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Do you want an Austrian passport? Document translation from Hebrew to German

Jordan Levy-Bograd
Jordan Levy-Bograd

This past September (2020) the “Austrian law of return” for Holocaust survivors and their direct descendants took effect. Under the new law, anyone who can prove that their parent, grandparent, or great-grandparent lived in Austria between 1933-1955 and was forced to leave due to persecution or fear of persecution, is eligible for Austrian citizenship and a European passport. In order to prove eligibility, the applicant must present evidence and refer their documents to a notary for translation from Hebrew to German.

This precedent-setting law meant to expand the criteria for Austrian citizenship for Jews whose families were forced to emigrate from Austria; whether due to the discrimination, racism and exclusion that prevailed at the time in Austria and across Europe, or whether caused specifically by Nazi persecution after Austria was conquered by Germany.

Austrian citizenship: easy acceptance terms, no need to pass a knowledge test

translation from Hebrew to GermanThe big advantage of Austrian citizenship is that there is no need to demonstrate prior knowledge and there are no strict preliminary requirements for receiving an Austrian passport. Other European citizenships require demanding acceptance tests and/or the investment of large sums of money. To apply for Austrian citizenship, all you must do is present the official documents, translated into German, that prove that you are a descendant of a family that was victim to persecution in Austria during the years mentioned above.

Austrian citizenship – what is it good for?

Many people who meet the requirements but do not understand, in a practical sense, what an Austrian passport will grant them, turn to us for clarification. So we have decided to shed some light on the subject and describe, in a nutshell, the benefits of having Austrian citizenship. First of all, Austrian citizenship will allow you to receive a tourist visa to the USA automatically and travel there freely without having to go through the difficult and expensive process of applying for a visa at the US embassy.

In addition, Austrian citizenship serves as a work and residence visa for any country that you wish to live and work in among the European Union countries, such as: Bulgaria, Romania, Belgium, England, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Sweden, Hungary and more. Already seems worth it, doesn’t it?

If that were not enough, Austrian citizenship will also allow you to pursue higher education and academic studies in any one of the EU countries, including some countries where academic studies are free – yes, you read that correctly, free studies.

Likewise, Austrian citizenship will grant you medical care in all EU countries at the subsidized cost to a resident, and you will even be able to invest in real estate or a European business and receive tax benefits as a regular resident.

Required documents for obtaining Austrian citizenship:

We elaborate more in the articles dedicated to Austrian citizenship linked above, but in short, you must prove familial relation to an Austrian citizen (or resident of certain areas that were under Austrian control) who was forced to leave the country between 1933 and 1955. The documents in question are, of course, original documents from Austria (if you do not have some of them, we will be glad to connect you with a genealogist who will be able to locate them) and documents from Israel that prove the chain of familial connections – birth certificates, marriage, name change and the like.

Notary document translation into German for obtaining citizenship

Before applying for an Austrian passport, official documents must go through notary translation into German. These include documents such as a valid passport, a marriage license, and the citizenship application form. Because these official documents will constitute evidence of your connection and ties to Austria and to the Nazi persecution victim, they must undergo notarized translation into German.

If you have a new birth certificate, or you have the option of acquiring one, you will not need to translate it into German, because the text on the certificate is in both Hebrew and English. On the other hand, it is not possible to translate documents that were not originally issued in English into English instead of German – welcome to the European bureaucracy.

You have decided to apply for Austrian citizenship – what do you need to prepare?

You have decided that it suits you and that the benefit outweighs the cost? Great. Now you must prepare the following documents for translation into German and obtain an apostille stamp on your way to your final goal of becoming an Austrian citizen.

You must prepare a biographical document that will be translated into German by a notary. This document will provide a detailed description of the victim of Nazi persecution in Austria, whose familial connection to you is the basis for your application for citizenship. The biography must include details such as: places of residence, jobs, studies and life events. In addition, you are required to prepare documents such as: an old Austrian passport, an old residence certificate that was preserved and any other document that can indicate ties to Austria or that proves Austrian citizenship at the time of emigration, the date of emigration, name change at marriage, or the acquisition of another national citizenship. Note that foreign birth and marriage certificates must be confirmed with an apostille stamp.

A few words on the German language: popular language, extensive vocabulary

German is considered a popular language and is spoken in many countries: Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Luxemburg and more. German has an extensive vocabulary alongside two main dialects: the first, the popular dialect, meaning the spoken language; the second, the literary dialect, as in the written language. Therefore, when you seek to translate official documents into German, you must be aware of all the nuances of the language and the style of official writing.

Note that the Austrian authorities require all translations to German to be done by a notary – any translation not done by a notary will be rejected. This means that the documents must be translated by an attorney with at least 10 years of experience, who is authorized as a notary by the Ministry of Justice, and has the authority, de facto, to verify the identity of the applicant and the credibility of the documents.

Document translation from Hebrew to German: official documents should only be translated by an expert notary

If it is important to you to obtain Austrian citizenship and have the application process go smoothly, without mistakes that could determine your fate regarding European citizenship – you must have the documents translated into German by a professional attorney with experience in the field. Translation into German of official documents submitted to the authorities requires a broad knowledge of the language. If you are looking for document translation into German for the purpose of obtaining citizenship, you have come to the right place.

Our law offices have attorneys who specialize in obtaining Austrian citizenship, with years of experience and a long-standing reputation in the field of notary translation in general and translation into German in particular. If you wish to acquire Austrian citizenship, and are seeking an experienced notary who can guide, direct, and accompany you through the entire process until the Austrian passport is received – you are in good hands. We will be glad to offer you courteous, professional service which bring you in the best possible way to your goal of obtaining Austrian citizenship.


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