How long a visa procedure in Germany takes depends on many factors. The country or embassy in which the visa procedure takes place, the type of visa applied for and how well the documents and information are prepared can be decisive. In particular, the responsible embassy or immigration authority often plays a major role. While processing in Western countries (e.g. USA and Europe) is usually comparatively quick, the same process can take many months or even years in other countries. This applies in particular to countries from which many visa applications are submitted and where the document and administrative systems differ greatly from those in Germany (e.g. Pakistan, Iran, India, Turkey and African countries). The legalization and translation of documents alone (Lawyer-Verficiation) can take several months. In addition, the embassies in these countries are usually extremely overloaded and have too few staff.

The type of visa applied for is also important in determining the processing time. In principle, certain visas are processed more quickly than others, as there are corresponding internal guidelines. For example, D visas for employment (in particular the EU Blue Card) are processed comparatively quickly, while visas for family reunification do not have priority in processing and are therefore only issued as a secondary priority. The type of visa issued often also influences whether processing takes place at the embassy or at an external service provider (e.g. VFS Global or TLScontact).

2. Why does visa processing take so long?

There are various reasons for the long processing times for visa applications in Germany. Some of these reasons can be influenced and some cannot.

As a rule, the following reasons are responsible for long processing times:

Factors that cannot be influenced:

Lack of or poorly trained staff at the embassy or foreigners authority
High number of visa applications in the respective country
Major differences between the German and foreign administrative systems (translation and legalization)

Influenceable factors:

Quality of the documents submitted
Correct documents submitted in the correct order
Information and details complete and credible

Ultimately, the speed of processing also depends on how much "pressure" is put on the authority. Although the authorities process applications in the order in which they are received, lawyers in particular have various options to speed up processing (e.g. legal action and interim injunction). As a result, these applications are then given priority, which means that the other applications are only processed on a subordinate basis.

3. Acceleration of application processing through own measures

The processing of visa applications in Germany can be accelerated by various measures. The relevant measures must be differentiated according to the stage at which the visa application is currently at.

A visa application usually proceeds as follows:

1. collection of the documents

2. booking the appointment

3. attending the embassy appointment

At all stages of the application process, it is possible to help speed up the process through your own involvement.

3.1 Saving time through well-organized documents

One of the most important time-savers is usually the careful and complete collection of the required documents. Embassies process thousands of visa applications at the same time and it costs a lot of time if applications or information are incomplete. In this case, the embassy or immigration authority has to pause the processing of the application, contact the applicant and ask them to resubmit a document or information. These correction loops take an extremely long time.

Careful compilation of the documents is usually not difficult. Every embassy and every major immigration authority has a list of the required documents on their respective websites (see e.g. List of required documents EU Blue Card in India (Mumbai)). The information sheets on the homepage contain all the necessary information to present the correct documents and the correct information at the embassy appointment. If you follow the instructions of the embassy during the application process, the application processing can be significantly accelerated. If necessary, you can seek professional assistance to clarify whether your application contains all the necessary information and whether the correct documents are submitted in the correct order before submitting it.

3.2 Saving time when booking an appointment/no appointment available

In some countries, booking an appointment via the RK visa also takes a considerable amount of time. Normally, it is intended that applicants can book a given embassy appointment via the embassies' online appointment booking system (RK visa). In the best case scenario, applicants can choose one of several appointments. At some embassies, however, the RK visa is no longer available; instead, the embassies allocate an appointment after registration on a waiting list. In these cases, booking an appointment can take several years. Especially in the area of family reunification, waiting times of several years are not uncommon (e.g. in Pakistan, Nigeria and Russia). As a rule, faster processing can only be achieved with the help of a lawyer specializing in migration law.

Particularly in countries where appointments are not allocated via a registration system, but only via a waiting list, the waiting times for an appointment are usually very long. In these countries, the following waiting times can currently be expected (for family reunion visas):

Athens (Greece): 30 weeks
Beirut (Lebanon and Syria): 24 weeks to more than 1 year
Belgrade (Serbia): More than 1 year
Islamabad (Pakistan and Afghanistan): More than 1 year
Istanbul (Turkey): Up to 50 weeks
Cairo (Egypt): 15 - 35 weeks
Lagos (Nigeria): 51 weeks
Moscow (Russia): Unknown
New Delhi (India): 28 - 52 weeks
Tehran (Iran): Over 1 year

The times listed are only a rough guide. Although the German government regularly publishes corresponding statistics, these do not always correspond to practice. The lists can also change quickly within a few days due to geopolitical events (e.g. natural disasters and wars).

