I'm a simple emigrant and I'm waiting for the opportunity to obtain a second passport

In Germany, the adoption of changes to the citizenship law is finally coming to an end. The first time I wrote about this was back in 2021; since then various dubious sources have from time to time published news like "the law has been passed," I went to check and found that nothing had actually been adopted yet. The feeling was like in this GIF. But now only the president's final signature remains, and it's more ceremonial, so we are waiting for the law to come into force in the first half of 2024. And for now I'll tell you how to obtain citizenship here in general. For an adult Russian there are three ways to obtain German citizenship: by ancestry, by marriage, and by long residence. The first method can be claimed by late resettlers, i.e., descendants or spouses of expelled persons and refugees who, because of World War II, ended up in Russia. Currently this is the only group of people who can apply for a German passport and are not required to renounce Russian citizenship. The second method is for those who marry a German citizen. They must have been married for at least two years and continuously live in Germany. The partner's German passport must already be held throughout the period, and the applicant must prove knowledge of the German language at B1 level and knowledge of German culture (the naturalization test). Sometimes both of these requirements can be substituted by the fact of having obtained education in German, but this is at the discretion of the staff, and they, most often, do not want to deal with non-standard packages of documents. The third method, I call it 'for long service'—my case. Under the new rules, for this you must live in the country for five years (instead of eight before), without ceasing to be its tax resident, have a long-stay visa, support yourself independently, not rely on benefits or social assistance, and confirm knowledge of the language and local culture. And for special merits, for example volunteering and German C1, you can apply after three years (instead of the minimum six before). Keeping your passport under the old rules was practically impossible, even if you are refused by the Russian Federation when renouncing citizenship, you would have to wait another couple of years, then try renouncing again, and only then, possibly, would you be allowed to apply for a German passport 'second'. Despite the varied attitudes toward Russia within the local immigrant community, losing a passport is a serious decision that deters many, especially now. People don't want to lose the chance to see relatives or to come home urgently in case of need. And the new changes will solve this problem, because you will be able to keep the Russian passport. What do you think, is the process simple here? Tell us in the comments about naturalization in other countries! #useful