Direct to passport success!
GF Born Germany 1899
GF Emigrated to USA in 1921
GF Married 1924
F Born 1931
GF and F traveled in 1934 on German passport (Have original)
GF Naturalized USA 1946
F Married 1966
Me Born 1969
Had certified copies or originals of all documents. Hardest to obtain was long form birth certificate for F through NYC. Second hardest were the birth certificates from Germany. Also found the birth and marriage certificates for the GGF generation.
Made appointment at NYC consulate, took about an hour, after a full day of travel between NYC and Pennsylvania.
I applied for both the Reisepass and the Personalausweis. Not sure the Perso is needed, but it was a lot of effort to get to NYC and it seemed worth the extra 90 Euro. I opted for the shipping option, cost 35 Euro. Just my parking and train was that much so it was worthwhile. Total cost paid at the Consulate was 230 Euro.
Appointment was in late March, the Reisepass and Perso came 5 weeks later. The total journey started in October with locating some initial documents, then emails to German records offices to get the GF Birth Cert and marriage certs.
Along the way, I learned a LOT about my family history , including the names of 9 generations of ancestors, a direct lineage that goes back to the 1600s in Schleswig-Holstein. Fascinating.
Learned some things that may help others:
- Helpful to arrange documents together by generation. GF first, then F, then me. I had a written timeline like the above, with a document for each event. No copies needed. They scanned them in the consulate and handed back originals. Bring your credit card and your ID up the elevator with you.
- The magic was the 1934 Reisepass for the family (of 4), which I consider a family heirloom. Should be in a museum. The consular office showed it around to the other officials.
- The photobooth was not working in NYC Consulate. At the end of the block to the east of the Consulate is a rapid photo shop that takes photos for <$15. They are good quality and meet the specifications. The staff at consulate entrance has a referral/discount slip for a little $ off. Takes about 15-20 minutes. I arrived ~90 minutes early for my appointment just in case something like this happened.
- When you enter, you show your appointment slip at reception and they ask you to wait in a very small lobby (4 seats) until a little before your appointment. Then you go through a metal detector and take an elevator up to a much larger waiting room (30? seats) with a restroom and the photo booth (non operational March 2026). The lockers are VERY small - like a small bookbag backpack barely fit. They will inspect the contents of your bag before you place it in the locker.
- The official asked if I had pre-approved my documents by email with the Citizenship Services, and I said - no. They were immediately and rightly skeptical. I did explain that an immediate family member of mine had success with the exact same documents. They asked "same same" or just "similar." I replied "same same, except this is my birth certificate." I think they would have wanted me to double check with Citizenship Services via their general email address autoresponder form. I suspect goodwill is your friend here, as you don't want to waste their time.
- I asked about what is needed for my kids, and was told the standard (my passport, all birth certificates, marriage certificates, and ID). But a good piece of advice was to submit for Geburtsurkunde for the kids. I was told by the officer that they can only go back to GF and not GGF at the consulate(?), so the same documents I submitted for me, might not have worked for the kids if they were to apply in person without me. They recommended applying for the Geburtsurkunde at the same time as the passport application. The Geburtsurkunde would take extended time - but eventually it might be worthwhile - like after I pass away. I really appreciated that advice. If my kids have a problem with renewing their passports, then they are stuck unless they have the Geburtsurkunde.
- Appointments are available, but they open ~5 appointments per day and they book very quickly, like within 2 minutes, at 6pm Sunday through Wednesday. The NYC office only does passports Monday through Thursday, and only in the mornings. Checking at other times can find appointments that others have cancelled, though unlikely.
- For the kids, we are likely going to try the Honorary Consulate office, since getting two appointments in a row, and getting all of us to NYC would be an expensive affair and logistical nightmare.
Good luck to you on your journey.