Reclaim Your German Heritage

Reclaim Your German Heritage

For many Americans with German roots, dual citizenship is closer than they realize. We make reclaiming it simple, doing the difficult work for you and staying with you all the way.

Check Your Eligibility

✓

Free

✓

2 minutes

✓

Personalized

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Trusted by Over 200 American Families

Trusted by Over 200 American Families

WehelpAmericanswithGermanrootsreclaimtheircitizenshipandwithitthefreedomtolive,work,andbuildafutureanywhereinEurope.Startingfromasinglefamilymemory,wetracethelineback,recovertheofficialrecordsheldinGermanarchives,andprovewhatmayhavebeenyoursallalong.
WehelpAmericanswithGermanrootsreclaimtheircitizenshipandwithitthefreedomtolive,work,andbuildafutureanywhereinEurope.Startingfromasinglefamilymemory,wetracethelineback,recovertheofficialrecordsheldinGermanarchives,andprovewhatmayhavebeenyoursallalong.
WehelpAmericanswithGermanrootsreclaimtheircitizenshipandwithitthefreedomtolive,work,andbuildafutureanywhereinEurope.Startingfromasinglefamilymemory,wetracethelineback,recovertheofficialrecordsheldinGermanarchives,andprovewhatmayhavebeenyoursallalong.

Benefits

More than a passport — a future

Reclaiming your citizenship gives you far more than a second passport — it gives you options, security, and a future that stretches across 27 countries, for you and the generations after you.

Check Your Eligibility

✓

Free

✓

2 minutes

✓

Personalized

Live, work, and settle across Europe

As a German citizen, you can live, work, study, or retire in any of 27 EU countries — no visas, no permits, no limits.

Live, work, and settle across Europe

As a German citizen, you can live, work, study, or retire in any of 27 EU countries — no visas, no permits, no limits.

Live, work, and settle across Europe

As a German citizen, you can live, work, study, or retire in any of 27 EU countries — no visas, no permits, no limits.

Dual citizenship

Since Germany's 2024 reform, you no longer have to choose — fully American and fully European, with nothing given up to gain it.

Dual citizenship

Since Germany's 2024 reform, you no longer have to choose — fully American and fully European, with nothing given up to gain it.

Dual citizenship

Since Germany's 2024 reform, you no longer have to choose — fully American and fully European, with nothing given up to gain it.

A US passport and a German passport side by side
A US passport and a German passport side by side
St. Bartholomä church on Königssee lake, Schönau, Bavaria
St. Bartholomä church on Königssee lake, Schönau, Bavaria

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Schönau am Königssee

A Plan B, secured

An open door you never have to walk through. Whatever the years bring, you'll hold the right to live and work anywhere in Europe — there if you ever need it, and reassuring even if you don't.

A Plan B, secured

An open door you never have to walk through. Whatever the years bring, you'll hold the right to live and work anywhere in Europe — there if you ever need it, and reassuring even if you don't.

A Plan B, secured

An open door you never have to walk through. Whatever the years bring, you'll hold the right to live and work anywhere in Europe — there if you ever need it, and reassuring even if you don't.

27

EU countries you'd be free to live, work, and study in.

27

EU countries you'd be free to live, work, and study in.

27

EU countries you'd be free to live, work, and study in.

How it works

01

Eligibility Check

Take the free two-minute check and see your likely pathway to German citizenship.

02

Strategy Call

On a personal call, we confirm your pathway and map out exactly what your case needs and what documents are missing.

03

Research & Records

We trace your lineage and recover every official document from German archives — handled for you.

04

Your German Passport

With everything documented, you file your application, and we stay with you until your certificate arrives.

Our Services

The hard part, handled.

You don't decode old German script, chase registries, or wrestle with bureaucracy — that's ours to carry. And you hear from a real person as your case develops, so you're never left wondering where things stand.

Check Your Eligibility

✓

Free

✓

2 minutes

✓

Personalized

A German family photographed in formal dress, early 1900s
A pile of old family photographs and snapshots

Lineage Research & Proof of Descent

We reconstruct your family line back to its German origin and establish the unbroken chain of descent that nationality law requires — locating each ancestor and verifying every birth, marriage, and naturalization in sequence to prove your citizenship was never interrupted as it passed down to you.

