An elected candidate shall attain membership of the German Bundestag when the appropriate Returning Officer receives his or her letter of acceptance within the period and in the form prescribed in Article 41 (2) or Article 42 (3), but not before the expiration of the electoral term of the last German Bundestag and, in the case of Article 44 (4), not before the member elected as a result of the original election result has vacated his or her seat. If the elected candidate fails to make a statement or fails to make it in due form before the expiration of the legally prescribed period, the election shall be considered accepted at the time of the expiration. An acceptance with reservations shall be considered a refusal. Statements of acceptance and refusal shall be irrevocable.
