Austria marked three years since it eased the rules for citizenship for descendants of Nazi persecution victims on September 1, 2023.
Acknowledging its responsibility, Austria decided to allow descendants of Nazi persecution victims to acquire citizenship through a simplified reporting process from September 2020, and since the Citizenship Law was amended, all those eligible have been able to take advantage of the changes, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
On the third anniversary, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Austria, Alexander Schallenberg, said that since the country eased the citizenship rules for descendants of Nazi persecution victims, a large number of them have acquired Austrian citizenship.
He also stressed that the number of descendants of Nazi persecution victims applying for Austrian citizenship continues to increase each day, emphasising that this is a sign of their trust in the country.
“The number of new Austrians continues to rise month by month. This is a strong sign of their trust in Austria. The new citizens enrich our society and contribute to the fact that the principle ‘never forget’ becomes ‘never again’,” the statement of Minister Schallenberg reads.
In addition to the above-mentioned, Minister Schallenberg said that it remains the goal of Austria to continue to meet the need for descendants of Nazi persecution victims to feel connected to Austria.
“This gesture is supported by the entire federal government. It is particularly important to my staff at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to provide professional and sensitive care and support to beneficiaries all over the world,” Minister Schallenberg added.
As the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of Austria reveals, since the country eased the citizenship rules for descendants of Nazi persecution victims, more than 31,000 people have applied for citizenship.
The same disclosed that in the last three years, over 23,000 new Austrian citizens have been welcomed in the country.
“Since then, more than 23,000 new Austrian citizens have been welcomed at Austrian embassies and consulates around the world, often the first contact with “official Austria”,” the Ministry said.
The Ministry further revealed that the country’s missions abroad receive around 400 new citizenship inquiries per month.
When applying for Austrian citizenship, descendants of Nazi persecution victims must prove that they are eligible to receive the document.
In line with the current rules, they are required to include in their documents evidence proving the persecution victim’s center of life in Austria and personal documents and documents of their family members.
