# Unmarried certificate



## CindyLouBou (Nov 17, 2013)

My boyfriend and I are currently in the process of filling out the MVV and getting together all the paperwork for it. As we are unmarried we need a certificate. I am from the US while he is Dutch. I know the US doesn't really have a certificate like that but I did find it online. The problem is that here it's $500 while over there its only 13 euros. The question is do I have to get it here for me or can I get one for me in the Netherlands?


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## silentmagician (Mar 12, 2015)

MVV? Americans don't need the provisional residence permit. Are you asking about applying for an actual residence permit? I got my proof of being unmarried here in the Netherlands (since I was already living here under a different permit but wanted to switch to being sponsored by my boyfriend). I had to visit the American consulate in Amsterdam to swear I am single, then have my document legalized by the Ministerie van Buitenlandse in the Hague. I think the total cost was something like 50 or 60 euros. Hope that helps


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## CindyLouBou (Nov 17, 2013)

silentmagician said:


> MVV? Americans don't need the provisional residence permit. Are you asking about applying for an actual residence permit? I got my proof of being unmarried here in the Netherlands (since I was already living here under a different permit but wanted to switch to being sponsored by my boyfriend). I had to visit the American consulate in Amsterdam to swear I am single, then have my document legalized by the Ministerie van Buitenlandse in the Hague. I think the total cost was something like 50 or 60 euros. Hope that helps


Actually more confused! I mostly wanted to know if I could get the certificate over there since the US doesn't really have one and it's way more expensive. But now I know that I can, that cuts out a lot of stress. I had went to the dutch website and they had a link to the papers I needed to print out and fill out. My boyfriend is going to be applying for me as a sponsor. But I was told I would need the MVV to have a resident permit for 5 years. Because eventually we will get married and then some time after that apply for a citizenship but right now is getting me moved there and being able to have a permit to live in the house we have. And as you can tell we are having a difficult time trying to figure out what exactly we need and need to fill out and get.


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## Donutz2 (Apr 14, 2014)

The Dutch will want to see some sort of confirmation of your marital status from the country that you are from (or have lived for a long period of time). As you are a US citizen this would be official conformation from the US authorities that you are single. I'd inquire with the US embassy (is there no info on the US embassy website?). 

Since US citizens are visa excempt they do not need an MVV ('type D' entry visa for the purpose of long stay), and can start the procedure from NL, applying for a ressidence permit (VVR Verblijfsvergunning). Ofcourse you can also start the procedure while you are in the US. 

Both the alien (vreemdeling) and host (referent) can start the procedure, called TEV (Toegang en Verblijf, entry and settlement). The procedure cosists of a MVV entry visa (for those who need one) and VVR residence card. 

For partnerimmigration you will not need a birthcertificate but later on if you wish to marry then you would need a birthcertificate. The most convient would be getting both papers confirmig your maritial status and your birthcertificate, one here you register with the local municipality and they can register your papers so that they can be retreived from their archives when you do start the mariage procedure or if/when you start a naturalisation procedure (those married to a Dutch citizen can naturalize and obtain citizenship after 3 years -provided they are integrated etc.- without having to give up their original citizenship).


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## silentmagician (Mar 12, 2015)

Yes, isn't figuring out the paperwork fun (not!)  Americans can come here as a tourist for 90 days, during which time you can submit your residence permit application. Once your application is submitted, you can stay until the IND makes their decision. As far as I know, the only reason for you to apply for the MVV is to experience the joy of filling out more forms and to pay an extra fee...Did an IND agent tell you that you needed an MVV?

From the IND website https: //ind.nl/EN/individuals/residence-wizard/procedure :

_Not everyone needs an mvv to apply for a residence permit in the Netherlands. Below you will find an overview of nationalities who are exempt from this requirement as well as specific circumstances for which an mvv is not required.

You will not require an mvv when:

You currently hold a (valid) residence permit for the Netherlands.
You have the nationality of one of the following countries: Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, South Korea, United States of America or Vatican City. _


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## silentmagician (Mar 12, 2015)

Oh, and since Donutz22 brought up birth certificates, I did need one to register with my municipality which I had to do before I applied for the permit (unless the procedure has changed) Not to get too off track


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## Donutz2 (Apr 14, 2014)

It's common that the municiipality asks for a birtcertificate upon registration in the database (BRP: Basisregistratie Personen or Base Administration of People) For your own future convience it's best if you supply a birtcertificate (with appostille stamp). However if you cannot provide one that's fine too, there is no legal requirement to do so for registration in the Netherlands. 

It *is* a requirement for those who wish to marry or naturalize though, and the authorities can retreive (use) an already previously submitted certificate from their archives. So if you have a birtcertificate available when you migrate it's best to take it with you.


