Niederlassungserlaubnis in Berlin: How long is the processing time??

[OMO4life 0]

Hello everyone,

Please has anyone recently applied for the NE in Berlin and how long did it take to get a face to face appointment?

I have applied by post since early Oct. 2020 and still have not heard anything back from them.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

[razorsandroses 430]

13 hours ago, OMO4life said:

 

I have applied by post since early Oct. 2020 and still have not heard anything back from them.

 

 

 

Buckle up and get ready for the ride. This is my experience with the Berlin office:

 

September 2018: Obtained a permanent work contract, applied for a NE.

December 2018: Received an invoice for €90 to secure an appointment. Paid immediately.

April 2019: Went to the office to ask what was taking so long.  Was told there was a backlog of cases and to expect a processing time of at least 9 months.

June 2019: Visited the office again, was told that a letter sent to me had been returned as an invalid address, and that my application had been tossed. When asked where I had been receiving my mail, I said, "AT THE SAME ADDRESS WHERE I GOT YOUR DAMN BILL!!!"

August 2019: Applied again

December 2019: Received an invoice for €90. Paid it even though I had already paid it before (it's pointless arguing with immigration officials)

March 2020: Visited the office to inquire, same "We're backlogged" story again. 

October 2020: Visit the office to let them know that despite the pandemic restricting services, I had been waiting for a year for my appointment. Was then told my case had been moved to another office on Keplerstrasse that is open one day a week and requires you to either stand in line for 3-4 hours OUTSIDE AT 5 IN THE MORNING to get a call number (and even then you are not guaranteed to get in), or otherwise hire a lawyer to communicate with them.

November 2020: My residence permit is near the expiration date, I'm almost out of time, I'm forced to spend €300 on a lawyer to write them a letter threatening legal action for administration incompetence if they don't move their asses.

December 2020: Received a letter with an appointment. Appeared at said appointment on time and was called over one hour later, as is expected of German authorities. Niederlassung issued. 

 

Good luck, buddy!

[snarf 2]

On the website I used the "refresh page every few minutes" method of finding an appointment a couple years ago, got one that was a few weeks distant. I'm not sure how that works nowadays. Showed up with all paperwork listed on the website, and it was issued. No invoice or anything, I just paid the standard way using the card they give you at the appointment.

[OMO4life 0]

On 1/6/2021, 1:40:50, razorsandroses said:

 

 

Buckle up and get ready for the ride. This is my experience with the Berlin office:

 

September 2018: Obtained a permanent work contract, applied for a NE.

December 2018: Received an invoice for €90 to secure an appointment. Paid immediately.

April 2019: Went to the office to ask what was taking so long.  Was told there was a backlog of cases and to expect a processing time of at least 9 months.

June 2019: Visited the office again, was told that a letter sent to me had been returned as an invalid address, and that my application had been tossed. When asked where I had been receiving my mail, I said, "AT THE SAME ADDRESS WHERE I GOT YOUR DAMN BILL!!!"

August 2019: Applied again

December 2019: Received an invoice for €90. Paid it even though I had already paid it before (it's pointless arguing with immigration officials)

March 2020: Visited the office to inquire, same "We're backlogged" story again. 

October 2020: Visit the office to let them know that despite the pandemic restricting services, I had been waiting for a year for my appointment. Was then told my case had been moved to another office on Keplerstrasse that is open one day a week and requires you to either stand in line for 3-4 hours OUTSIDE AT 5 IN THE MORNING to get a call number (and even then you are not guaranteed to get in), or otherwise hire a lawyer to communicate with them.

November 2020: My residence permit is near the expiration date, I'm almost out of time, I'm forced to spend €300 on a lawyer to write them a letter threatening legal action for administration incompetence if they don't move their asses.

December 2020: Received a letter with an appointment. Appeared at said appointment on time and was called over one hour later, as is expected of German authorities. Niederlassung issued. 

 

Good luck, buddy!

That was a really long ride. Thanks for sharing. I'm happy it came out at the end. I will wait a little until end of January and then go to the office. 

[OMO4life 0]

On 1/7/2021, 9:51:30, snarf said:

On the website I used the "refresh page every few minutes" method of finding an appointment a couple years ago, got one that was a few weeks distant. I'm not sure how that works nowadays. Showed up with all paperwork listed on the website, and it was issued. No invoice or anything, I just paid the standard way using the card they give you at the appointment.

Please, was this an NE application you got an appointment for on their website? And when was this please?

[engelchen 13,040]

30 minutes ago, OMO4life said:

I will wait a little until end of January and then go to the office. 

 

In case you've missed it, we are in the middle of a pandemic. The office is closed to applicants without an appointment and applications for NEs are not a priority.

[OMO4life 0]

On 1/10/2021, 1:26:58, engelchen said:

 

In case you've missed it, we are in the middle of a pandemic. The office is closed to applicants without an appointment and applications for NEs are not a priority.

It makes sense. Thanks. I have also looked up the same information on their website. I will just patiently wait to get a response from them. Thanks again. 

[Santitas 587]

Had a funky experience. I emailed my NE

application to the ABH Berlin on Friday, and they.responded.today. with a appointment date 😳😳 Am I in the Twilight Zone??

 

Is it because of my nationality or because of the ease of my application? Last time I went to renew my visa in 2018 after they went through my paperwork, THEY told ME that I should apply for the NE 🤨🤨

[engelchen 13,040]

 

5 minutes ago, Santitas said:

Is it because of my nationality or because of the ease of my application?

 

Probably a bit of both.

