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what documents are needed if two foreigners want to get married in UK

Last activity 05 June 2018 by rustygecko

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sophie921

Hi, i am a Chinese and my boyfriend is a Hungarian, we want to get married in UK and stay there. Because he has a stable job in UK and also we think it is easier to get married in UK than Hungary. My boyfriend will apply for British citizenship next month ( can get British citizenship in few months) We wonder what kind of documents are needed to get married in UK and what kind of visa I can apply after marriage?  :unsure

Cynic

Hi Sophie and welcome to the Forum.

The process for getting married in the UK is described on the UK Gov website; this link will take you there.

Once you've read it, if you have any further specific questions please come back to us.

Hope this helps.

Cynic
Expat Team

rustygecko

Walk in to your local registry office and they will go through it.

sophie921

Thanks for your answer, but do you know what kind of visa i need to apply for to go to England? i know some my Japanese friends also did marriage in UK, but when they went to England for marriage they did not need visa to go England, while, I am Chinese, I definitely need a visa for that. I am wondering which kind of visa I should apply for? travel visa?

Cynic

Hi Sophie,

I've already answered your question (post 2 above).

I can be a bit more specific:

When you apply you’ll need to provide:

1.    a current passport or other valid travel identification
2.    proof that you can support yourself during your trip, for example bank statements or payslips for the last 6 months
3.    proof of your future plans for the relationship, for example documents to show where you’ll live
4.    details of where you intend to stay and your travel plans - you shouldn’t pay for accommodation or travel until you get your visa

You can also supply the following to support your application:

5.    details of the marriage or civil partnership and proof that you’ve paid money for some of its costs
6.    proof that you’re planning to get married in the UK, for example a booking confirmation or emails between you and the venue

If you’ve been married before, you’ll need to show proof that you’re free to marry or enter into a civil partnership again, for example a:

7.    decree absolute
8.    death certificate of a previous partner

You’ll need to provide a certified translation of any documents that aren’t in English or Welsh.

Cynic
Expat Team

rustygecko

You need a fiancée visa.
You must go personally to a consulate or the embassy to get that - there are only about 4 in all of China. They will telephone you before hand.
You need to be able to prove that you have a real enduring physical relationship - Internet romances don’t count.
He is not a British citizen and he will not be for probably a couple of years: the back-logs are huge. I’m not sure how much that effects your plans. Also your fiancé must earn about £19,000 and take no government funds if he is to bring you into the UK.

The embassy will be very reluctant to give you a visa because a) they are always b) they are very concerned to protect women from Asia being trafficked into the UK. I’m not saying it’s impossible - but expect to be rejected once (which is expensive).

Finally - why not get married in China? It is much easier to get married there. Once married there if he earns enough it’s easier to get into the Uk as you then have a real relationship on paper.

sophie921

Thanks for your explanation. The first reason why we don't get married in China is my bf cannot speak Chinese at all, which can make him hard to find jobs in China. Second is he has a stable job in England, but i do not, because I just graduated from school, so we think as long as i can go England, then we don't need to change the other things.

If moving to England is too difficult, we are also considering moving to Hungary (but my bf doesn't really go back to his country, so this is not our first choice). but i also found getting married in UK will be easier than in Hungry, because Hungarian government asks for more procedure.

sophie921

Thank you very much, it is very helpful!

rustygecko

I wasn't suggesting that you live or work in China. I was suggesting you MARRY in China. Once you are married it is relatively easy for an EU citizen to bring a wife to the UK

rustygecko

No2 is not correct. If you cannot support yourself you need a letter from someone who is financially credible that they will support you.

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