Germany inches closer to bringing back mandatory military service

Germany will require all men to register for potential military service from 1 January 2026, with compulsory service to be reintroduced if volunteer numbers fall short of targets set to meet NATO commitments.

"Modern military service is coming," said Jens Spahn, Chairman of the ruling CDU/CSU parliamentary group, in a press statement.

"We will have more commitment to voluntary service, the aim is to establish a binding growth path in law with a six-monthly reporting obligation to the German Bundestag."

"So that together as a society we always know where we stand in the growth of our armed forces in order to be able to defend ourselves," added Spahn.

From 1 January, around 700,000 young people born in 2008 or later will be contacted to complete their registrations and medical screenings, said Spahn, adding that women will also receive a letter, but unlike men, they are not obliged to respond.

The process is set to resume in Germany in about a month.

Federal Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said that he had often emphasised that Europe was looking to Germany, "not only in terms of money, weapons and procurement, but also in terms of personnel."

Following the agreement on military service, the defence chief announced that he was "very confident that it will all work out," and once again referred to voluntary service as an "attractive" concept.

What happens if the volunteer push is not enough?

If the required number of conscripts is not reached through voluntary service, compulsory service will be introduced through a separate law.

The SPD parliamentary group leader Matthias Miersch explained that there are "essentially two phases" to the programme, with voluntary service being the first.

"We are convinced that this voluntary phase is also sufficient to cover the demand," said Miersch.

"Then there is also a clear provision in the law that - in the event that this does not happen - the Bundestag will have to deal with it from scratch and have a legislative procedure without prejudice," he explained.

Pistorius added that if compulsory military service were to be reintroduced, which the Bundestag has already decided on, a "larger procedure" would follow.

"This means that there is a whole range of criteria that would be applied when selecting conscripts in the event of compulsory military service," said Pistorius.

"These are reasons for exemption such as there have already been two brothers in basic military service, police officers, someone who has enlisted and signed up for civil defence, conscientious objectors."

He explained that this "significantly" reduces the number of those from a year group who are even considered for conscription. "And only when all selection criteria have been exhausted, then a selection procedure can be used as a last resort," Pistorious added.

How did the new model come about?

It was already known before the statement that the details of the voluntary nature of military service demanded by Boris Pistorius would remain unchanged.

At the same time, according to information from German media outlet Der Spiegel, the coalition partners have agreed that all men will be subject to compulsory military service in the future. This step had already been announced at the beginning of the week.

According to current plans, the Ministry of Defence believes it will be possible to draft entire cohorts from July 2027. Men born in 2008 are to be included first, as per the SPD minister's words.

In addition, a mandatory online questionnaire is planned for men. From 2026, they will have to provide information on health, fitness, education and their willingness to perform military service, provided the Bundestag passes the law as planned.

Women and people with non-binary gender identities will be able to complete the questionnaire voluntarily.

Pistorius has regularly emphasised that troops must be strengthened primarily by volunteers. According to him, this is "the consensus" among the coalition partners, comprising the CDU, CSU and SPD.

The CDU/CSU has prevailed with its demand to make the necessary increase in Bundeswehr personnel binding.

Pistorius had long rejected this, partly because the SPD had ruled out an automatic mechanism for the return of compulsory military service at its party conference in the summer.

According to information obtained by Der Spiegel from sources within the ruling coalition, targets and goals up to 2035 are yet to be defined.

This includes personnel figures that must align with Berlin's commitments to NATO. Compulsory drafts would not be carried out by lottery.