RUEHLING
IMMIGRATION LAW

​The decision on the interpretation of German immigration and citizenship law is effectively taken by judges. The ranking of courts in that respect are the European Court of Justice (where EU legislation is the basis of a German law), the German Federal Constitutional Court (which should take into account the European Court of Human Rights' decisions), the German Federal Administrative Court, the upper administrative courts and the local administrative courts (Berlin having a prominent local administrative court in immigration matters, since it is the court where all visa cases against the German Federal Foreign Office are handled).

While judges have a certain power to interprete the law, there are a few common interpretation rules in German legal practice. Four rules have been widely received in German legal literature, ie the literal, the systematic, the historic and the teleological. Other relevant rules are the interpretations in line with the constitution, the German Basic Law, and EU law. 

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The rules on administrative procedures of immigration and citizenship matters can be found in the administrative procedures act of the German federal state (Verwaltungsverfahrensgesetz), where an authority is located. When it comes to an embassy or a consulate general, the federal act can be referred to in an analogous way, although it is not directly applicable.

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Court procedures for German administrative courts are regulated by the Code of Administrative Court Procedure and the Act on the Federal Constitutional Court.

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Finally, Schengen visa are governed by the EU's Visa Code, German immigration law is governed by the Residence Act as well as the Freedom of Movement Act and citizenship law is governed by the Nationality Act. The basis of various rules in German immigration law lies in EU directives.  In addition, there are several relevant German statutory instruments, most notably the "Aufenthaltsverordnung", the Ordinance on the Employment of Foreigners and the "Integrationsverordnung".

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Again, court decisions on the interpretation of that code, those acts and statutory instruments, more so according to their ranking, are legally relevant.

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However, the everyday approval and denial of applications follow yet more granular guidance. The ressource for all countries of the Schengen-zone on the issuance of Schengen visa is the so called "Visa Code Handbook I" by the EU Commission. The ressource for the practical issuance of Schengen visa by German embassies or consulate generals and long-term national visa is the "Visumhandbuch" of the Foreign Office. There is also guidance by the German Federal Ministry of the Interior on the Residence Act, the "Allgemeine Verfahrensvorschrift zum Aufenthaltsgesetz", and on the Nationality Act, the "Allgemeine Verwaltungsvorschrift zum Staatsangehörigkeitsrecht" as well as the "Vorläufige Anwendungshinweise des Bundesministeriums des Innern zum Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz". The Federal Employment Agency needs to agree in certain cases of employment and has issued guidance on how to interprete the Residence Act and the Ordinance on the Employment of Foreigners in the "Fachliche Weisungen Aufenthaltsgesetz und Beschäftigungsverordnung". Since the immigration authorities are under the political responsibilty of the government of each federal state, some of those governments have issued further internal guidance.

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In general, the place of residence of an applicant decides which embassy, consulate general or immigration authority is the competent authority to receive and process an application. On the website of the embassy, consulate general or immigration authority more information and forms may be found.

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The knowledge and application of those rules and experience with the procedures is what I am offering.

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Disclaimer: Here I was expressing my general understanding of German immigration and citizenship law (excluding asylum and refugee law), which might not be up-to-date and may not be relied upon for an individual case. It is meant to be a description of legal methods and an account of certain sources.​