A German family photographed in formal dress, early 1900s
A pile of old family photographs and snapshots

Lineage Research & Proof of Descent

We reconstruct your family line back to its German origin and establish the unbroken chain of descent that nationality law requires — locating each ancestor and verifying every birth, marriage, and naturalization in sequence to prove your citizenship was never interrupted as it passed down to you.

A German family photographed in formal dress, early 1900s

Lineage Research & Proof of Descent

We reconstruct your family line back to its German origin and establish the unbroken chain of descent that nationality law requires — locating each ancestor and verifying every birth, marriage, and naturalization in sequence to prove your citizenship was never interrupted as it passed down to you.

An archivist retrieving a file from a shelf in a German records archive
Rows of document boxes in an archive reading room

German Archival Record Procurement

Your case rests on certified records held across German civil registries (Standesämter), parish books, and federal archives — many never digitized, and written in old German script. We request, retrieve, and authenticate each one directly at the source, including the on-site archive visits that are all but impossible to manage from abroad.

An archivist retrieving a file from a shelf in a German records archive
Rows of document boxes in an archive reading room

German Archival Record Procurement

Your case rests on certified records held across German civil registries (Standesämter), parish books, and federal archives — many never digitized, and written in old German script. We request, retrieve, and authenticate each one directly at the source, including the on-site archive visits that are all but impossible to manage from abroad.

An archivist retrieving a file from a shelf in a German records archive

German Archival Record Procurement

Your case rests on certified records held across German civil registries (Standesämter), parish books, and federal archives — many never digitized, and written in old German script. We request, retrieve, and authenticate each one directly at the source, including the on-site archive visits that are all but impossible to manage from abroad.

A researcher working through a stack of documents at a desk
A statue of Justitia holding scales, on a German courthouse facade

Pathway Documentation

German citizenship is governed by the Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (StAG), with distinct provisions for descent, historical gender-line corrections, and restitution, each carrying its own evidentiary burden and, in some cases, a strict declaration deadline. We gather exactly the records each provision requires, so your file holds the evidence the authorities expect.

A researcher working through a stack of documents at a desk
A statue of Justitia holding scales, on a German courthouse facade

Pathway Documentation

German citizenship is governed by the Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (StAG), with distinct provisions for descent, historical gender-line corrections, and restitution, each carrying its own evidentiary burden and, in some cases, a strict declaration deadline. We gather exactly the records each provision requires, so your file holds the evidence the authorities expect.

A researcher working through a stack of documents at a desk

Pathway Documentation

German citizenship is governed by the Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (StAG), with distinct provisions for descent, historical gender-line corrections, and restitution, each carrying its own evidentiary burden and, in some cases, a strict declaration deadline. We gather exactly the records each provision requires, so your file holds the evidence the authorities expect.

A United States passport and a German Reisepass lying on a table
A close-up of a completed application form

Dossier Compilation & Certification

Authorities accept nothing less than a precisely assembled file: certified translations, apostilles, and documents ordered exactly as the Bundesverwaltungsamt and German consulates require. We compile, translate, and certify your complete evidentiary dossier, so that when it's time to apply, every page is in order and submission-ready.

A United States passport and a German Reisepass lying on a table
A close-up of a completed application form

Dossier Compilation & Certification

Authorities accept nothing less than a precisely assembled file: certified translations, apostilles, and documents ordered exactly as the Bundesverwaltungsamt and German consulates require. We compile, translate, and certify your complete evidentiary dossier, so that when it's time to apply, every page is in order and submission-ready.

A United States passport and a German Reisepass lying on a table

Dossier Compilation & Certification

Authorities accept nothing less than a precisely assembled file: certified translations, apostilles, and documents ordered exactly as the Bundesverwaltungsamt and German consulates require. We compile, translate, and certify your complete evidentiary dossier, so that when it's time to apply, every page is in order and submission-ready.

About us

Why families trust us with this.

4.8/5

+217 Families 🇺🇸

A US passport and a German passport, overlapping

Families across the United States come to us from every corner of the country — often with nothing more than a grandparent's name and the sense that something was left behind in Germany. We've since guided over 200 of them from that first uncertain question to a fully documented claim and a German passport in hand.

Check Your Eligibility

4.8/5

+217 Families 🇺🇸

A US passport and a German passport, overlapping

Families across the United States come to us from every corner of the country — often with nothing more than a grandparent's name and the sense that something was left behind in Germany. We've since guided over 200 of them from that first uncertain question to a fully documented claim and a German passport in hand.