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## CindyLouBou (Nov 17, 2013)

This is even more confusing! Okay let me see if I can word this correctly. I am planning on moving to the Netherlands to live with my Dutch boyfriend who will be my sponsor. We don't have any information on what we need or what to do other than looking up stuff on our own and it is very confusing. Now, I am visiting him this Aug 15 to Nov 6 for that 90 day period. During that time we were going to put in all the paperwork we need and that way I can go ahead and take some stuff to the house. He did say I might can come stay until the paperwork was filled out but we didn't know if I could.

This is the website where I got my information. 
New to Holland - Dutch government immigration website

I only had to put in a few things and it made a simple, although not completely clear understanding, of what I needed to do and fill out. Like I said, I do plan on moving there and want to live there for pretty much ever. Now I know I can't get a citizenship right now and I'm not worried about that at the moment. Right now I need to know exactly what I need to fill out to be able to live there with my boyfriend.


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## CindyLouBou (Nov 17, 2013)

Also, will I have to take the civic integration examination abroad? Time is running short and I don't want to leave anything out!


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## silentmagician (Mar 12, 2015)

Did you already read this page? ind.nl/en/individuals/residence-wizard/family/unmarried-partners
This was where I got the clearest information when I applied for sponsorship.

My circumstances were slightly different than yours since I originally came here under the Dutch-American Friendship Treaty and then switched to sponsorship later, but if you'd like to get an idea of the process you can read about it on my blog: playmeahappysong.blogspot.nl/search/label/DAFT . Obviously some requirments will be different for you. I'd recommend your boyfriend call the IND and ask your questions, they are usually pretty helpful (though make sure he sets aside a chunk of time because it can take awhile to get through when they are busy). Also ask about the health-insurance requirments--I needed to demonstrate my US insurance covered me here. An e-mail from the insurance company satisfied this. After I got my permit I switched to Dutch insurance, but this would be a good thing for you to ask about.

Before leaving the US, I'd definately recommend getting your birth certificate, which needs to be apostilled. You'll need to check how to do this within your state and allow enough time because it can take a couple weeks.

You can submit your application while you are here during that 90 days, and once it is submitted you can stay until they make their decision which should be within 3 months. Be aware that it can take a couple weeks to make appointments so make sure to allow time for that as well. You will need an appointment to visit the American consul for the unmarried certificate, which you can make online through their website, plus whatever appointments your boyfriend might need for getting his financial information signed off.

I didn't need to take the integration exam before coming. I will need to take it in a couple years if I want to stay. According to the IND website ind.nl/EN/individuals/residence-wizard/other-information/civic-integration , only those who need an MVV are required to take the exam abroad:

_Target group of the Civic Integration Examination Abroad 

In principle, anyone aged at least 18 and who has not yet reached the AOW pension age, who needs to have a Provisional Residence Permit (mvv) to come to the Netherlands, has to take the exam.

This requirement applies to you, when:

You have a nationality for which an mvv obligation applies, and
You are aged 18 and over. When you have reached your AOW pension age you no longer have to pass the exam. _

For the sake of your sanity, I'd organize the requirements into a list if you haven't done so already. One column of your responsibilities, and one column for what your boyfriend needs to do. It was very satisfying to be able to check off each thing and feel like I had a handle on what needed to be done!


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## CindyLouBou (Nov 17, 2013)

silentmagician said:


> Did you already read this page? ind.nl/en/individuals/residence-wizard/family/unmarried-partners
> This was where I got the clearest information when I applied for sponsorship.
> 
> My circumstances were slightly different than yours since I originally came here under the Dutch-American Friendship Treaty and then switched to sponsorship later, but if you'd like to get an idea of the process you can read about it on my blog: playmeahappysong.blogspot.nl/search/label/DAFT . Obviously some requirments will be different for you. I'd recommend your boyfriend call the IND and ask your questions, they are usually pretty helpful (though make sure he sets aside a chunk of time because it can take awhile to get through when they are busy). Also ask about the health-insurance requirments--I needed to demonstrate my US insurance covered me here. An e-mail from the insurance company satisfied this. After I got my permit I switched to Dutch insurance, but this would be a good thing for you to ask about.
> ...


