The headline would have been correct on 22th December 2025, when it was introduced.
Now it has already been introduced and the 3 month period is over. Since it’s April, all expats have failed to apply for a permission. That includes all men, there is no 45 year limit for the permission requirement.
I am curious how many Germans will be worried that this topic wasn’t discussed when the law was changed and how many wonder that nobody reminded them at the start of the year. The handling is suspiciously sneaky.
Since it’s April, all expats have failed to apply for a permission.
This is incorrect from what I can tell, the law provides an exception for people who have already reported the abandonment of their permanent residence in Germany (which was already required by another law, Bundesmeldegesetz § 17 (2)).
Yeah the law is indeed quite complex, with a lot of caveats and cross-references. One important bit is the continuation of your second quote:
wenn sie die Bundesrepublik Deutschland länger als drei Monate verlassen wollen, ohne dass die Voraussetzungen des § 1 Absatz 2 bereits vorliegen.
And §1 (2) says:
(2) Die Wehrpflicht ruht, solange Wehrpflichtige ihren ständigen Aufenthalt und ihre Lebensgrundlage außerhalb der Bundesrepublik Deutschland haben, wenn Tatsachen die Annahme rechtfertigen, dass sie beabsichtigen, ihren ständigen Aufenthalt im Ausland beizubehalten.
If you have already lived outside of Germany more than three months than that is a “fact that justifies the assumption” that you will continue to do so.
One person argued that a headline clarified that it is for people with duties. It’s possible but I am not sure.
If by duties you mean being under “Wehrpflicht”, that’s just any male 17-45 (during peace) that hasn’t been exempted. If you mean “Wehrdienst”, then no, the paragraph is explicitly about Wehrpflicht. This is intended to keep track of anybody that could be recruited in case of war.
The headline would have been correct on 22th December 2025, when it was introduced.
Now it has already been introduced and the 3 month period is over. Since it’s April, all expats have failed to apply for a permission. That includes all men, there is no 45 year limit for the permission requirement.
I am curious how many Germans will be worried that this topic wasn’t discussed when the law was changed and how many wonder that nobody reminded them at the start of the year. The handling is suspiciously sneaky.
This is incorrect from what I can tell, the law provides an exception for people who have already reported the abandonment of their permanent residence in Germany (which was already required by another law, Bundesmeldegesetz § 17 (2)).
You could be right: People who don’t live in Germany don’t have the defence duty.
However, the law states that men, not people with duty, have to ask for permission.
One person argued that a headline clarified that it is for people with duties. It’s possible but I am not sure.
Yeah the law is indeed quite complex, with a lot of caveats and cross-references. One important bit is the continuation of your second quote:
And §1 (2) says:
If you have already lived outside of Germany more than three months than that is a “fact that justifies the assumption” that you will continue to do so.
If by duties you mean being under “Wehrpflicht”, that’s just any male 17-45 (during peace) that hasn’t been exempted. If you mean “Wehrdienst”, then no, the paragraph is explicitly about Wehrpflicht. This is intended to keep track of anybody that could be recruited in case of war.