@krisma Good news: my trader status is now "Active" and the app is back on the App Store in Germany. What worked for me: on getsupport.apple.com I opened my case and selected "Get help with this issue". Some time after I had re-submitted the case there, a phone option appeared, and I got an immediate callback. The case was filed under Apple Developer Support > Distribution > Other Distribution Questions. To your questions: I wasn't transferred to a separate DSA or compliance team. The agent checked my details during the call, completed the verification right away and set the status to "Active". Shortly afterwards the app was available again. I didn't get any information about a general backlog or typical processing times. Why the phone option doesn't show up for you yet, I can't say. It may depend on the country, the time of day or how long the case has been open. For me it only appeared a while after I had re-submitted the case. I would keep checking the case page during business hours in your country. Good luck, I hope yours gets resolved soon as well, and thanks for sharing the P2B route.

@krisma Not yet, unfortunately. At first I only had the email option as well. What I have tried so far (status "In Review" since 13 October): Developer Support via the contact form (Distribution > Other Distribution Questions) on 16 October: no reply yet. Reports and Payments > Paid Agreement Setup: Finance replied that they can't help with DSA approval and that it has to go through the Developer Support case. getsupport.apple.com > "See your cases and repairs": there I could look up my case ID and submit it again. This time the confirmation promised a reply by email within 24 hours. Since then, a phone option has shown up for my case. I'm going to call them tomorrow and will post an update here afterwards. So it might be worth looking up your case ID on getsupport.apple.com as well.