I will give you info what I have experienced when getting my first residence permit. I hope it will be useful for everybody.

History: I got IT-ArGV (GC paper) last week of December, 2004, just before the Xmas (I am one of the last GC'lers). I am from Turkey and applied for a visa. German Embassy gave the visa in 3 days and it was a 3-month valid visa for Germany only (not for Schengen countries).

Today I have been to Bezirksamt to get the residence permit. I have received a yellow 2-pages form, at the beginning of which it states Antrag auf Erteilung ( ) einer Aufenthaltserlaubnis ( ) einer Niederlassungserlaubnis (according to the new law, ZuwG).

I have chosen Aufenthaltserlaubnis and in the back page, at Beabsichtigte Dauer des Aufenthaltes, I wrote von: (date of since when IT-ArGV will be valid) bis: ./.. Then, at Ich beantrage die Erteilung / Verlaengerung der Aufenthaltserlaubnis fuer ... Jahre, I have written 5 years.

I have given this form together with my passport, 2 photos, Arbeitsvertrag (job contract), Anmeldung and IT-ArGV. The official asked me to wait for 1 hour.

Then he called me and asked me whether I can speak German. I said yes and he invited me to its office. There he said that if I cannot speak basic German, then I have to join a German course for about 18 months. I said I didn't need this because I can communicate with people in German.

Then he has given me an Aufenthaltserlaubnis of 5 years, pasted to my passport.

Klenze17