Embassy of Germany

Well, the security was tight for a start. Everyone visiting was thoroughly veted which in my opinion was a good thing. 'Safety comes first' Having said that, the overall services of the embassy staff was very professional and politely done. Great job. 👍

Unlike many of the other reviews here, my experience with the embassy couldn't have been better.

Got stranded at Heathrow on a Friday night with serious issues with my passport. Because I only had little time till my 16hrs connecting flight would leave, I was in a dire need for help and worried that I would not be able to continue my travels.
I talked to the embassy worker for almost half an hour, asked him all my question and told him all my concerns but he reassured me it should work out alright and even if it didn't, he already contacted the embassy in my destination country with all the details about my case, so that they could step in if needed.

Honestly such a blessing to have people like him working for your country and its people.

SandyGermanGirl is right. There’s at least one ambiguity in the passport application form and, more seriously, the passport service only answers the phone for two hours Monday to Thursday and one hour on Friday. Today Thursday I called at the first minute of the appointed hour and it was clear that no one was answering the phone: I was put on hold till eternity

Website not so easy to navigate, but once in right area appointments system good. Turned up to get documents certified for my kids German citizenship applications. Friendly and efficient and free. Cheese counter ticket system works well. Architecture is more supermarket than super villa. But much better experience than during the Covid times, and also much better experience than with Spanish and Canadians.
Shame they have a Dyson Brexiter hand drier in the bathrooms

Booking appointment was easy online.
Applied for passport and was sorted quick.
Make sure you take all you documents.
You must follow appointment rules. For them to help you.
One appointment per Person. Can't take friends..

Having lived in London for more than 15 years, I have repeatedly used the embassy and found the service usually met expectations. But a couple of times, I have been positively surprised with their responsiveness, especially when they allowed me to pick-up my new passport that was ready but would normally be posted in exchange for the old one. I contacted them via email and the contact form and was given a time on the same day to pick it up in person. I had not expected such a quick response and flexibility and was nearly resigned to missing my flight as I had underestimated how long my passport still needed to be valid for to take a flight to Germany. I know they are serving a large German community so was surprised positively by this level of service. I also received a helpful and sympathetic email during the COVID pandemic while the testing/quarantine restrictions for Germans travelling home were far too onerous in my view. The only downside sometimes is the security personnel at the entrance, which can be hit and miss in terms of being friendly/human/courteous and the substantial lead-time for booking regular appointments.

Incredibly friendly and competent staff who ensured the visa submission process was smooth and speedy. German bureaucracy has a certain infamy, but as far as the operations of the embassy are concerned, I really cannot complain.

Mixed experience here but generally positive.

The whole process of getting a visa took under 2 weeks from the day I booked the appointment to my passport returning in the post, which was obviously superb. (Definitely not the average; they accelerate the process for academics.) The person I had the appointment with was really friendly and generally put me at ease.

However, I found the guidance on their website to be vague at times. It took ages before I was confident about which application category I fitted under and it wasn't clear enough to me that the visa's purpose is simply to enable you to apply for a residence permit whilst still being able to work upon arrival in Germany. I thought the expiry date was wrong (it wasn't; I was) and my straightforward questions were met with vague copy-and-pasted paragraphs instead of a tailored two-sentence reply which could have taken 30 seconds but made a world of difference to my understanding. I appreciate they can't give highly detailed and tailored advice but refusing to answer anything at all, even when it's applicable to everyone, is rather unhelpful.