However, it should also be noted here that the embassies only have three months to process an application according to the law. So if you submit a visa application (e.g. in writing), the embassy must decide on this application within three months. If it fails to do so, you can take legal action against the authority's failure to act (so-called action for failure to act). However, submitting a written visa application (without an appointment) is comparatively complicated, as all documents relevant to the decision must be attached to the application in order to set the three-month deadline in motion. In case of doubt, you should therefore instruct a lawyer for migration law if you cannot get an appointment at the embassy. They can speed up the process by filing an action for failure to act.

4. Speeding up the process through advance approvals

Visa applications and applications for a residence permit can also be expedited by applying for "advance approval". With pre-consent, approvals are obtained from other authorities before the actual visa process begins so that these authorities no longer have to give their approval during the visa process. This can speed up the visa process.

Advance approvals can be applied for from the Federal Employment Agency, the Foreigners' Registration Office and the Central Offices for Skilled Immigration. Unfortunately, this hardly works in practice as the authorities are massively overloaded. As a result, applicants sometimes wait just as long for preliminary approval to be granted as they do for visa processing. In addition, special appointments are usually made at the embassies for pre-approvals. However, these appointments are rarely available. The only exception to this can be the accelerated skilled worker procedure in certain individual cases. Here too, however, practicability depends on the authority at which the accelerated procedure for skilled workers is carried out.

5. Speeding up the process with the help of a lawyer

If you do not achieve any progress in processing speed with the measures described, you can instruct an immigration lawyer to enforce your claims. An immigration lawyer can use German administrative law to speed up the processing of your application. In purely practical terms, this is done by representing you before the authorities. The authorities often only respond to a lawyer's request, as lawyers can contact the authorities via a special communication system and use legal means.

5.1 Acceleration principle

A lawyer can, for example, enforce that the authorities apply the principle of acceleration under administrative law. According to Section 10 sentence 2 VwVfG, embassies and immigration authorities must carry out the procedure "expeditiously". This means that unnecessary delays should be avoided and efforts should be made to conclude the administrative procedure. The principle of acceleration under administrative law is part of German law and the principle of the rule of law, which is why embassies and immigration authorities are bound by it.

5.2 Action for failure to act

If the embassy or immigration authority cannot be persuaded to expedite the processing of the visa application, even when represented by a lawyer, the only remedy is usually to threaten to file an action for failure to act. The action for failure to act is an action under administrative law which forces the authority to decide on the visa application.

For which applications does the action for failure to act work?

The action for failure to act can always be used if the granting of a residence permit is sought. However, the action for failure to act cannot be used for preliminary approvals (in particular for state admission programs and preliminary approval by the Federal Employment Agency), as these are merely internal administrative matters with no external effect.

How does the action for failure to act work?

Like other legal remedies in residence law, the action for failure to act is a form of action before the administrative court. If the case is won before the administrative court, the court will force the immigration authority or embassy to decide on the application for a residence permit. In practice, the "Berlin Settlement" is particularly relevant here. The content of the Berlin settlement is that the embassy issues the visa and the plaintiff withdraws the action before the administrative court and bears the costs.

What does the action for failure to act cost?

The costs of the action for failure to act are determined by the amount in dispute. The amount in dispute is determined in accordance with the German Court Costs Act (GVG). In principle, court fees of EUR 483 are incurred. If you instruct a lawyer to take legal action, you must also pay the lawyer's fees.

When can I file an action for failure to act?

An action for failure to act can be brought if the authority has not made a decision on your application after three months. The time limit starts to run when the authority has all the necessary documents for processing the application. This is usually the case if the visa appointment has already been completed. However, this is not mandatory, as visa applications can also be submitted in writing (and even electronically).

5.3 Appeal against delay

If the action for failure to act is not successful either, a so-called "complaint of delay" can be lodged with the court (Section 198 GVG). The complaint of delay entitles the claimant to compensation if a disadvantage has been suffered because the court proceedings are taking too long. The compensation amounts to an average of EUR 100 for each month that the proceedings have been delayed. Filing a complaint of delay often leads to the court proceedings being accelerated.

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6. Processing time in urgent cases and emergencies

The situations described earlier in this article only deal with the normal case where the visa application is not based on an emergency. However, if it is an emergency, special measures may be taken.

What is an emergency?

An emergency always exists if there is a significant risk of harm to a legal right. This can be the case in the following situations, for example

Humanitarian crises (wars and natural disasters),
medical emergencies and transportation of patients to Germany,
Birth of a child in Germany,
funerals in Germany.

What can I do if it is an emergency (emergency visa)?

In these cases, a special appointment can be arranged with the embassy. If the embassy does not respond to this, a so-called "temporary injunction" can be applied for before the Berlin Administrative Court. The court will then order the embassy to issue a visa within a few hours or days if it is indeed an emergency. The proceedings can be conducted by any lawyer licensed to practice in Germany.