As far as government buildings go, I'd pick the Ausländerbehörde over the suburban American DMV, a New York City post office, or ANY Planned Parenthood office any day.
That said, it's a fairly straightforward process:
1. You make an appointment ahead of time (months in advance!)
2. Each building is divided into three sections (Haus), which are then further divided into different floors, then further divided into different sections. When you make your appointment, you're given a Haus, a floor, a section and a waiting room number.
3. You go to the required Haus/floor/waiting room, and you wait...
Coming from Kreuzberg and being in the city for almost two weeks(!), I was MISERABLY lost when I got here. I somehow ended up a good 6-7 blocks away, but made it to my 7am(!!!!!) appointment at 7:09. Just my luck, my number was up! I scurried into the assigned room and was greeted by a friendly English speaking woman.
Sure, you do have to wait a bunch but it's not as bad as people think. There's a dude on the first floor who was friendly and pointed me in the right direction. There are photobooths on various floors, so if you're a slacker, you can take one in haus. There are snacks available and this is a GREAT place to people watch.
All in all, not a bad experience. I'm not in a hurry to go back, but wouldn't be totally bummed out if I had to. read more