# An Indian applying for family reunion visa in Germany



## RSEN

Hi,

I am an Indian national currently doing an Internship in Germany on German national Visa Type D. I am also married to a German citizen and my marriage certificate is from Denmark (Apostilled by the MEA Denmark).

Now to get a longer stay in Germany, I have applied for an Aufenthaltserlaubnis at the Ausländerbehörde in Stuttgart. At the same time I have also acquired a Job contract but in a different field. I am an engineer from the energy field but the Job contract is on mechanical design work. 

I earlier took an appointment for Job Permit visa/blue Card visa. But later went and and changed it to marriage/spouse/Family reunion visa (Aufenthaltserlaubnis) 

Now my internship visa ends on 31st December 2014 and I have my appointment on 16th Decemeber 2014. The Lady at the Ausländerbehörde in Stuttgart told me to bring all documents relevant to marriage and also work, and then they will see what can be done.

I changed the reason for Aufenthaltserlaubnis as the Lady at the Counter told me that I have more freedom with Family visa as that would give me freedom and flexibility to quit and Change Jobs and also to Study if I want to.

But now I am really nervous and confused as to want is going to happen and what could I do extra to get my PR/VISA-Aufenthaltserlaubnis stamped OK.

With less than 10 days to go, I am looking for some expert expat advise. Could anyone of you tell me what are my chances? And what should I do to make sure I get the VISA.

I look forward to your kind replies.

Thanks & Regards
RS.


----------



## ALKB

RSEN said:


> Hi,
> 
> I am an Indian national currently doing an Internship in Germany on German national Visa Type D. I am also married to a German citizen and my marriage certificate is from Denmark (Apostilled by the MEA Denmark).
> 
> Now to get a longer stay in Germany, I have applied for an Aufenthaltserlaubnis at the Ausländerbehörde in Stuttgart. At the same time I have also acquired a Job contract but in a different field. I am an engineer from the energy field but the Job contract is on mechanical design work.
> 
> I earlier took an appointment for Job Permit visa/blue Card visa. But later went and and changed it to marriage/spouse/Family reunion visa (Aufenthaltserlaubnis)
> 
> Now my internship visa ends on 31st December 2014 and I have my appointment on 16th Decemeber 2014. The Lady at the Ausländerbehörde in Stuttgart told me to bring all documents relevant to marriage and also work, and then they will see what can be done.
> 
> I changed the reason for Aufenthaltserlaubnis as the Lady at the Counter told me that I have more freedom with Family visa as that would give me freedom and flexibility to quit and Change Jobs and also to Study if I want to.
> 
> But now I am really nervous and confused as to want is going to happen and what could I do extra to get my PR/VISA-Aufenthaltserlaubnis stamped OK.
> 
> With less than 10 days to go, I am looking for some expert expat advise. Could anyone of you tell me what are my chances? And what should I do to make sure I get the VISA.
> 
> I look forward to your kind replies.
> 
> Thanks & Regards
> RS.


No need to be nervous.

Your spouse needs to accompany you to the appointment.

You need your marriage certificate, your passport, your spouse's passport or ID card, rental contract, proof of health insurance, up to date biometric passport photos of yourself, work contracts and salary slips if applicable and the appropriate filled in form:

https://service.berlin.de/dienstleistung/305289/en/

If you have anything that shows your German language skills, bring those documents, too.


----------



## RSEN

Thanks a lot for your Kind reply. Gives me a lot of encouragement.

I have collected all the relevant docs that you mentioned and some others. Hope I am not missing on anything. 

The Lady actually said that, Show us your documents and you would get your VISA - Yes or No on the same very day, there and then. That is what is making me nervous and scared ... after going through many Blogs and Forums... I am here wondering .. ...could that be so simple as it sounds .. like a cake walk .. as Long as one has all docs.... or is there a catch that I am missing due to my inexperience with These things...!!

Keeping my fingers crossed ...8 days to go..!!

Thanks & regards
RS


----------



## ALKB

RSEN said:


> Thanks a lot for your Kind reply. Gives me a lot of encouragement.
> 
> I have collected all the relevant docs that you mentioned and some others. Hope I am not missing on anything.
> 
> The Lady actually said that, Show us your documents and you would get your VISA - Yes or No on the same very day, there and then. That is what is making me nervous and scared ... after going through many Blogs and Forums... I am here wondering .. ...could that be so simple as it sounds .. like a cake walk .. as Long as one has all docs.... or is there a catch that I am missing due to my inexperience with These things...!!
> 
> Keeping my fingers crossed ...8 days to go..!!
> 
> Thanks & regards
> RS


My husband always got his residence permit within a few minutes - arrive, they look at the form and papers, check that everything is there, put some data into the system and print out the permit sticker to affix in passport. 

Don't know if they have changed to biometric card now, that would take a few weeks to arrive, but you would come to know whether the permit is approved or not on the day.

Once you are married and already in the country, Germany really is one of the more relaxed places in Europe to apply for a spouse residence permit.

Normally you should get a one year permit. Then you will be asked to attend another appointment to check whether circumstances have changed and you will then receive a 2-year permit. After that you can either get another 2-year permit or apply for an indefinite permit if you meet the additional requirements. As you are married to a German national you could then also apply for naturalisation, again, subject to meeting all requirements.


----------



## RSEN

Thank you very much. Trust me all that you mentioned is valuable Information and I would surely Need it with time.

I fail to understand why the same Information and Detail Explanation is not provided by the officers at the Ausländerbehörde in Germany. Things would become much simpler for all the expats.

Also you are right, they give some sort of biometric Id Card and hopefully the same day, otherwise I wont be able to fly back to India for the Christmas and New Years Holidays.

Being positive, once I get the VISA, I would certainly like to know the additional requirements for further Extension of 2 years after the first year and then up to an indefinite permit or to apply for Naturalisation. But I guess I will cross the Bridge when I reach it.

But surely, I will Keep posting here and also seek advise time and again. At the same time would be more than happy to help others in similar situations by sharing my experiences.

Thanks & regards
RS


----------



## ALKB

RSEN said:


> Thank you very much. Trust me all that you mentioned is valuable Information and I would surely Need it with time.
> 
> I fail to understand why the same Information and Detail Explanation is not provided by the officers at the Ausländerbehörde in Germany. Things would become much simpler for all the expats.
> 
> Also you are right, they give some sort of biometric Id Card and hopefully the same day, otherwise I wont be able to fly back to India for the Christmas and New Years Holidays.
> 
> Being positive, once I get the VISA, I would certainly like to know the additional requirements for further Extension of 2 years after the first year and then up to an indefinite permit or to apply for Naturalisation. But I guess I will cross the Bridge when I reach it.
> 
> But surely, I will Keep posting here and also seek advise time and again. At the same time would be more than happy to help others in similar situations by sharing my experiences.
> 
> Thanks & regards
> RS


The biometric cards are made by the Federal Printery after a decision has been made and it takes 3-4 weeks to get them, as far as I know.

You will get some sort of documentation about your legal status, though. Explain that you need to travel, soon and ask for a Fiktionsbescheinigung when you apply for your permit. The Fiktionsbescheinigung will facilitate re-entry into Germany. Don't know about the airline letting you board the plane in India...

After one year, the same requirements apply to get the extension for two years.

For indefinite leave you need to be working or at least not rely on public funds to maintain yourself and your family. You also need to show German language skills.

For naturalisation (under current rules) you also need to pass a special language and a citizenship test.


----------

