Visiting the "Ausländerbehörde" to get a visa

Hi everyone! So after almost two months of living here, I'm finally going in to the Ausländerbehörde to get my official student visa for a language course. I was wondering if there's anything else I should bring with me and if anyone has any general advice. Here's a list of the things I'm planning to take: proof of health insurance, bank account statement, passport, passport photos (6- just in case), school registration, local registration, rental agreement, 2 copies of the visa application, 2 copies of the visa declaration, a photocopy of my passport, and a German-speaking amigo. Anything I'm missing here? Fingerprints? Blood sample perhaps? Did your experiences there remove several years from your life? Or is it not as horrible as they say?

Erm, didn't mean to post this here. Please move to "Life In Berlin." Sorry!

Make sure you are not smiling in your passport photo. They rejected our first ones because we were smiling and we had to get new ones made. Good luck.

the building reminds me a little bit of alcatraz so be prepared for that
I think your experience there is shaped by how realistic your expectations are. If you are expecting a 3 month visa and you've got legitimate plans (work or school) to be here and money in the bank it should go pretty smoothly. If you are trying to get a 3 year visa and you have no work or money then ... well its a nail biter ..

Yeah, the painfully strict guidelines for those were pretty shocking to me. Don't worry, I made sure that I kept an emotionless, "neutral" expression for the photos (;

So they issue visas for shorter periods than 6 months? I was under the impression that they typically issue visas for the 6 month or 1 year mark.

I heard about the 3 month visa scenario from a musician that I met this summer. She wanted a 3 year residency, but was only granted a 3 month extension. This is just one particular case, it may not be the rule. I'm not up to speed on all the visa rules.

You may have already read this, but just in case you didnt:

Info and advice on acquiring a visa, For U.S. citizens to live and work in Berlin
www.toytowngermany.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=80543

Hi Smoofy,

I was at the Ausländerbehoërde a few weeks ago. I went there with expecting the worst, but it turned out to be nothing like the horror stories that I had heard. I was there without an interpreter (by choice), and could only speak the few sentences/questions that I'd been rehearsing for a couple of weeks. Maybe it was my lucky day - I got my visa without any hassles.

I think it helps to go prepared with ALL the documents and duly completed application form, collated in neat stacks. Give them more than they require, if you can. If I am not mistaken, they will only give a maximum 1-year visa for language courses, subject to your being able to proof you have enough money to live on during the year here.

Having said that, I have heard that they are a little less harsh with student visa applicants than applicants for other types of other visas.

Good luck. I think you'll be fine.

Jade

Thanks Jade! It is good to hear that not everyone is given a hard time. I guess I'll just bring everything I can think of and hope for the best!

I gotta admit i was pretty intimidated by the building! I was there in October getting a working holiday visa. I had no trouble at all even with out a translator. i guess it depends on who you get.
All the best!

This is DEFINITELY true- but still good advice. Here's how things went down: It was 7 AM (opening time) and the Ausländerbehörde was crowded in all three waiting rooms. Babies were crying, people were complaining, and the machines that gently beep to let you know a new number is coming up kept breaking down. After only a couple hours of waiting, my boyfriend came out with a big smile on his face and a shiny new visa in his passport. Unable to resist the temptation to pry, I asked him what had gone on in there, if it had been violent, if they had made him give blood, urine, semen? He told me they didn't even ask him any questions, really, just handed the thing over. I, however, had to wait 6 hours only to be told by some German lady who didn't speak English that I needed some document of some kind and would have to come back in a few weeks after I'd obtained whatever it was. Not being the kind of person to give up my time that easily, I decided to take a new number, wait another hour, and try my luck talking to someone else. After tossing around some documents regarding my school enrollment, funds, and health insurance, I was given a visa for one year. I'm very happy to be done with this. I wouldn't wish the Ausländerbehörde upon even my worst enemies.

Good work, smoofy. I especially like the taking a new number trick. Very crafty! We will toast you & your visa on Sunday

Haha! Looking forward to it (; Thanks for all the encouragement!

Forgot to post some general advice for those reading this:

1. Don't come first thing Monday morning. Come in the afternoon. Most people seem to have those job things and need to be at work then. I was there from 7 until 1 and the difference was several hours of wait time. Bring a good, long book to help maintain your sanity, or maybe a movie, tunes, etc. We watched some Dave Chappelle show on our ipod (= Anyways, bring LOTS. I saw one woman there read the same newspaper 5 times out of sheer boredom. Also bring food as I don't think they have any in the building or very close by. I was starving by the time I finally got out!

2. As others have mentioned, bring any and every document you think they might want. You just never know what they will ask for. These should be documents related to residency, health insurance, school, job (if you have one), and bank accounts.

3. It does help to bring a friend who can speak German, but make sure that friend has their schedule clear for quite a few hours. It may take some time. My friend had to leave after the first 3 hours of wait time so she wouldn't be late for work.

4. For a student visa for a language course, make sure you don't put your purpose of stay as "study" on your application but instead put "language course." There are two kinds of student visas- one for university students and one for language courses and you want to make sure your application has the right one down.

5. Bring some cash or an EC card to pay for your visa. 50 euros. You get to use this weird automated machine thingy. Too bad you can't use those to get your visa, too.

6. Make sure you have your school registration, something proving that the course is 20 hours a week (I used an email from the instructor), and proof that you have paid for the course and are officially enrolled.

7. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again (with a new number). Good luck!

Be careful with this one. If you come too late then they won't give you a number. My first time (of 4 total) that I went, I got there at 11am. I stood in line for a very long time and then when I finally got up to the counter, she said that they were all out of appointments for the day and that I would have to come back on another day. I guess the idea is that if they want to close at a certain time then they have to stop letting people in at some point a few hours before they want to be done.

If someone charged you for a passport photo in which you were smiling, you should have gotten your money back. I don't know any country that lets you smile in your passport photo and most photographers know it's garbage if you are smiling when they shoot it.

I'm not a student so it might be different..

Basically I had 35252352 things in preparation for this and only needed a few things. I found some "official" website that listed additional things that I had to do a lot of work back home to get, including documents from the police basically saying that I wasn't a criminal. They didn't ask for any of it.

I had a letter from my employer (proof of income basically), photocopies of passport and things like that, passport photos.. well.. basically the things you list.
I dont think you need anything else really and WORST CASE: They make you come back with something you missed or something new they request.
Registration papers, passport stuff/photos/photocopies..rental agreement, money.. you really don't need much else.

Also I made an appointment before going. I don't know if this is common practice, but a friend had a contact there and this is what I did. I was a bit confused by it all when I got there because everyone else had numbers and things but I think I bypassed that (?).