[Untitled]
Washington, January 23, 1901.
notice to american citizens formerly subjects of germany who contemplate returning to that country.
The information given below is believed to be correct, yet is not to be considered as official, as it relates to the laws and regulations of a foreign country.
A German subject is liable to military service from the time he has completed the 17th year of his age until his 45th year, active service lasting from the beginning of his 20th year to the end of his 36th year.
A German who emigrates before he is 17 years old, or before he has been actually called upon to appear before the military authorities, may, after a residence in the United States of five years and after due naturalization, return to Germany on a visit, but his right to remain in his former home is denied by Germany, and he may be expelled after a brief sojourn on the ground that he left Germany merely to evade military service. It is not safe for a person who has once been expelled to return to Germany without having obtained permission to do so in advance. A person who has completed his military service and has reached his 31st year and become an American citizen may safely return to Germany.
The treaties between the United States and the German States provide that German subjects who have become citizens of the United States shall be recognized as such upon their return to Germany if they resided in the United States five years.
[Page 161]But a naturalized American of German birth is liable to trial and punishment upon return to Germany for an offense against German law committed before emigration, saving always the limitations of the laws of Germany. If he emigrated after he was enrolled as a recruit in the standing army; if he emigrated while in service or while on leave of absence for a limited time; if, having an unlimited leave or being in the reserve, he emigrated after receiving a call into service or after a public proclamation requiring his appearance, or after war broke out, he is liable to trial and punishment on return.
Alsace-Lorraine having become a part of Germany since our naturalization treaties with the other German States were negotiated, American citizens, natives of that province, under existing circumstances, may be subjected to inconvenience and possible detention by the German authorities if they return without having sought and obtained permission to do so from the imperial governor at Strassburg
The authorities of Wurttemberg require that the evidence of the American citizenship of a former subject of Wurttemberg which is furnished by a passport shall be supplemented by a duly authenticated certificate showing five years’ residence in the United States in order that fulfillment of the treaty condition of five years’ residence may appear separately as a fact of record.
A former German subject against whom there is an outstanding sentence, or who fears molestation upon return for an offense against German law, may petition the sovereign of his native State for relief, but this Government can not act as intermediary in presenting the petition.
Travelers are not required to show passports on entering or leaving Germany, but they are likely to be called upon to establish their identity and citizenship at any time, and especially so if living in boarding houses or renting apartments. They are consequently recommended to provide themselves with passports. They do not usually require to be visaed or indorsed, but the local authorities sometimes demand a German translation.