Check Your Eligibility

4.8/5

+217 Families 🇺🇸

A US passport and a German passport, overlapping

Families across the United States come to us from every corner of the country — often with nothing more than a grandparent's name and the sense that something was left behind in Germany. We've since guided over 200 of them from that first uncertain question to a fully documented claim and a German passport in hand.

Check Your Eligibility

Done for you

Done for you

From the first record to the finished dossier, the hard work stays on our side, while you stay informed by a real person who knows your case, never left wondering where things stand.

Fluent in both worlds

Fluent in both worlds

Our team lives in both languages and cultures — fluent with German officials and archives, and just as at home with the American families we guide.

One thing, done right

One thing, done right

Our whole practice is built around one thing: helping Americans document German citizenship by descent — so we know this path's every provision, pitfall, and shortcut.

The Frauenkirche and Neues Rathaus on Marienplatz in Munich at sunset

Based in Germany

Based in Bavaria, we work from inside the very system your claim depends on — reaching the German registries and archives that hold your records in person and in German, with access no overseas service can match.

The Frauenkirche and Neues Rathaus on Marienplatz in Munich at sunset

Based in Germany

Based in Bavaria, we work from inside the very system your claim depends on — reaching the German registries and archives that hold your records in person and in German, with access no overseas service can match.

📍

Munich, Germany

Testimonials

Success Stories

"All I had was my grandmother's name and a town I couldn't pronounce. Benjamin found her birth record in a parish book and built the rest from there. I never once had to chase him for an update."

“All I had was my grandmother’s name and a town I couldn’t pronounce. Benjamin found her birth record in a parish book and built the rest from there. I never once had to chase him for an update.”

Sarah M.

Washington, DC · German Embassy in Washington, DC

Washington, DC

Watch story

"Saved me months of frustrating guesswork"

I hit a total brick wall trying to find my grandfather's 1940s naturalization records. Benjamin completely turned things around, he knew exactly which German archives to contact, found the missing birth certificates within weeks, and handled all the back-and-forth.

Nicole K.

Nicole K.

Washington, DC

"Saved me months of frustrating guesswork"

I hit a total brick wall trying to find my grandfather's 1940s naturalization records. Benjamin completely turned things around, he knew exactly which German archives to contact, found the missing birth certificates within weeks, and handled all the back-and-forth.

Nicole K.

Nicole K.

Washington, DC

"Saved me months of frustrating guesswork"

I hit a total brick wall trying to find my grandfather's 1940s naturalization records. Benjamin completely turned things around, he knew exactly which German archives to contact, found the missing birth certificates within weeks, and handled all the back-and-forth.

Nicole K.

Nicole K.

Washington, DC

"Worth every single penny"

Applying for StAG 4 felt incredibly daunting with all the paperwork and official translations. Archive & Co. made the entire process clear and stress-free, prepared a flawless, submission-ready package for the consulate, and answered every one of my endless questions. Absolute professionals who genuinely care about your family history.

Steven F.

Steven F.

San Francisco, CA

"Worth every single penny"

Applying for StAG 4 felt incredibly daunting with all the paperwork and official translations. Archive & Co. made the entire process clear and stress-free, prepared a flawless, submission-ready package for the consulate, and answered every one of my endless questions. Absolute professionals who genuinely care about your family history.

Steven F.

Steven F.

San Francisco, CA

"Amazing service"

They traced my family back to a small town in Bavaria and retrieved certified copies from local church archives I couldn't access online. The communication was quick, transparent, and saved me months of frustrating research with German authorities. Truly worth the money.

Michael S.

Michael S.

Boston, MA

"Amazing service"

They traced my family back to a small town in Bavaria and retrieved certified copies from local church archives I couldn't access online. The communication was quick, transparent, and saved me months of frustrating research with German authorities. Truly worth the money.

Michael S.

Michael S.

Boston, MA

"Amazing service"

They traced my family back to a small town in Bavaria and retrieved certified copies from local church archives I couldn't access online. The communication was quick, transparent, and saved me months of frustrating research with German authorities. Truly worth the money.

Michael S.

Michael S.

Boston, MA

See what’s yours to claim.

Check Your Eligibility

Frequently Asked Questions

Straight answers to the questions we hear most, so you can move forward with confidence.

How do I know if I qualify?

Do I have to give up my US citizenship?

Can you guarantee I'll get citizenship?

What exactly do you handle, and what do I do?

How long does it take?

What does it cost?

What if my family's records were lost or destroyed?

Is there a deadline?