Since January 2026, men up to the age of 45 have been required to seek permission from the Bundeswehr before leaving Germany for more than three months – regardless of any conscription status or military contact. A nearly unnoticed amendment to the Military Service Act makes it possible.

The “Frankfurter Rundschau” has taken a closer look at the Military Service Modernisation Act and drawn attention to a provision that apparently almost no one had read: any male person who has reached the age of 17 and wishes to leave Germany for longer than a quarter of a year has, since 1 January 2026, been required to seek approval from the relevant Bundeswehr career centre. The rule applies to all men up to the age of 45, regardless of whether they have ever had or will ever have any contact with the Bundeswehr.

The legal basis is Section 3 of the Conscription Act. Its second paragraph stipulates: “Male persons, upon reaching the age of 17, must obtain approval from the relevant Bundeswehr career centre if they wish to leave the Federal Republic of Germany for more than three months. The same applies if they wish to remain outside the Federal Republic of Germany beyond an approved period, or if they wish to extend a stay abroad that was not subject to approval beyond three months.”

This wording is not new – but its application is. Until 31 December 2025, Section 3 was tied to Section 2 of the Conscription Act, which at the time applied only in two constitutionally defined exceptional circumstances: in a “state of tension” – a situation of heightened external threat declared by the Bundestag or NATO – and in a “state of defence”, meaning an actual armed attack on German territory. Neither situation has ever occurred in the history of the Federal Republic.

With the Military Service Modernisation Act, which came into force at the turn of the year, Section 2 was expanded by one sentence: “Outside a state of tension or defence, Sections 3 […] shall apply.” The approval requirement therefore applies permanently and without any special preconditions.

The Federal Ministry of Defence confirmed this in response to an enquiry from the Ippen Media Group, of which the „Frankfurter Rundschau“ is a part. A spokesperson is quoted as saying by way of explanation: “The background and guiding principle of this regulation is a robust and meaningful military registration system for use when required. […] In the event of an emergency, we need to know who may be staying abroad for an extended period.”

The approval requirement is part of the reform package with which the federal government in Berlin intends to increase the Bundeswehr’s troop strength from the current approximately 184,000 to between 255,000 and 270,000 soldiers by 2035. To this end, all young people born from 2008 onwards will receive a registration form; for men, completing it is compulsory, while for women it is voluntary. The comprehensive conscription assessment of all young men is to follow at a later stage.

The ministry announced that it would develop “more specific regulations for permitting exemptions from the approval requirement”, “also in order to avoid unnecessary bureaucracy”. How the application is to be submitted in practice – through which channels, within what deadlines and with what documentation – remains unclear three months after the regulation came into force. The ministry left unanswered the question of what consequences would follow should approval not be obtained prior to departure.

Section 3 does at least specify the framework within which approvals are to be granted: “for the period during which the male person is not liable for call-up to military service.” A refusal is not provided for under the wording of the law. The requirement to apply nonetheless remains binding – even though there is currently no active conscription and no call-ups for assessment are taking place.

The obligation does not apply only prior to departure. Anyone who spontaneously extends an originally shorter stay abroad beyond three months must submit an application retrospectively.

Published in German in „nd“.

Image: C.Suthorn, Schulstreik gegen das Wehrdienstgesetz in Hannover 2025-12-05 (cropped), CC BY 4.0.