MIGRATION & CERTIFICATES
Permanent residence and German citizenship for Nigerian nurses: the clocks, the test, and the dual-citizenship fork
After the job: settlement at 3 years, citizenship at 5 (the German-only test) — and the Nigerian dual-citizenship answer, forking on citizenship by birth.
VON GERMANIUM
Editorial desk — §18c and §10 StAG read directly on gesetze-im-internet.de; the Nigerian Constitution's citizenship chapter (s.28); BAMF test framework
The nursing road has an end state worth planning backwards from: permanent residence (Niederlassungserlaubnis) and, after it, German citizenship. The German side of this page is identical for every origin country — the same clocks, the same test. The Nigerian side is where this track differs from the Philippines and Kenya: Nigeria's dual-citizenship rule forks on how you hold Nigerian citizenship, and that fork decides whether naturalizing as German ends your Nigerian citizenship or not. Most agency pages never mention it; the Constitution settles it.
Permanent residence: the clocks
| Route | The clock | The conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Skilled-worker title (§18a/b) — the typical nursing case | 3 years | 36 months of pension contributions, B1 German, secure livelihood — recognition completed and the job held on the skilled-worker title |
| EU Blue Card — the atypical case | 21 months (with B1) / 27 months (with A1) | Not the usual nursing lane |
| Germany-educated (Ausbildung completed in Germany) | 2 years on the skilled-worker title | The Ausbildung years shorten the settlement clock |
The B1 certificate is the recurring key — it gates the 3-year settlement clock and, later, citizenship. If your B2 registration exam is done, B1 is already behind you; keep the certificate. The pension-contribution count runs automatically with employment — the clock you manage is the German one.
Citizenship: §10 StAG, the 2026 frame
- 5 years of lawful habitual residence (time on the recognition-partnership title and the skilled-worker title both count)
- B1 German — the certificate again
- The Einbürgerungstest: 33 questions (30 general + 3 for your Bundesland), 17 correct to pass, 60 minutes, €25 — in German only, no English version
- Secure livelihood without benefits (standard exceptions apply), clean record
- Naturalisation fee: €255 per adult (§38 StAG frame)
Dual citizenship: the Nigerian fork
Germany has allowed multiple nationality since 27 June 2024 — naturalizing as German requires renouncing nothing on the German side. The Nigerian side is conditional. Under section 28 of the 1999 Constitution, a Nigerian citizen by birth does not lose Nigerian citizenship by acquiring another nationality — a Nigerian-born nurse who naturalizes as German keeps both. But a naturalized Nigerian (someone who acquired Nigerian citizenship rather than being born to it) forfeits Nigerian citizenship upon voluntarily acquiring another. The practical rule for the overwhelming majority of Nigerian nurses — born Nigerian — is that the dual door is open; the fork matters for the naturalized-Nigerian minority, and no agency page states it. Full dual citizenship in the family also touches the next generation: children born to a Nigerian parent are Nigerian by birth regardless of where they are born, which is the provision the diaspora relies on.
The realistic full timeline
- 01
Year 0–1: entry + recognition start
Arrival on any road; the recognition procedure opens; B2 work begins if unfinished.
- 02
Year 1–3: registration + the settlement clock
Full registration as Pflegefachkraft (B2 + the state's language exam where it runs one); pension contributions accumulate.
- 03
Year 3: settlement (Niederlassungserlaubnis)
36 months of contributions + B1 + secure livelihood — the permanent permit.
- 04
Year 5: citizenship (§10)
The 5-year clock, B1 held, the German-only test passed, €255 filed — and, if you are Nigerian by birth, the Nigerian citizenship retained alongside.
Do I have to give up Nigerian citizenship to naturalize as German?
If you are Nigerian by birth — no, on either side: Germany allows multiple nationality since June 2024, and section 28 of the Nigerian Constitution preserves the citizenship of a citizen by birth who acquires another. If you are a naturalized Nigerian, acquiring a second nationality forfeits the Nigerian one — the Constitution's fork, which almost every guide omits.
Can I take the citizenship test in English?
No. The official Einbürgerungstest is German-only. The B1/B2 you already hold for registration is the level the test assumes; the 33-question format (17 to pass, 60 minutes, €25) is fixed.
Does time on the recognition-partnership visa count toward citizenship?
Yes — the 5-year clock counts lawful habitual residence, and the §16d(3) partnership title is lawful residence. It also counts toward nothing you lose: if recognition lands inside the 3-year partnership window, you transition to the skilled-worker title with the clock already running.