Marriage in Vietnam: The Bureaucratic Process

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Statement in Lieu of Non-Recognition of Marriage.

Toronto, ON (PRWEB) June 23, 2007

The Canadian Immigration Firm Immigroup is updating its website with the most up-to-date requirements for marriage in Vietnam by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. The firm's expert on marriage abroad, Karen Fernandez, was asked to give step-by-step instruction on this topic due to overwhelming requests form the public.

According to Fernandez, Vietnam -- a country of 85 million people -- is becoming an increasing tourist attraction among Canadians. While in Vietnam, some Canadians, have fallen in love with a Vietnamese citizen, develop a relationship, and wish to get married in Vietnam and have their spouse immigrate to Canada.

Unfortunately, the easy part stops there. The tips and most up-to-date information for Canadians who wish to get married to a Vietnamese citizen is listed below:

Step-by-step process:

Make sure to follow all steps, which are in order, said Ferndandez:

1.    Single status Declaration (Lawyer will prepare this)
2.    In case of a divorce, the divorce judgment and certificate of divorce are needed (if it is missing the lawyer who filled the divorce judgment will have this); if widowed the certificate of death is required (if missing, contact the provincial registry office)
3.    Medical exam (from a family doctor or recognized medical agent) that states in a letter that one is free of mental and infectious diseases, has no sexually transmitted diseases and a confirmation that one is generally healthy and fit to be married. Copies of the physician's examination and test results must be included.
4.    Marriage search from legal age to date. (Registrar's General office of your province)
5.    Copy of birth certificate, Passport, or landed immigration document
6.    Have all documents notarized by a lawyer
7.    Send all documents to the Department of Foreign Affairs in Ottawa to be authenticated and apply for the "Statement in Lieu of Non-Recognition of Marriage."
8.    All documents must be translated and authenticated by the Vietnamese Embassy in Ottawa

• All address further expiation of information listed below.

** Once all documents are returned, they are ready to be submitted for a marriage license. If they are submitted in Vietnam, then t a minimum of 21 days will pass before the Vietnamese government will allow the marriage to take place. If one will apply for a marriage license from Canada, there will be additional forms to fill out including a power of attorney, biographical information, and application for a marriage registration.

Further advice:
The first tip Fernandez gives is to have all the necessary documentation in order. The most common cause of delay is not having all necessary documents properly prepared for submission. Fernandez emphasizes that the process to be able to marry in Vietnam can take a few months so it is necessary to make sure that they are eligible to be submitted. Any document that is not submitted properly could cause an additional delay of a few weeks.

The second step is to obtain the documents that are unique to a Vietnamese marriage. For example, someone having a marriage in Vietnam to a Vietnamese citizen must get both a marriage search from all the provinces that person has lived in and a "Statement in lieu of non-recognition of marriage" from the Department of Foreign Affairs. The latter of these documents takes 15 business days and, says Fernandez.

"It is impossible to get of hold of them even if you just want to get a status update." What is frustrating, adds Fernandez, is that these two documents say the same thing. "One has to wait three weeks to have foreign affairs say something that the provinces just said."

Vietnam also requires that any person who is getting married in their country must undergo a HIV/AIDS exam. The result of this exam can take 6 weeks.

The third step is to have all the documents authenticated by the Department of Foreign Affairs. For marriages in Vietnam, the only government office from which Vietnamese authorities will accept authentications is the department of Foreign Affairs in Ottawa. The delay to get these documents back can range from one day (if the total number of documents is less than ten) to 10 business days.

Once all the necessary documents have been obtained, they must be translated into the Viet language and legalized by the Vietnamese Embassy. This is the fourth step. This process can take from 5-7 business days. Once the documents have been translated and legalize, they are ready for submission to Vietnamese authorities in order to apply for the marriage license. Vietnamese authorities won't accept any documents that are set to expire within six months from the time of submission. Fernandez advises to review all the documents and make sure none of them expire for at least 7-8 months from the time application process has begun. Therefore, if any document is set to expire in 7-8 months, then it is a good idea to get it renewed or replaced.

The next step in the process is to obtain a marriage license. There are two ways to get one. They can be submitted in Vietnam in the town where the marriage will take place or at a Vietnamese Consulate or Embassy. Submitting the documents in Vietnam is straightforward. They are submitted along with their translations at a local office in the city where the wedding will take place. It takes 21 business days to receive the marriage license in Vietnam. However, most people can't be away for such a long period of time so they must submit their documents at a Vietnamese Consulate. If this is done, there are additional forms to fill out which include the request for a marriage license and a power of attorney for the fiancé(e) in Vietnam.

Afterwards, once the marriage in Vietnam has taken place, it is possible for the spouse who is a Canadian citizen to sponsor their Vietnamese spouse to immigrate to Canada. To learn more on the family class sponsorship please see: Family Class Sponsorship.

Links and address information:

The Embassy of Vietnam
470 Willbrod Street
Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6M8
Web: http://www.vietnamembassy-canada.ca/index.php

Authentication and Service of Documents Section (JLAC)
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
125 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0G2
Web: http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca

Immigroup Canadian Marriage Abroad
1180 Danforth Ave,
Toronto, Ontario M4J 1M3
416-962-2623
Web: http://www.immigroup.com

Canadian Birth Certificates:
http://www.canadianbirthcertificate.com

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