[Kate D]

There I was merrily compiling all the details for my ITA response and then I see it - I spent more than 12 months living in Germany so I need a police certificate from there too!!! To make it worse I could have sworn that I saw somewhere before I completed my EOI that it was five years or longer residency that generated this requirement, not 12 months, as I've even got the notes where I checked my dates and added up total time there. Of course now I can't find residency durations for police certs anywhere on the NZIS site so I'm left wondering if I imagined it. Anyone help out here...?

Anyone else been there and can advise me how long it might take to get this certificate from Germany...? If it's 40 days, then I'm gutted as I hadn't initiated the process at all:-( If I end up with German efficency it might be a week, but I'm not holding my breath.

Kate

[Kate D]

Ok, have been furiously hunting for my own peace of mind, and for some reason it's WTR that the 5 year limit applies for residency in other countries and police certs but not for PR. So, still have WTR as an option. But why the difference between WTR and PR on this specific point...? Have I been careless and missed this when I should have planned for it...? I guess it's gotta be worth me speaking to NZIS in London anyway with all except the German police cert, and see if they will let me submit the ITA paperwork with a follow up when the new cert arrives:-(

[peebles16]

We spent time in Africa 10 years ago now but was just within the timescale for submitting ITA paperwork so we needed police checks. We had a dreadful time delay in getting police certs back and submitted ITA without them giving details of our efforts to obtain them along with statutory declarations that we weren't criminals :D We got the PR but think that was due to the fact that it was such a long time ago and that the country we needed them from was infamous for it's long winded bureacracy and bad record keeping.

That said think you will probably need to get them from Germany and think you're right phone call the NZIS might be helpful.

Best of luck
Karen

P.S. did get police certs through 1 week after blue stickers :)

[dharder]

Anyone else been there and can advise me how long it might take to get this certificate from Germany...?

Mine was very quick, turnaround of about a week, I think. The only problem was that I had to have the signature asking for it and the copy of my passport witnessed and notarised by a notary public (read: expensive). She (the notary public) also told me I might have to get it apostilled, but I took my chances and it turned out I didn't need to. Oh, and the German authorities want about 10 Euros for it, I think. Also bear in mind that you will then have to get a certified translation by a recognised translator of it (read: part with money once again...) for NZIS to accept it. None if this took superlong in our case, but it was time and hassle.

Here's where I got mine:
Bundesamt für Justiz
Sachgebiet IV.2.1 - Externe Auskunft -
53094 Bonn
+49 (0)228 99 410 - 4 0

Good luck,

Daniela

[bartons]

I had a nightmare getting the German police certificate, although it was mainly due to the fact that they claimed that the money I had sent from a German account hadn't arrived. They told me this after 4 weeks. Then it took them another 2 weeks to sort it out, and then it took another 2 weeks to arrive in England - 8 weeks in total. And they issued it with "Ueberbeglaubigung und Apostille" (which certifies that the certifier has certified correctly which then gets certified by an ever higher certifier...) although I had told them I didn't want it. And then they charged me for those useless certifications. And that was after having got the signature officially certified. And once, when at last the paper arrived in our letterbox I needed not any old translator, but a certified translator to translate the certificate and the certification of the certificate and the certification of the first certification. Absolutely unreal!
Anyway, maybe I just got a particularly incapable certifier, and all the other ones certify quickly and efficiently...
Anyway, here's the website of the German Embassy which tells the innocent applicant all about certification in English:
http://www.london.diplo.de/Vertretung/london/en/06/other__legal__matters/Police__clearance__certificate__Seite.html

Good luck anyway!
Mareike

[Asli&Mark]

I cannot help you with the German side of the problem unfortunately.
However, I had to get mine from Turkey. My parents got mine no problem and have it translated over there which cost even less. So what I would suggest if you still have close contacts over there just ask their help. you never know things may move quicker
Asli

[dharder]

And they issued it with "Ueberbeglaubigung und Apostille" (which certifies that the certifier has certified correctly which then gets certified by an ever higher certifier...) although I had told them I didn't want it. And then they charged me for those useless certifications.

This does sound rather German indeed, although I don't know what a 'Ueberbeglaubigung' could be when its at home :) After long and cumbersome dealings with the German authorities, I have now come to the conlusion that they are, on the whole, totally clueless, but put up a convincing front consisting mainly of forms, and hide well behind official sounding requirements and government departments with very pompous sounding names.

My experience in this particular case was a positive one, though, much to my surprise. It was quicker and more efficient than the English one, and no problem with the payments. But I tend to call up anyone immediately after any money leaves my account to make sure it got there, slightly paranoid, I know, but it sometimes help to avoid lengthy delays when people think they haven't received it.

It is standard practice to get certified translations, not get translations by 'just any' translator, I think they also state that the translator can't be related to you, which was a shame as my partner is a translator, and that could have saved us £60.

Good luck,

Daniela

[Kate D]

Thanks Guys. I found the German form, I can enclose it with payment of 13 Euros so I'm going to put the notes in directly (German bank account on-line authorisations expired!!) and I can get the certification of my passport done at the German Embassy for a smallish fee of 15Euros, hopefully on my way to NZIS to speak to them in person and at least hand in everything except this. I have some friends who speak fluent German so am about to prime them for a translation request as soon as it's received and get their feedback.

I'm just cursing myself for not having picked this up as it's a whole list of activities and hassle over ONE other piece of paperwork. If it takes a week to return, all told, that'll hopefully be about two weeks including certification and translation.

Sorry to moan - I know it's all doable but I'm just really knackered and stressed with still juggling a full time demanding day job in the meantime, and doing this all on my own nights and weekends. Sigh, four more weeks of work only, then the new life starts...

Kate