veinar

Maybe it was already mentioned in the topic but - does it matter in which Bezirk WITHIN Berlin I take / pass the Einbürgerungstest? I know that outside of Berlin is problematic due to state-specific questions, but I hope / assume that within the state (in my case city of Berlin) it doesn't matter.

BTW By accident, I saw that on the back of my wife's Aufenthaltstitel it says the "real" duration of the residency permit in the upper left corner - so not the physical card validity, which is tied to the expiration of the passport, if the passport expires before the validity of the permit.   That probably means that we would be OK to travel even if she didn't receive it, as long as we can show some proof that she applied for the transfer to the new passport and is just waiting for the card.    On the other hand, if you are EXTENDING the residency permit, it's a different situation, and the risk would be much higher I think.   Luckily, we don't need to stress about it and guess , as we have the new one in hands now.

It's picked up :)

Ah, you meant the waiting numbers. Gotcha. I think they did have that over there, but there is also a guard who decides if you can enter or not (i.e. if you have an appointment or good enough reason to be there without it). We'll find out tomorrow, as they close in 20 mins.

Sorry, I didn't get this - which boxes are you referring to?

Ok, it seems it's really ready ! 

Thanks!   My wife just sent them an email an hour ago, asking if they can check (based on her personal info) if the card is ready for picking up and they just replied but very ambiguous : "Sie können Ihre Aufenthaltstitel ohne Termin abholen". I am saying ambiguous, because it is not clear if it's really ready, or they didn't read through the email and just gave her the generic info (which we already knew - once you have the letter that it's ready, you can pick it up without appointment). So she will have to follow up to confirm, I guess.  I remember them saying something that it should be done within 4 weeks, because the Amtin added a note for urgent processing. But we talked in German, so you never know if we misunderstood something...

First of all, thank you everyone for valuable replies - didn't expect this topic will get this much traction in just 12 hours!   That's good to hear! For her, today is 4 weeks exactly, and we only got the "elektronischer Aufenthaltstitel (eAT)" letter (with Transfer PIN etc.) so far, but not the letter that says it's ready to be picked up  Let's see... At which institution have you applied ? Did you have to pick it up personally or they sent it by post ?

On December 12, 2022, my wife applied to transfer her residence permit (valid until May 2023) to her new passport in Sonnenalle Berlin Bürgeramt. We have flight tickets on January 17th to visit family outside of EU, and we fear that we will not receive her residence card by then. It states that it takes approximately 4 to 5 weeks to get the residence card and that a letter will be sent by post when the card is ready to pick up. She potentially could travel outside of EU with the old residence card but unfortunately the expiration date is January 16th, as it is attached to the old passport expiration date, just one day before our flight. The problem is that we don't have any valid proof that her new card is in process. We are thinking of the possibility that she enters back to EU as tourist, which she can do with her passport/nationality. What are the risks here ? Also, would a travel within EU in this situation be OK ?

  Hm, ok - I am still not sure because from this I take that the Bürgeramt official can ask for a test that is no more than 2 years old. Unless it's *known* that they usually do not ask for it.   Also, this is for Goethe. I am intending to take telc B1 Prüfung. Is that one also without expiration (at least from perspective of the instutition that issues it)?

  That's good to hear! Do you have any resources where you deducted it from ? Please share if you do, thanks!

  That's a fair point, and of course we are aware of that. We hope for the best, and will try to pass those exams in the first half of next year, since in May 2023 will be our 5 years of residence. Ideally, the law will be passed before then and we apply right away. It's not a bigge even if it's later in the year, that would give my wife (who is objectively around A2+ at the moment) more time to pass the B1 test.   Of course, it would suck if the law doesn't get passed at all - but a complete disaster would be if the Einbürgerungstest and B1 Certificate expire after 2 years (so less than our 8 years of residency). I haven't found any clear info on that, so I hope they don't have "expiry date". In that case, I would probably push for B2 test to at least apply by May 2024, assuming B1 of my wife would be sufficient as a dependent applicant.

I read this that our 5 months old baby will not need to prove the language skills and pass the Einbürgerungs test but it will still need to show commitment to the Democratic values and other stuff :))  

  According to the current law - can your spouse apply with you ?   PS I mentioned the new law only because of the reduction of 8 yrs to 5 yrs, which I believe is certain thing (in case law gets passed). 

I am not sure if this is the right topic - but I am planning to apply for the German citizenship next year, provided that the new immigration law(s) get passed (next year is going to be 5 years of my residence in Germany). I already know that your child can apply with your application, but what about your spouse? In my case, she moved in with me (so she will "turn" 5 in Germany at the same time as me), however, she started working about 6 months after me. We have been married for 5 years.    In case she can apply with me - I assume she would also need to have B1 language skills and pass the Einbürgerungstest?