Married to a Non-EU-Foreigner , I had to join my wife in her recurring visits to the Ausländeramt…read more(municipal immigration office) over the years. In principle, that was not really dramatic (we were ALWAYS and without ANY exception served very politely and everybody was ready to help) but the hours we had to spend waiting in front of the office was highly irritating. Even worse, before you could start waiting you first had to get a number, which was handed out in changing offices and you never knew Anyway, I learned that now you can request appointments online.
So, I went to http://www.essen.de , there to Rathaus/Bürgerservice A-Z, under A to Ausländerbehörde, Terminvergabe online" and then(on the right side, rather small) to Terminvergabe (Requesting Appointments). Click Allgemeiner Termin (z. B. Antrag auf einen Aufenthaltstitel) which is appointment, general (e.g. application for a visa).
You will find a British flag on the Essen homepage indicating that there is an English translation available but actually you will be directed to a totally insignificant page poorly promoting business and tourism in Essen (sort of, it is really not worth reading).
Now you must complete an online form that is rather self-explanatory even though it is in German. You can tell them the weekday and the time you prefer for your appointment. The Ausländeramt will probably approve but be prepared to have your appointment weeks later. I had to wait for two months! But well, holiday season, lack of personnel everywhere and we were probably not the only people who had business with the municipality.
On the day of the appointment we showed up some time early to park our car on Schederhofstr. as the Ausländeramt does not offer visitors parking space. Directly at the entrance, we were greeted by a security guard who checked our appointment and number. Both were in order so we went in. Inside a brief moment of confusion. Do we go left or right to the second floor? Again, somebody came to direct us to the left for a security check. Similarly to airport checks we had to empty our pockets and pass through a metal detector. I was also checked manually because I forgot to take out my mobile phone (but the security people were very friendly and did not mind) and off we went to the second floor.
Nowadays people are not serviced according to countries or regions anymore. Instead, everybody who has a request in general must go to the second floor (which would be the third in the US). Here you will find two waiting areas on the left and right side. For traditional reasons we chose the left one. The interior was still as cosy as I remembered it: grey linoleum floor (they still make them???), white wallpapers, no pictures and no single chairs, instead wooden seats bolted to a metal bar, probably due to security reasons. Somebody might throw a chair through the window (or worse), if they were not completely happy with the municipality 's decision, right? ;-) Anyway, the room is clean. There is a TV-screen on the wall showing the respective waiting number and the corresponding office you have to go to.
The number in the Ausländeramt answering mail already indicated that the appointment is not binding. It is more a concept or an idea. So, we had to be patient for 25 more minutes until it was our turn. We went in and (I was not surprised at all) again the service was flawless: polite, quick, assisting. We brought the wrong picture for the visa but that was no problem. Down to the entrance hall for a new picture out of the photo booth (6 EUR, the machine accepts coins and 5EUR-notes but does not give change, I think), paying the administrative fee on the third floor (the old location) and back to the office. We received our follow up appointment to pick up the new eAT (elektronischer Aufenthaltstitel=electronic visa) four weeks later. And we were done. That took less than 15 minutes (would have been less than 10 with the right photo).
One thing is left to be mentioned: leaving the building is a bit tricky (not really, if you know about it). the automatic sliding doors actually do not open automatically. You must press a green colored button that you can see in front of you on the wall right opposite the stairs that you come down when you reach the ground floor. Push it once and you are free to go.
Conclusion: an appointment at the Ausländeramt is still not a thing to look forward to for weeks. Nevertheless the Online Appointment is a great thing, even if you have to wait for quite some time. I was never as relaxed as I was this time. I do not rate the ambience. The Ausländeramt is not a cafe but a civil service building and even a one star reduction in the overall rating would discredit the performance and motivation of all the people working and serving there. Five solid stars!
