# Marriage question



## tonyoscarmontana (Jan 19, 2013)

I will be marring my fiancee' in March and i have one question. I want to do everything in Manila but she is from Mindanao province. My question is can i do this? For example obtain the CNI from the uk embassy in manila and then get married and sign the papers in manila?

Its just that ive heard that we need to go to her province to register the wedding, is this the case? I'd rather just do everything in Manila and then go back to her province for a honeymoon and wedding reception. Can she be legally married in Manila without us registering the marriage at a town hall in her province?

Thanks


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## Asian Spirit (Mar 1, 2010)

Hi Tony,

Not sure how your government handles things or their regulations on the matter. If like the US, all paperwork can be done in Manila.
Yes, you can marry in Manila and not in her home area. The marriage will be registered in the province and municipality where it is done.
Don't know how familiar you are with Mindanao and the extreme hazards there. But would strongly suggest you give serious thought to not going there for any reason. 



Congratulations and Best Of Luck...


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## paybaxz (Jun 22, 2011)

Hi Tony,

I am a UK citizen. I married my wife in Cebu in December, she is from Bayugan City in Mindanao. There is NO problem for you at all, providing that your wife has suitable documentation: 

Firstly you MUST have been Manila for 30 days The British Embassy will check your passport, in order to submit your application for your CNI, which will take about 3 weeks... ours took 17 days. The bad new is that the CNI cost's around 9350php..which is an absolute OUTRAGEOUS price... but you have no choice. 

Then you BOTH will need a CENOMAR Certificate from the NSO office....this is to show that you both are legally clear to be married....We did ours online and had it delivered (hassle free). NOTE be SURE that you also retain the DELIVERY RECEIPT if you go that route... we misplaced ours...and had to do it all over again!

Your lady will need her ORIGINAL Birth Certificate ... AND if your lady is between the age of 18 - 24 yrs, she will need the signature of a parent or guardian..... if she is over 25 yrs of age... this is NOT required.

She will also require a Barangay clearance from her province, although she may be able to do this by registering a transfer of her Voter's Registration to Manila....

You can obtain a List of Requirements from the Marriage Registration Office in Manila.

Hope this helps you.

Good Luck!

Ken


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## Taswegian (Dec 2, 2011)

paybaxz said:


> Hi Tony,
> 
> I am a UK citizen. I married my wife in Cebu in December, she is from Bayugan City in Mindanao. There is NO problem for you at all, providing that your wife has suitable documentation:
> 
> ...


Hey Tonyoscarmontana
Sounds like the UK embassy is pretty slow. I arrived in the Philippines 3 days before my marriage - the CNI took a whole 1 hour to get (this might just be an Australian thing), was never even asked about how long I had known my girl let alone a wait time. You BOTH need original birth certificates. My wife was able to get clearance from her province by phone, no need to change anything.

Cheers


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## paybaxz (Jun 22, 2011)

Glad to hear that you had a smooth ride through the British Embassy requirements..... I suspect that you went through the embassy in Manila.... I went through the Consulate in Cebu... which is staffed by a volunteer that need's to be REPLACED! She's an OLD woman with a very NASTY attitude and decide's when or whether she'll reply to one's emails.... and very rarely answers the telephone. She believe's that she's a 'cut above" others... I have heard of the same difficulites from two other Brits also.

After a run around of several weeks, I emailed a complaint to the embassy in Manila.... she called me 2 days later....

So... for anyone intending to go through the process in Cebu... please take note... and be prepared.


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## ILoveAFilipina (Dec 21, 2012)

On the subject of marriage I have a few questions myself.

Just to be clear it is not imminent but something that I am thinking about further down the line...

Even though I live in Malaysia at the moment I am thinking of having the wedding in my girlfriend's home city of Angeles and keeping it 'small' (her family and any of my immediate family that can make it) then doing it again in Europe at some point in the future.

1) What kind of costs am I looking at? I assume there are some legal/registration documents that have to be paid for? 

2) As I am also Catholic (albeit non-practicing) is it possible to have the wedding in a Church and will that be legal in its own right or would I still have to do a separate 'state' registration as well?

3) I am dual nationality having passports from the UK and from the Republic of Ireland. Would anyone have a view whether it would be better to use one or the other - or does it make no difference? I currently travel on the UK passport with the Irish passport as backup but I wonder in the future if I ever move back to the UK (Or Ireland) with my wife whether the process of getting her 'legalised' in one or other of the countries be easier and would my passport choice for the wedding make any difference? I say this only because my sparse reading indicates that getting my potential future wife permanent residency visa in the UK would be a complete pain in the arse as they have tightened up all the regulations so that she could only come to the UK some months after I go back and would then have to jump through all sorts of hoops and tests to prove we are a legitimate marriage(I could be wrong)...

4) If I do have a wedding in the Phils - what is 'expected' in terms of a post wedding reception? How big does it get and any interesting local customs in relation to this. Living in Malaysia they do HUGE weddings here where every man and his dog gets invited - is that an expectation in the Philippines? Or can it be constrained to immediate family - Parents, Uncles, Aunts and Cousins? Realistically my Girlfriends' family are not going to make much contribution to the costs so what kind of bill would I be looking at for something nice but not excessive?

5) Also (stretching now) if I do get married in the Phils does anyone know if I can then get my girlfriend a 'dependent visa' in Malaysia (based on my existing 2 year work visa) so that she can come and stay with me here?

Cheers in advance...


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## Taswegian (Dec 2, 2011)

Hi Iloveafilipina,

I don't have each break down in cost as my wife took care of it all.
When you have a wedding here in the phils everyone you and the family knows will expect to come to the wedding. I was like you only wanted a small one however it ended up over 300 people
We got married in a church and had a reception in a local resort and it came to 100k peso (5 thousand Australian), that's with all documents and wedding.
If you get married in your backyard or in the church you still have to go through the local mayors office.
Sorry I can't say anything on your other questions.

Hope this helps.


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## ILoveAFilipina (Dec 21, 2012)

Thanks


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## thescribe (Jan 28, 2013)

It is easier there in her hometown, but you can get married anywhere with the proper clearance.

I do have one question for you, to wit: Do you plan to bring her back to the UK?

Typically, the process is longer that way than petitioning her as a fiance.


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## ILoveAFilipina (Dec 21, 2012)

thescribe said:


> It is easier there in her hometown, but you can get married anywhere with the proper clearance.
> 
> I do have one question for you, to wit: Do you plan to bring her back to the UK?
> 
> Typically, the process is longer that way than petitioning her as a fiance.


Well it really depends on what happens with my job in Malaysia. I have a two year work visa and theory if everything works out I could be out here for the rest of my life. I am under the understanding that as long as I have a two-year work visa here then I can bring her in on a 'dependents' visa as an when we get married.

However if things do go pear-shaped here then yes I will have to return to the UK (or Ireland)...

Is it more difficult to bring in a wife than a fiance to the UK?


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