What is a Lawsuit for failure of act against authorities?
In order to understand what an Lawsuit for failure of act against the authorities is, you need to understand how this type of complaint arises and what it is related to. At Naturalization and Settlement permit , many applicants have the problem that Lawsuit for failure of act is in the room and that they do not know enough about the important processes involved. In general, the aim is to legally ensure that a procedure is processed.
Where is the Lawsuit for failure of act website located?
The Lawsuit for failure of act is defined in Section 75 of the Administrative Court Code (VwGO). The decisive factor here is the existence of proceedings. Whenever you submit an application in Germany, be it a building application, a naturalization application or an application to Settlement permit, the authority has a legal obligation to process this application in accordance with Section 75 VwGO.
Forexample, there is a procedure for an application to Naturalization or an application to Settlement permit . It is now the case that the responsible Foreigners' office has not decided on the application without sufficient reason. In addition, the time limit within which the authority had to process this application has expired. In such a case, the applicant of Naturalization or Settlement permit can file a so-called Lawsuit for failure of act .
What does insufficient reason mean?
What is a sufficient reason at Lawsuit for failure of act?
How do I get on with Lawsuit for failure of act ?
Why actions for failure to act occur
There are various reasons why a Lawsuit for failure of act is created. The main problem is that the application submitted to the relevant authority is not processed and there are delays and waiting times.
Why taking legal action against authorities is important
The background to this is that a lawyer can expedite a decision on the application after 3 months. First of all, it does not matter whether the decision is positive for Naturalization or Settlement permit , but whether there is a decision at all.
If the instrument of Lawsuit for failure of act did not exist, authorities would never be able to make decisions. It would have the effect that you would not be able to progress further up the hierarchy of instances. You wouldn't be able to move from the application procedure to the objection procedure, from the objection procedure to the appeal procedure at first instance and from the first instance to the second instance.
As an applicant, you would always be dependent on the employee at the authority in step one. Even if the employee does not make a negative decision, you would not get any further. This is why the legal instrument of complaints against authorities for failure to act is so important.
Why are actions for failure to act brought against authorities?
Since the refugee crisis in 2015, the number of naturalization procedures and settlement permit procedures has increased, as has the number of people who have filed a Lawsuit for failure of act against authorities due to the time it takes to process naturalization or settlement permits. The authorities can no longer keep up with the processing of applications because there are so many cases that have to be processed within a short period of time.
We are also experiencing the problem of staff shortages at authorities, including immigration authorities. Due to the thin staffing levels, it is difficult to compensate for absences due to illness or vacations. This leads to the expected delays.
The process of a Lawsuit for failure of act
A Lawsuit for failure of act against authorities always has a certain procedure. The procedure is different from the normal course of legal proceedings and has certain changes. However, the procedure is generally the same.
Lawsuit for failure of act is submitted
Normally, legal proceedings in Germany follow a certain pattern. The processes are action, judgment, decision. The process is different at Lawsuit for failure of act . First, a complaint is filed, which ends up at the administrative court. It is important that the form is observed. Lawsuit for failure of act must be submitted in writing (with your own signature) to the competent court. The statement of claim must also be correct.
The statement of claim must contain the following information: the claimant, the defendant, the claim (the reason for not processing the application), facts and evidence to substantiate the claim. The application to the authority must be attached to the statement of claim as a copy.
The complaint is forwarded and the authority comments
After the client or the claimant or applicant of Naturalization or Settlement permit has paid the court fees, the administrative court forwards the claim to the opposing party. In this case, this is Foreigners' office or the immigration authority. The authority then comments on the allegation. In our experience, such statements usually contain the following reasons: Overload, Ukraine crisis, Corona an.
Administrative court gives notice to authority
Since an overload, the Ukraine crisis or corona are not reasons to slow down an application procedure, the Administrative Court now points out to the authority that there is no sufficient reason to slow down the procedure. The authority is given a new deadline by which it must have processed and decided on the application procedure.
Defendant authority decides on the application
The authority now decides within the deadline on the application and whether it is positive or negative for the accuser. In principle, there is no further delay because the authority makes a decision. The proceedings are then discontinued as the cause of action has been resolved.
Duration and costs of the Lawsuit for failure of act
Generally speaking, you can file a complaint against the authorities for failure to act three months after submitting an application. The full duration ultimately depends on various aspects.
Duration varies from court to court
The length of time it takes to complete the claim depends very much on which administrative court you have submitted the Lawsuit for failure of act against the authorities to. There are very fast administrative courts that make decisions in a short time and administrative courts that proceed more slowly due to a high number of proceedings. At Cottbus Administrative Court, for example, it takes around 1-2 months for a decision to be made on the application.
The situation is different at the administrative courts in Frankfurt am Main, Stuttgart or Berlin. These courts are overloaded and the process can take 4.5 or 6 months until the authority actually makes a decision. The time required for all problematic authorities, including appeals against authorities for failure to act, is 5-10/11 months.
At first glance, these 10 months don't sound like much. However, we are already experiencing that without a lawyer and without Lawsuit for failure of act in many cities, it takes 3-4 years to submit an application to Naturalization . With a lawyer and Lawsuit for failure of act against the authorities, you save 1-2 years of this process.
