The Weekly How-To Manual: Volume 1 - Registering at the Ausländerbehӧrde

Either of these trains will return you to the city center.

 
  Welcome to the "Weekly How-To Manual," where I will explain how to go about completing some of the many tasks required in order to live and study here in Leipzig, and Germany in general.  This week's topic is registering with the "Ausländerbehӧrde," or the foreigner's authority (immigration office).  This registration is functionally identical to obtaining a visa, but as U.S. citizens, rather than obtaining a visa in advance, we are able to register after our arrival here in Germany. 

The required documents are: (Make copies at one of the University's copy centers in the Augustusplatz campus, as the office takes them for their file)

• The application document, which is available here (do not click the "English" option; the website becomes a tourist site when you do), which must be completed (sign it the day you go to register)
• A biometric passport photo (these can be taken at a photobooth in the city hall office on Markgrafenstr. 3.  It costs 7 Euros for 4 pictures; the Ausländerbehӧrde person will have what amounts to a hole punch to cut one out.
• Your passport
• Your rental agreement
• Proof of your insurance (Stamped letter from the company, explanation of benefits, and proof of payment)
• Your matriculation form (make a copy of both forms that the University gave you)
• Proof of funds (659,00 Euros, per month you are staying, in a German bank account.  Make it abundantly clear that you are only staying until the end of the semester, and bring a copy of your first month's rent and room deposit payment reciept)
• If you took a language course (ie. Goethe Institüt), bring a copy of your completion form.  It will function as proof of language ability, and explain why you didn't obtain a visa for several weeks.
• 50 Euros (fee for the visa for four months.  Have 110 on hand, as that is the full payment for a year, and it goes down from their based on the actual time you will spend in Germany.)

The front entrance of the Technisches Rathaus

      Assuming you have collected all of the relevant documents, make your way to the "Technisches Rathaus," which can be easily reached using the blue tram lines 12 and 15 (the stop is directly to right of where the picture to the right of this text was taken).  This building serves house the offices of the various social services, immigration authorities, and basically any required city function that doesn't directly relate to the legislative body of the city.  Make sure to be there at 8:45am, as the office opens its waiting room doors at 9, and the office worker is far more congenial first thing in the morning.

One of the directory signs.

     Once you hop off the tram, cross the street at the crossing point which should be approximately in line with the back of the tram.  You will see the sign shown on the left, which explains that the Ausländerbehӧrde can be found in "B" building.  At the Technisches Rathaus, there are three buildings, which contain different types of offices.  As you will be able to see, the color coding shown on the directory is copied onto the building itself in the form of a stripe of color painted along the glass windows.  Go to the red striped building (luckily for you, it happens to be about 15 feet in front of where you are standing).

It closes early on Wednesdays...

     Go through the first doorway you will pass, labeled "128," and go into the second door on your left, which will have the office's hours printed on it.  If it is still locked, stay there, and wait for someone to unlock the doors for the day.  You probably won't be the only person doing so.  There is a small ticket machine just inside the door, select the "Service" option, and take a seat.  There is a screen showing the current ticket being called, which will play a chime when a new number is called.  When your number is called, go to room "8A."  The person at the desk should give you a small yellow ticket, assigning you an appointment time with the nice gentleman in room 8B (that is, if you showed up right at opening time.  Otherwise, he is the frazzled guy in room 8B).  He does understand English, but things will go better if you talk in German.  When he asks, hand him the stack of copied documents I listed above.  After he goes through everything (don't forget to reiterate that you are only staying until the semester ends), you will receive two stickers that will be placed into your passport, which look identical to the visa card people normally receive.  Make a copy of this page that same day, and put it in your wallet, along with the copy of your passport ID page.

     Ah, and I almost forgot!  The payment process is done through a machine in the office's lobby (it takes all of a minute, and has an English option).  You insert the card you are given into the machine, it prompts you for payment, and gives you two copies of the receipt, one for you and one for the Ausländerbehӧrde to keep.  I hope that this guide is helpful, and that you are able to complete this registration far faster and easier than I did.  Good luck!

Vocabulary that doesn't come up in class:

Antragsformular - immigration application form

Meitvertrag - apartment rental agreement

Immitrikulationsbescheinigung - matriculation form

Austausch Student(in) - study abroad student

Proverb of the Day

I saw a pug in a stroller and a toddler being walked along side it.

Everything went right today.

*Links to the Technisches Rathaus and Leipzig tram system websites are included.

**The background music is from a personal music project in progress.