is not an alien registered with the Philippine Bureau of Immigration shall file a petition under oath with the nearest Philippine foreign service post for the issuance of an Identification Certificate (IC) under Republic Act 9225.
Derivative Citizenship for Children below 18 Years Old
Republic Act 9225 provides for the acquisition of Philippine citizenship by children, below 18 years old, of former natural-born Filipinos who have successfully re-acquired Philippine citizenship under the provisions of the same law. For concerned qualified applicants, the same documentary requirements shall be submitted to the Consulate (include the original marriage certificate of parents).
If born abroad (for minor children included in the petition of the applicant), please submit the Birth Certificate issued by competent foreign authorities. Payment of processing fee of €27.50 per child included in the petition (per BI Memo Circular AFF. 05-002) plus fee of €27.50 per child for the Report of Birth that will be submitted to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
REQUIREMENTS:
Note: All documents should come in one (1) original and three (3) photocopies.
Qualified applicants should submit the following documentary requirements personally at the Philippine Consulate General in Frankfurt, Germany:
- Duly-accomplished application form in triplicate: RA 9225 REACQUISITION AND RETENTION FORM
- As many of the following documents showing proof of Filipino citizenship:
- Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) issued birth certificate;
- Old or valid Philippine passport;
- Voter’s affidavit or voter’s identification card;
- Marriage contract indicating the Philippine citizenship of the applicant; or
- Such other documents that would show that the applicant is a former natural-born citizen of the Philippines as may be accepted by the evaluating officer. In all cases, the evaluating officer may require the submission of additional documents if there is reasonable ground to believe that the applicant is not a former natural-born Filipino.
- Eight (8) recent passport-size photographs of the applicant, six (6) of which are taken against a white background and the two (2) against a royal blue background (BI Memorandum Circular No. MCL-08-006).
- Original Marriage Certificate, if applicable.
- Proof of acquisition of foreign citizenship (Einbürgerungsurkunde) from the Landkreis Emsland. This document must have an English translation by a licensed translator (vereidigter Übersetzer) and certified by the State Judicial President (Landgericht) where the translator is registered.
- All documents should come in one (1) original and three (3) photocopies.
In all cases, the evaluating officer may require the submission of additional documents if there is reasonable ground to believe that the applicant is not a former natural-born Filipino.
If all initial documentary requirements are found in order, the Philippine Consulate General will proceed with the processing of the petition and request the applicant to pay the processing fee of €55.00 and €27.50 for each qualified dependent plus €27.50 for the authentication of the Einbürgerungsurkunde (Naturalization Certificate).
The Consulate General will inform the applicant of the schedule for the latter to personally take his or her Oath of Allegiance before an authorized official of the Philippine Consulate General.
The Philippine Consulate General will issue an Order of Approval and Identification Certificate (IC) to applicants who have taken the Oath of Allegiance and whose papers have been forwarded to the Bureau of Immigration in the Philippines.
Re-acquired Philippine citizenship under Republic Act 9225 may be revoked by the competent Philippine authorities upon a substantive finding of fraud, misrepresentation or concealment on the part of the applicant.