How high the costs are and who pays them
A Lawsuit for failure of act costs approximately 438 euros in court costs at Settlement permit . If the case is won, these costs will be reimbursed. In addition, there are legal fees of around 500 euros.
In the case of Lawsuit for failure of act at Naturalization , the court costs are €780 and just under €1000 in legal fees. With us, these costs are included as a lump sum. As a law firm, we benefit if the proceedings are won, as we can bill the authorities again.
As a rule, it is law firm versus authority and either one or the other wins in court. The person who wins always receives the entire costs, i.e. court costs and lawyers' fees, from the loser of the case.
As our prices are high, there are virtually no legal fees; we do not undercut the lawyer's fees. It is always important that the lawyer does not undercut the fees, as otherwise he is acting contrary to professional law. For this reason, these costs are included in our services. In the end, we benefit twice, as we can also bill the state if we win.
Future of actions for failure to act
There are various reasons why there will be more and more actions for failure to act in the future and why it will also take longer to process applications for a Naturalization and a Settlement permit must be expected. Various factors play a major role here.
Skills shortage cannot be resolved quickly
It cannot be assumed that the shortage of skilled workers and the staff shortage at the authorities will be resolved quickly. Measures have been taken by the authorities in this regard, but it will take several years before they work. The high number of proceedings and the shortage of staff at the authorities indicate that the issue of complaints against authorities for failure to act will become increasingly relevant and important in the future.
The number of applications will continue to increase
It is already the case that it takes 3 years to reach Naturalization without the help of a lawyer. Our forecast is that things will get even worse in the future. The authorities are already struggling to keep up with applications and the coming year 2024 will bring an extremely high number of applications for Naturalization and Settlement permit .
The people who came to Germany in 2015 in the wake of the refugee crisis will bring with them the legal residence period in 2024 that is suitable for applying for a Naturalization . Accordingly, an extremely high number of applications can be expected.
Another reason is the new immigration law that is currently being planned. When this law comes into force, our forecast is that many authorities will no longer accept any applications at all for capacity reasons and that Naturalization will not be feasible without help from companies such as Migrando under 4 years of age. For this reason, we recommend: The sooner you apply for Naturalization , the better. Very long waiting times await you in the future.
Conclusion and summary
Conclusion
The Lawsuit for failure of act is becoming increasingly important for naturalization applications and applications for Settlement permit. Our experience also shows that this situation will continue to increase. This makes it all the more important for anyone wishing to apply for Naturalization and Settlement permit to be informed about Lawsuit for failure of act .
Summary
As you can see, the topic of Lawsuit for failure of act against authorities is of great importance when applying for a Naturalization or Settlement permit. We have summarized the most important points for you below:
- The Lawsuit for failure of act against authorities can be submitted 3 months after the application has been submitted to Naturalization/Settlement permit
- The decisive factor is whether or not there was a sufficient reason for not processing the application
- Staff shortages and a high number of applications are no reason not to process your application
- Actions for failure to act have a different procedure than normal legal proceedings
- In future, it will not be possible to set up Naturalization without Lawsuit for failure of act and without a lawyer in less than 4 years.
- The Lawsuit for failure of act generally ends with a new deadline for the authority and a decision on the Naturalization/Settlement permit
- The court costs at Settlement permit are 438 euros and the lawyers' fees are around 500 euros
- The court costs for a Naturalization are 780 euros and the lawyer's fees are around 1000 euros.
Do you need help with Lawsuit for failure of act?
FAQ - The most important questions and answers on complaints against authorities for failure to act
Yes, you can file a complaint against Foreigners' office for failure to act. This procedure will speed up your application, which has not yet been processed by the authority.
The Lawsuit for failure of act is essential. It ensures that authorities process applications at a certain point in time. Without Lawsuit for failure of act , it would not be possible to progress further up the hierarchy of instances. For example, it would not be possible to move from an application procedure to an objection procedure and not from the objection procedure to the action procedure at first instance.
The number of complaints against authorities for failure to act is increasing because the authorities are overwhelmed with processing applications to Naturalization and Settlement permit . The number of applications has increased significantly as a result of the refugee crisis in 2015 and the shortage of staff at the authorities remains high.
The duration depends heavily on the administrative court. You can expect a duration of 5 - 10/11 months.
At Settlement permit , the court costs for an Lawsuit for failure of act are 438 euros and the lawyer's fees are around 500 euros. For an Naturalization , the court costs for an Lawsuit for failure of act are EUR 780 and the lawyers' fees are around EUR 1,000.
The Lawsuit for failure of act for naturalizations and Settlement permit must be submitted to the administrative court. The administrative court then decides on the case.
In general, you always assume that you will be successful, otherwise you don't file a complaint at all. The decisive factor is that you can prove to the authorities that they did not process the application for Naturalization/Settlement permit for unacceptable reasons (coronavirus, war in Ukraine, lack of staff).
The success is then that the naturalization application or settlement permit application is processed after a new deadline imposed by the court and a decision is made.
