Getting my visa to Egypt was a piece of cake. It usually takes 2 working days to get it done, but…read morethey managed to speed it up for me due to some circumstances... All the staff were nice, friendly and ready to help... I am not giving them 5 stars because I arrived once at 4:02pm to collect my passport and they were closed already: no way around it. A bit of flexibility on that side and they would really deserve 5 stars...

I have never reviewed an embassy before, but whenever you get such a good service I think that…read morepositive feedback is necessary. When I usually require consular services I visit the consulate/embassy in person, but as there is no Vietnam embassy in Scotland I had no other option but to apply by post. I have heard many horror stories about passports getting lost en route, regardless of the special registered delivery service. Sure, this is insured (up to £500), but that wouldn't do much to save the time lost getting a new passport and reapplying for a visa. Needless to say I was a little anxious. I emailed the embassy who sent me some very clear and concise instructions about how to apply via the post. Each response from the Vietnam embassy was helpful and warm. The normal single-entry visa costs £55, express costs a little more, next day delivery is £75. On top of that you have to pay a passport handling service of £8. To reduce anxiety I requested next day delivery, so included a cheque of £83. This is a little expensive, but it gave me peace of mind. The service was efficient as described. I sent my visa on Monday via special recorded delivery, it arrived the next day, it was sent back the next day and arrived today. I was provided with a tracking number as soon as it was sent.

They definitely OVER delivered!! Background - I was stupid and inadvertently shredded Mrs G's…read morepassport by mistake while shredding mountains of confidential paperwork and she was traveling a week later. Yikes!! We managed to get an appointment at 8am on a Friday morning. There were long lines for visa applications but Mrs G was allowed to walk right in and about 40 minutes later walked out clutching a brand new Emergency Passport (valid for a year) and could fly to LAX the next Tuesday!! God bless America. Thank you :)

The staff was professional and the process was organized. Security was tight, but expected. Make…read moresure to bring all required documents. Overall, a smooth experience.

The queues are usually long long long, so come early in the morning. Fortunately, this being German…read moreterritory, there is no queue jumping - just take a number and wait until you are called to the counter. Staff here isn't overly friendly, but nevertheless very helpful. While you are waiting, have a look around, they often also have good information on tourism, language learning or scholarships.

I used to get very jealous of other embassies which are based in palacial old buildings with wood…read morepanelling and old-fashioned counters until I realised that the 70's architecture of the German embassy actually perfectly reflects the overall look and feel of my home country. Fortunately, staff at the passport and visa office are a lot more friendly than the tone of the website suggests. Security has been hightened since I queued for my last passport ten years ago. I was also caught out by the fact that you now have to make an appointment well in advance to apply for a renewal. You are then given a 15-minute slot for crowd control purposes. Apart from that the procedure remains the same. Once inside you are given a ticket and wait until your number is called. The waiting area has a very German feel to it and seems to be stuck in the 70's I don't think they have changed the posters on the walls since they first opened apart from the addition of a TV screen which allows a glimpse into modern-day Germany: daytime soaps and reality TV interspersed with the best of German advertising. Provided you have followed the instructions you received when your appointment was confirmed, the whole process is extremely efficient (what else would you expect).

I was so far twice at the embassy and both times the place was suffering from the large number of…read moremy compatriots living or visiting the islands, which seems to be a current trend in the international affairs, at least for the past ten years or so. First time I went there, which was during the presidential elections, the line to vote was winding up behind the street corner. Although there were two poll stations inside the building open to vote and the third one just around the corner in the consulate building at New Cavendish Street it seemed that everyone in England subscribed to the same poll station. And obviously all of the people had to wait in a huge line rather than smoothly load balancing the congestion among lots of the polling stations across the UK or even in the very same building. The second time I have visited the embassy was for the Polish Tech Event. It was quite exciting to see how Polish tech scene is developing. However once again the demand paralyzed the organizers. I came quite late, almost at the end of the official part, which were the discussion panels. Although the event was free there was mandatory registration with limited places so that everyone would fit into the room. However lots of people had to stay outside the main room. From what I have heard about the people who were inside, we were actually lucky to stay out. As it was a warm June day in London the temperature in the room was quite high but noone thought about turning on the air-conditioning. If it was even existing. The informal reception that followed was very nice with lots of interesting discussions.

I have visited this Finnish Embassy when accompanying my wife about 2 times now…read more Not much has changed in the 5 years of the first visit. It is located in 'foreign embassy land' - left, right & centre you'll find either an embassy or consulate of nearly every country that has friendly (or not so friendly) connections with the United Kingdom. The Finnish Embassy is easy to find and not too far from city centre. The building is historic and has impressive doors. However in contrast with the other embassies I found it a bit understated. Oh well that my be the Fins for you :o) Their passport services on Friday's is from 14:00 - 15:00 only - you 'intercom' & 'camera check' to get through the security entrance and into a brown and green coloured waiting room. Comfortable sofas, a water cooler and some plants, Finland posters and a painting. Notably no Finland president picture, not that I could see. You draw a 'number' and on your turn you get to the counter (bullet proof) and conduct the passport exchange motions - everyone needs to do the same for the new biometric passport; pictures, fingerprints and signatures - then pay and kittos, you're done On this occasion, we arrived at 14:00 sharp we were 5 in line and left around 14:30 After a underground trip, we were well on to Piccadilly Circus when the embassy called us if we could get back ASAP as they forgot to take my wife's fingerprints- with only 10 min left before they close we abandoned our city visit touristy plans at that point and flagged a black cab to bring us to the Embassy, pronto. we arrived with 2 min spare and all was sorted. In their defence though, they tried calling before we surfaced at Piccadilly Circus, but as you know the underground system doesn't carry any mobile phone service. Oh well it was all sorted in the end.

All my previous experience of embassies is based on a long visit to the US embassy last summer, so…read moreI was just happy that my trip to the Japanese embassy this morning was a quick in and out affair. Staff were perfectly pleasant and very efficient, there was plenty of space to fill out forms in comfort and best of all I was leaving again a mere 15 minutes after I showed up. There was a problem though - I'd convinced myself the building was on the Mall when it's the other side of the park. I would have got there exactly on time if it had been where I thought it was, but as it happened I had to peg it across Green Park in sweltering heat to arrive, red faced, ten minutes late. I can't blame the embassy for that though.

How can one be a fan of the Home Office Immigration & Nationality Directorate, you might ask?…read more Well, accustomed to mediocre and sluggish service when it comes to the public sector, I was pleasantly surprised by the efficient, helpful, and friendly service I received on a recent visit. Anticipating my afternoon being whittled away in a waiting room somewhere in Croydon, I came prepared with a plethora of reading materials from which to choose. However, none of this was needed. I arrived and went through the security check after a friendly and helpful exchange with the guards. I immediately walked up to a reception window and received further instructions on where to go by a receptionist. Another security guard in front of the stairwell greeted me charmingly and provided even further information on how to find my way within the building. I found where I needed to be with ease and sat down to wait. Just as I got out a book to read, my number was called, and I went to speak with an agent. This meeting proceeded seamlessly, and I returned to the waiting area to wait for results. I overheard a couple people complaining about a wait, and took out a book for what I assumed was surely the wait time I anticipated. But to my delight, my number was again called in less than 10 minutes. I spoke to another smiling agent, received some paperwork, and was told I could go on my way. I wonder how much my pleasant experience was due to racial differences (i.e., the difference between being an 'expat' and an 'immigrant', with Western, native-English speakers given undue respect in comparison to 'others'), but I nevertheless had a much more pleasant experience than I was anticipating. That said, I still haven't heard back from the government about my visa.