States Change Jewish Immigration Rules

Germany's states have decided to restrict permission for Jews from the former Soviet Union to immigrate to the country. In late December, the state interior ministers agreed that the new regulations -- which could require the immigrants to speak German and to have the skills to get a job in Germany -- would apply to all but the 27,000 people who had by the end of 2004 received written permission to move, according to the Süddeutsche Zeitung daily. The new rules have neither been finalized nor have they been made public yet. The paper reported that the changes will also be valid for those who have applied but not yet gotten approval to move. Since 1990, people from the former Soviet Union have only had to show a birth certificate proving their Jewish heritage to be allowed to live in Germany.