 

5 minutes ago, Santitas said:

Last time I went to renew my visa in 2018 after they went through my paperwork, THEY told ME that I should apply for the NE 🤨🤨

 

The additional paperwork for an NE is in some cases not much more than that for an AE and whoever processed your AE might have made a note on your file. I also suspect that your citizenship makes the security check easier.

 

Please let us know if they actually issue you an eAT or just a sticker.

 

[Santitas 587]

You’re right. The only thing missing when I extended my visa was the Rentenversicherungsverlauf. 

[Neptoon 2]

Thanks for your post @OMO4life, I was also totally wondering what the heck is going on and should have come here earlier to ask. My Verlauf:

May 2020: Applied via website for Niederlassungserlaubnis. Have been living here for almost 10 years this time around.

June 2020: After trying a bunch of times, got someone on the phone who said to apply via email. Applied via email, received email confirmation that prior Aufenthaltserlaubnis and work permit remains valid. (Which is good since I have a job).

July 2020: Aufenthaltserlaubnis expired.

Fall 2020: crickets

January 2021: Email reply, what's going on. Nothing.

March 2021: Letter via registered mail, what's going on. Nothing.

Some of my German friends have advised getting a lawyer, but I am not sure what they can do other than write letters and in prior occasions when I have been advised by German friends to talk to a lawyer, I have not been impressed and felt it a waste of money. 

@engelchen, just curious what is your nationality, US? (I am US).

@Santitas, unreal! You must be in the T-Zone (either that or all the rest of us are!)

I understand that it's a pandemic but I've been going to work every day since it started. Issuing a visa is not like flying a spacecraft to Mars, people! LOL

 

[Neptoon 2]

 Today I FINALLY received an email from the LABO asking me for documents to go along with my application. Now all I have to do is freshen up the documents I already obtained last summer. 11 months is unbelievable. In the meantime I was considering an Untätigkeitsklage but I'm not sure it would be valid if they are still under corona restrictions.

[aneurysm 8]

On 4/12/2021, 3:51:44, Santitas said:

Had a funky experience. I emailed my NE

application to the ABH Berlin on Friday, and they.responded.today. with a appointment date 😳😳 Am I in the Twilight Zone??

 

Is it because of my nationality or because of the ease of my application? Last time I went to renew my visa in 2018 after they went through my paperwork, THEY told ME that I should apply for the NE 🤨🤨

Hey @Santitas sounds like an absolute dream... glad that worked out for you may I ask how far in the future the appointment is?

Second question, did you use one of the email addresses from this page (link below) relating to your nationality, or did you simply email the general email contact for the whole Ausländerbehörde? Thanks!
https://www.berlin.de/einwanderung/ueber-uns/aktuelles/artikel.1041742.php

[Santitas 587]

They gave me an appointment in July. I emailed     the address that was on the website and actually received answers from two different people 🙄🙄

[Santitas 587]

Had my appointment today, and everything went smoothly. Took a full 10 minutes, and that was that. The guy said the card would be sent per mail and would arrive in 6 to 8 weeks.

[aneurysm 8]

@Santitas thanks for your updates! Glad that worked out for you, congrats

 

I'll also share my experience so far for others who are also going through the process.

 

I applied by email to the Ausländerbehörde on 12 July, so less than two weeks ago (think I'll have a while to wait yet ). I got the automatic reply saying that my email has arrived and that they will get in touch/please don't bother them until then XD. As my application is pretty watertight I'm hoping it'll be quick and painless, but let's see...

 

This link is where I found the email address relevant for me (different depending on your nationality): https://www.berlin.de/einwanderung/ueber-uns/aktuelles/artikel.1041742.php

 

Some advice: I found this very non-obvious page that was actually quite helpful: https://www.berlin.de/einwanderung/service/beratung/artikel.939879.php - Beratungsservice der Landesamt für Einwanderung. Their phone lines were always busy, but they replied to my email query either the next day or the day after, and were able to answer my question. It seems like that link should be on the homepage of their website...

 

@OMO4life was there an update on the progress of your application?! Hope it went well...

[aneurysm 8]

On 7/22/2021, 9:53:16, aneurysm said:

I applied by email to the Ausländerbehörde on 12 July, so less than two weeks ago (think I'll have a while to wait yet ). I got the automatic reply saying that my email has arrived and that they will get in touch/please don't bother them until then XD.

 

Update: I got a reply from a real person the next day, 23 July, saying that they've received my application. Same info as the automatic one, really: the application is here, we'll work on it, it's gonna take a while, please don't ask us any follow-up questions - we will contact you!

 

If it took them 11 days just to confirm the application has arrived, I imagine I'll be in for the standard 3-4 month processing time - and hopefully not longer.

[Santitas 587]

Got my card in the mail today. Six weeks after my appt. at the ABH.

[amidd 0]

On 6.1.2021, 00:14:08, OMO4life said:

Hello everyone,

Please has anyone recently applied for the NE in Berlin and how long did it take to get a face to face appointment?

I have applied by post since early Oct. 2020 and still have not heard anything back from them.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Hi,
Could you please let us know? how did you apply for the NE? and how did you get an answer? I sent my documents by post a month ago and have still not received any feedback

[aneurysm 8]

On 05/10/2021, 06:38:15, amidd said:

Hi,
Could you please let us know? how did you apply for the NE? and how did you get an answer? I sent my documents by post a month ago and have still not received any feedback

 

I would recommend that you email the correct department at this link, if only to check whether they have received your application: https://www.berlin.de/einwanderung/ueber-uns/aktuelles/artikel.1041742.php

I applied by email four months ago, which they confirmed they had received about 10 days later. Since then I haven't heard anything more. 3-4 months seems to be the minimum waiting time; it could also be longer.