On November 22, city residents will elect a new Migration Advisory Council (Migrationsbeirat) – a body that has represented the interests of Munich residents without a German passport for more than half a century. The city’s Department of Public Order (KVR) has announced that nominations for candidates will open on September 7 and run through September 25.
The Migration Advisory Council has existed since 1974, when it was founded as the Ausländerbeirat, an advisory body to the city council. Today it comprises 40 full voting members and 11 members with advisory status, and serves a six-year term.
The council does more than advise the city council and administration on issues affecting the foreign-born population – it publicly advocates for legal, social and cultural equality between Germans and non-citizens, works against discrimination, and supports integration projects. According to the council itself, it represents the interests of more than 420,000 Munich residents holding foreign citizenship.
Who can run
The right to vote in the council election – and therefore the right to put oneself forward as a candidate – belongs to Munich residents without German citizenship who are at least 18 years old.
Two additional conditions apply:
- permanent registration in Munich, or de facto residence in the city for at least six months prior to the vote – that is, since May 22, 2026;
- no grounds for disqualification from voting rights.
Anyone who does not have the right to vote cannot put themselves forward as a candidate. The nomination period closes on Friday, September 25, at exactly 12:00 noon.
Special provisions for German citizens
The Migration Advisory Council election is not an exclusively “foreign residents” affair. German citizens are also eligible to run for a seat on the council – but only if they acquired German citizenship no more than 12 years ago, or hold a second, foreign citizenship in addition to their German one.
This rule dates back to the late 1980s, when the council’s powers and the process for forming it were expanded, and voting rights were extended to the majority of the city’s residents.
How to apply
- The law provides for two ways to submit a candidate nomination:
by post, addressed to the office of the returning officer at the KVR: Ruppertstraße 19, 80446 München;
- in person at the KVR building, Entrance A, Room 56.44.
To avoid queues, the Department of Public Order (KVR) recommends booking an appointment in advance. Further details on the Migration Advisory Council election are also available in the Integreat app, offered in 24 languages and specifically designed to make city administrative procedures easier for residents with varying levels of German proficiency.
Why it matters
Munich is a multi-ethnic city where nearly one in three residents holds foreign citizenship or has a migration background. Yet the vast majority of this share of the population has no right to vote in municipal elections in the conventional sense – at the local level, that right is reserved for citizens of EU member states. For this portion of the city’s population, the Migration Advisory Council remains almost the only legal channel for influencing decisions made by the City Council, the municipal administration and the district authorities.
That is precisely why the council’s composition, elected once every six years, carries more than symbolic weight. It will determine whose voice gets heard in debates over integration policy, the allocation of subsidies for migrant-focused projects, and the protection of minority rights in the city over the coming term.