THANK YOU SO MUCH! I have been to that website and I guess it's what's throwing me off with the exam because it says I have to have it and I assumed I had to take it even if its not MVV. I told him he needed to call them and talk with them and make sure we know exactly what we need. It's putting more stress on my side because he thinks he doesn't really have to do too much and he doesn't understand that a lot of this paperwork can take a couple of weeks to get in. Sometimes I think I could strangle him :heh:

I do have the paperwork for him to be the sponsor to fill out. I saw that I do have to get my doctor to fill out some stuff but other than that it's all good on my side except the birth certificate. I was wondering about the insurance since I turn 26 while I'll be over there I won't be on my dad's insurance anymore but we were planning on getting insurance on me with a company over there. Would I still have to have one for America though even though I'll be getting one over there?


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## Donutz2 (Apr 14, 2014)

No doctor (yours or here in NL) is involvd in any step of the process unless you come here for medical threatment rather then (unmarried) partnership migration.

Your partner will have/can do most of the paperwork, starting out by filling out most of the form: the IND has a version for aliens and a version for the Dutch partner, you can chose one of them. Personally I prefer the one for the Dutch partner. You will need to sign in 2-3 places, have a certificate that shows your marital status (unmarried) and jsut for your own convience you are adviced to bring a birtcertificate (though this is not legally required unless you wish to marry or naturalize). Your partner has to supple income details: a durable income with sufficient wage (100% social minumum, about 1500 euro's per month before incometaxes etc. are substracted). 

The IND wizard should give the most case specific information, the brochures found there should be useful aswell.


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## CindyLouBou (Nov 17, 2013)

That makes it a lot easier! I did print out the one he's supposed to fill out (the sponsor one) but it does have a page for doctor information. Now I'm not quite sure if I got the right one.

Edit: I printed the Application for the purpose of residence of ‘family members and relatives’ (sponsor)

Edit edit: On page b14 it has a medical information disclosure consent form.


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## silentmagician (Mar 12, 2015)

Not all pages in the form apply to you. Section 5 lists the appendices that you need. So if you check the box by "You are the unmarried partner of the foreign national (322 - 342)" there is a list under that of the forms you should fill out. Does that make some sense? B14 is not on the list, so don't give yourself a headache over it 

As for the insurance, you can also check with the insurance companies when you'd be able to get Dutch insurance. I put it off since I was covered under my US insurance and I had enough to do as it was, so I really don't remember if I needed the residence permit first or not. Here is a website where you can compare insurance companies: zorgwijzer.nl/zorgvergelijker/english . Otherwise, you'll have to ask the IND.


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## Donutz2 (Apr 14, 2014)

People are meant to start on page one, answering the first questions and following the instructions that apply to them. Following the instructions (which depend on what answer you give: i.e. your situation) you will have to fill out certain attachments (bijlages), certainly not all. You can double check this as per Magicans instructions.

The form (#7518) you used is the correct one if you indeed prefer the 'sponsor' version (I prefer the 'sponsor' version over the 'alien' version):
"_Application for a residence permit with the purpose of residence being 'family members and relatives' (sponsor) (7518) _"

Source: https://ind.nl/EN/individuals/family/forms-brochures/Pages/default.aspx


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## Xircal (Mar 20, 2015)

Hi Cindy,

Just to add a couple of things which other contributors haven't mentioned (as far as I can tell). 

You can apply for permanent residency once you've been here continuously for five years. About six months before the five year period is due to expire, you'll be contacted by the IND and will have to submit a form they'll send you. One of the questions you'll have to answer truthfully is that you haven't committed any criminal acts, or have been cautioned by the Police for any reason. Traffic offences don't count as a reason to revoke your residence permit, but anything more serious than that and you may find yourself with a notice to leave the country. 

If you want to obtain Dutch citizenship, the same rule applies except that you'll need to speak Dutch in order to take the oath of allegiance to the Netherlands.

Generally speaking, you're required to forfeit your current nationality once you've been granted Dutch citizenship. 

However, there are exceptions. If you marry your boyfriend for example, you can become a Dutch citizen and still retain your US nationality. That way with dual nationality, you'll have the best of both worlds. See this site in Dutch for more info: Dubbele nationaliteit | Nederlandse nationaliteit | Rijksoverheid.nl

Here's a good site with some tips: Netherlands Entry Visas | Residence | Work Permits | Migrants

However, these things are five years away at least and things may change for you before then. 

Good luck anyway.


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## CindyLouBou (Nov 17, 2013)

Xircal said:


> Hi Cindy,
> 
> Just to add a couple of things which other contributors haven't mentioned (as far as I can tell).
> 
> ...


Thank you very much! I don't have a criminal record nor do I plan on obtaining one! As of right now we are just trying to get me moved and living there. We do plan on getting married at some point (it gets pretty difficult on deciding where to have it and how everyone will get there) and I do want a Dutch citizenship but as I've said, that won't be for a long long time.

I'm hoping while I'm there from August to November that I'll get an answer on whether I can stay or not.


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