Curious what “citizenship test” actually means in practice here, language only, or values/history stuff too? Would be nice if they offered free prep courses instead of just making it another gatekeeping tool.
InkVision001 on
Ah yes, elections are approaching and they’re losing so they must pretend they’re just now doing what they were supposed to do 2-3 years ago.
WritingStrawberry on
As a German living in Finland: this is a change I very much appreciate. If you want to become a citizen of a country, you should know the culture, history, politics and values. Should be a given.
soymilo_ on
Always surprised when I hear this isn’t in place everywhere yet
Grievous_Nix on
Pointless barrier that wouldn’t affect its “target audience” – the people that conservatives would call “not integrating” are already in residence permit limbo with all the temporary work contract circus, they aren’t getting citizenship left and right.
But it sure would be another reason for the educated ones to choose some other country. A survey in 2023 has shown that half of foreign students plan to move out after graduating. This change won’t make more people try harder for the goal of gaining citizenship, it’d just make more educated ones seek employment elsewhere. Good luck with the aging population and the healthcare workers I guess.
Gayandfluffy on
Language tests should be a requirement, but often they already are. With knowledge tests, I don’t know. I don’t care if someone knows what date the Soviet Union attacked Finland or the names of all the characters in Kalevala. You don’t need to know these things to be a good citizen. What I want to know is, are you a compassionate human being? Do you respect human rights? Will you treat your daughters as well as your sons, your gay children as well as your straight children? Do you care about the people around you even if they are strangers to you? Do you want to help build and maintain Finnish society and defend us against outside threats? I think those are way more important things. And I know plenty of native Finns don’t fill these requirements either, sadly.
fluffer_nutter on
I’ve taken two citizenship tests, one for the U.S. and one for Germany, and honestly they’re a joke. On paper, the idea sounds reasonable, but in reality it’s just a pointless exercise in bureaucracy.
In the U.S., at least, the “test” isn’t a separate hurdle. It’s just a few questions asked during the final interview. In Germany, it’s a completely different story. It’s a bureaucratic mess that mainly serves to show applicants how dysfunctional the naturalization process really is.
You have to schedule the test, but getting a slot is a nightmare. Each county handles bookings independently. There is no centralized system. In some places you cannot even book online. They do not publish availability, so your only option is to call around, and half the time no one picks up.
If you think memorizing 17 or 33 answers is what makes someone “integrated,” you are as delusional as the bureaucrats who designed this system.
EDIT: for those that don’t believe me. Here is a link to book citizenship test in Berlin. My friend is actually looking for a slot since months. There are no appointments available FOREVER in the future. I actually had to drive 2 hours to a small town of Templin in Brandenburg to take this test.
8 commenti
Finally, they are like 10 late but finally
Curious what “citizenship test” actually means in practice here, language only, or values/history stuff too? Would be nice if they offered free prep courses instead of just making it another gatekeeping tool.
Ah yes, elections are approaching and they’re losing so they must pretend they’re just now doing what they were supposed to do 2-3 years ago.
As a German living in Finland: this is a change I very much appreciate. If you want to become a citizen of a country, you should know the culture, history, politics and values. Should be a given.
Always surprised when I hear this isn’t in place everywhere yet
Pointless barrier that wouldn’t affect its “target audience” – the people that conservatives would call “not integrating” are already in residence permit limbo with all the temporary work contract circus, they aren’t getting citizenship left and right.
But it sure would be another reason for the educated ones to choose some other country. A survey in 2023 has shown that half of foreign students plan to move out after graduating. This change won’t make more people try harder for the goal of gaining citizenship, it’d just make more educated ones seek employment elsewhere. Good luck with the aging population and the healthcare workers I guess.
Language tests should be a requirement, but often they already are. With knowledge tests, I don’t know. I don’t care if someone knows what date the Soviet Union attacked Finland or the names of all the characters in Kalevala. You don’t need to know these things to be a good citizen. What I want to know is, are you a compassionate human being? Do you respect human rights? Will you treat your daughters as well as your sons, your gay children as well as your straight children? Do you care about the people around you even if they are strangers to you? Do you want to help build and maintain Finnish society and defend us against outside threats? I think those are way more important things. And I know plenty of native Finns don’t fill these requirements either, sadly.
I’ve taken two citizenship tests, one for the U.S. and one for Germany, and honestly they’re a joke. On paper, the idea sounds reasonable, but in reality it’s just a pointless exercise in bureaucracy.
In the U.S., at least, the “test” isn’t a separate hurdle. It’s just a few questions asked during the final interview. In Germany, it’s a completely different story. It’s a bureaucratic mess that mainly serves to show applicants how dysfunctional the naturalization process really is.
You have to schedule the test, but getting a slot is a nightmare. Each county handles bookings independently. There is no centralized system. In some places you cannot even book online. They do not publish availability, so your only option is to call around, and half the time no one picks up.
If you think memorizing 17 or 33 answers is what makes someone “integrated,” you are as delusional as the bureaucrats who designed this system.
EDIT: for those that don’t believe me. Here is a link to book citizenship test in Berlin. My friend is actually looking for a slot since months. There are no appointments available FOREVER in the future. I actually had to drive 2 hours to a small town of Templin in Brandenburg to take this test.
[https://www.berlin.de/vhs/deutscher-einbuergerungstest/](https://www.berlin.de/vhs/deutscher-einbuergerungstest/)