Immigration and Marriage..ugh!?
I am an American citizen in LOVE with a French man. We have been seeing eachother until he was finally REFUSED entry to the US because of his numerous visits and they found out he did little freelance jobs too. I have not finished my studies so i cannot really go to him as much.
We have decided to just marry to make our situation better. (we were planning to marry anyways) I understand its easier to marry in the foreign country. So i plan to do it, but how long and is it expensive for the process to go through? Is it better to use an immigration lawyer? We want to be together asap!
Also, i may not have enough income to show i can support him too, so can my parents file their incomes too?
Anyone with info, i’d greatly appreciate it!
Thanks, and please dont leave your immature and stupid comments if you intend on it.
No, dear, marriage in France is not as easy as you think.
First of all, as you want to marry, you can not do it on a tourist
visa – I mean, you do not need any visa for the stay up to 90 days,
but you can’t marry like this, because you will be considered as a
tourist, and no mairie will marry you. If you want to marry in France, you must collect a lot of papers. The list is changing, but
approximately:
1. Your birth certificate, issued no later than 6 month, with
apostille.
2. Your marriage/divorce certificate, if you were married before, with apostille.
3. A medical test, done by a doctor, accredited with the French
embassy in your country, with apostille.
4. A paper, which states that you are not married now (should be
recent) with apostille.
5. Certificate de coutume – this is a paper that says that in your
country and in his country only one wife are allowed per husband (no polygamy). This paper can be get from American embassy in Paris.
Plus some forms from the mairie, ceriticate de honor and so on.
This is your part of the papers, and there are his – the same, minus the ceritficate de coutume, but the copy of his ID and some fractures – bills, to prove that he lives there, because one can marry only where one lives (register the marriage).
With these papers he – or better you and he – should go to the mairie.
The mairie will put out bannes – an announcement that you two are going to marry. After this announcement was out for ten days, you can marry, and not earlier. When ten days pass, you should get a copy of banns, and certificate non-oposition – it is a paper which says that no one turned up to stop your marriage.
Then you collect:
1. Your birth certificate, issued no later than 6 month, with
apostille.
2. Your marriage/divorce certificate, if you were married before, with apostille.
3. Police clearance certificate with apostille.
4. Papers showing your income in the past year.
5. A couple of photos.
6. Passport.
7. His papers, showing his income for the last 3 months.
8. Copy of his national ID.
9. Certificate non-oposition.
10. Bannes.
With these papers you go to the French embassy and apply for a visa to marry! The you go to France with that visa, and go to the mairie and marry!
Apostille is a special stamp on the papers, which makes them valid in Europe. Can be obtained from a notary.
All the papers must be translated into French!
Much better choice for you both would be to apply for K-1 visa for him – a fiance visa. You will have to fill a couple of forms, and send them to your immigration office, nearest to you, with the proofs of your relationship – photos, e-mails, phone bills, plane tickets copies and so on. When they receive it, they will process your case in States, and then will send it to the American embassy in France. He will be called to the interview to prove that he really wants to get married, knows you, that you met, that you have a relationship.
You will have to show that you have sufficient income to support him there. If you do not, your parents can be co-sponsors, and provide their financial information. The case processing will last for about 6-7 month. Then he will get a visa for 90 days. He can go there and must marry until his visa expired. Since he already have immigration problems, his case might not be approved, then you had to apply for a waiver.
If you do marry in France, you still have to apply for a visa for him,
but that would be a spouse visa. The papers and forms are mostly the same, plus marriage certificate. Then send them to your Immigration service centre. The time processing will be somewhat quicker, maybe 5-6 months. Again, your parents can co-sponsor and he might be refused, and you will have to apply for a waiver.
You can read about the process here:
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=0775667706f7d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=4f719c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD
What with the papers to collect for the marriage, you’d better go for a fiance visa, that is my opinion.
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