ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the people that make up the office, examines how they deal with the at times extremely stressful job, looks at their attitudes towards immigration and analyses the responsibility deciding on immigrants' life chances in Germany entails. Deportations are surely the most extreme and emotionally stressful tasks immigration offices have to fulfil. The total vulnerability of migrants and the immense power immigration officials wield is nowhere more obvious, more frightening. Scheffer's analysis of the asylum granting process finds similar techniques and Bouchard and Carroll show the 'automated' ways in which immigration officials deal with immigrants. Extremely different handling of cases, grumpy, stubborn officials, opaque decision-making processes and negative decisions in the context of immigration law have often brought about claims of anti-immigrant sentiments and institutionalised racism against certain groups. In addition to denying responsibility when held accountable for actions, some employees in the immigration offices would also avoid being in a situation in which responsible behaviour was necessary.
