Me and my (British) partner want to get married here. For that, we need to proof that neither of us is already married. She's had an extremely short e-mail exchange with the registrar office of the council where she grew up, in which she was told she needs to be in Britain for three weeks to request the certificate of non-impediment. When she replied asking why the hell she needs to be there for three weeks, the only reply was "it's the law" and if she could please call them "as they have asked her twice to do" instead of e-mailing, which, and I quote, is "too costly to the taxpayer". No. You suggested it twice, as all public services/companies do all the time, you useless c.... And too costly to the taxpayer? My fat, French ass it is. I'm just so angry. Three weeks? That's difficult for someone who's not working, impossible for someone with a job. That's just retarded. Apparently this stupid law comes from the Marriage with Foreigners act... in which I can't find the three-week "incovenience" anywhere. But now, apart from being angry about the situation, I also feel insulted. Thanks, 1906 lawmakers! Her birth certificate they're willing to send without any problem, as long as she pays £7. Without any checks to the identity of the person requesting the birth certificate. But something to get married, oh no. I'm so pissed off, I just want to call them and yell. But, rather obviously, Argh! Any (preferably plausible) way around this which doesn't include burning down the council office would be much appreciated.
could I suggest this link and if that doesn't help get married in a country that doesn't require a certificate of non-impediment, Florida in the USA doesn't and I'm pretty sure that Vegas doesn't either, have a holiday wedding.
Unfortunately, the Consulate refuses to deliver the non-impediment crap. We want to get married here simply for the convenience. If we get married outside of France, we'd need to have the marriage "ratified" here anyway. We're both here, we have jobs to go to, it'd be a big hassle to get married abroad (we've considered it at length before to avoid the bureaucracy). This time (for once) it's not the French that are the problem, but the English bureaucracy. (Proud Brits will be glad to know that I now consider English bureaucracy worse than French bureaucracy, so you win ). Definitely avoiding the USA though. I'm not giving up my fingerprints to get married. It's my (human?) right to marry. The bureaucracy is a huge PITA, but this council really took it to another level. I've fired off an e-mail to the (outside of France) town hall of the, ehm, town where I grew up, to compare their handling of this "I'm not married yet, promise" to the English thing (as I need to prove it too, anyway). But seeing as before (and thanks to French bureaucracy I've needed many documents ) they never charged me nor bitched about anything, I doubt it'll be a problem. By the way, as I've just sent an e-mail D) to the English council myself, basically to whine, here's the last e-mail from the registrar's office: What a retarded situation.
Je te souhaite bon courage dans tes démarches ! ("good luck in your application" for those uneducated in the French language )
Is it not a possibility that your other half's parents go into the local council office? I would have thought that it maybe easier and quicker, but you never know. Sam
from a quick read through on the British consulate site and I can see no mention of needing a certifcate of non impediment unless she's been married before? it might just be an idea to phone her council it is normally easier to have a discussion on the phone than via email stops misunderstandings.
That's the next thing we'll try (within office hours tomorrow). If not, maybe her sister can pretend to be her apart from begging the local council to let us get married without that stupid certificate. It depends on French council. Some require it, some don't - ours do (the *******s). I'll call them tomorrow to see if they're willing to drop it, but I doubt so. It hurts a lot because the bureaucracy will not allow us to go through this easily. England's being a bitch and so is France... but it's my goddamn marriage that's on the line
I don't think it's about rushing, I think it's about the wife having to leave her job for three weeks, move back to her home country, stay there without making any income to help support the travel and living expenses of not one, but two homes, and the simple fact of them being apart for three weeks without any real reason. While yes, three weeks isn't that much in the long run, when you look at the amount of work and money that'll go into those three weeks it just becomes a logistical and financial nightmare. Honestly, gnutonian, just smack the local council with a fish - that'll sort them out right quick!
Totally missed his location I was thinking that he was in Britain and she's in France How about the two of you taking a 3 week holiday in Britain? Even if that means having to save up for it, the three weeks can be enjoyable. I bet you wouldn't have to spend the whole 3 weeks, or perhaps not even a day in a hotel either. I'm guessing she's got some family you could stay with for at least week or so, another week or so with other family, or friends, etc.
Call them, explain the situation, and BE NICE. Be really, really nice and just explain your situation and your problems with staying in england for three weeks twiddling your thumbs just for a sheet of paper. Make sure the other side starts feeling sorry for you, explain that your marriage is on the line. At the same time, don't expect them to break all the rules for you, and tell them so. Just ask for them to work with you in finding a solution. Other then that, have you considered that being there for three weeks can be easily faked by two round trips? it's still costly, but a lot less so then actually staying there for three weeks, and if you do it in the weekend, you don't need to skip work.
God no, I can't handle three weeks of staring youths in tracksuits. That'd lead to a murder charge (which she would probably consider "not romantic" - women!). Plus, taking three consecutive weeks off would, unfortunately, be a complete bitch. Worth a try... Definitely worth a try if the above fails... Smart
That's very un-French like. Hope you get it sorted out soon - When I got married to MrsGOO we didn't have any issues, even though she was technically a foriegner at the time (She's Singaporean, but her father was English - she could have had dual nationality, had the Singaporean Government allowed it [they don't]). I guess it's down to the council involved... Mind you, it got such a bloody drag renewing her passport (can only be done in Singapore, and then she needed to go to the British High Comission to get all of her right to abode stamps redone), and the fact that she seemed to need a Visa to go anywhere that she renounced her Singaporean citizenship and became a fully fledged Brit. Cross border love. It's a pain, but we put up with it.
Yeah, sometimes it's worth it In related news, I got an e-mail from the Civil Service (or something along those lines) where I grew up: if I want proof I'm not yet married, I have to provide my address so they can send it to me. No charges, no wasting my time in another country. Granted, it's a small town so my e-mail was probably the most exciting thing they had to deal with this week, but still... Painful difference, to be honest
Yeah, that's what I was thinking. When we got married (in a small town in France), we only needed to sign a statement that neither of us was married before. Are you absolutely sure that your town requires more than that? If you haven't already: call them, explain the situation, and like Xtrafresh said: be as nice as you can (I know.. french bureaucrats..). Maybe they can bend the rules a bit. Otherwise, is there any way for you to get married in another town? My experience is that smaller towns == bendier rules. Also, congratulations! I know the stacks & stacks of paperwork are a bore right now, but it's worth it! You'll get there in the end!
May i ask where you are gnutonian? I have relatives who live in France, and are roughly 1 hours drive south from Toulouse, an area i would love to live, so peaceful and laid back. Sam
I phoned the British Consulate in Lyon twice: the first time they said "we don't do certificates of non impediment lalala", the second time they said that a certificat de célibat doesn't exist in British law (and is not a certificate of non-impediment), so my other half would have to declare on her honour (oh no, her honour!) that she was OK to marry. I've still got to phone the mairie to be sure they'll accept it, but I'll try to charm my way through it. I don't really want to get married anywhere else, just for the convenience really. As you know there's never any parking here (not counting footpaths) so I don't have a car. Public transport literally makes me sick (and near-violent). So I'm either walking or taxi'ing... and I'm not getting married and then into a taxi However, if the mairie here refuses to accept the declaration on honour it's a better option than having her spend three weeks in England/lying her way through that. However, we need to get married soon. First she just wanted to get married, now she thinks a proper wedding dress "would be nice" (girl-speak for "I'm having it or I'm kicking you in the nuts", as the non-teenagers will know). If this lasts any longer, I'm going to have to get a new suit. And guests (bah). I hope the mairie will accept the declaration on honour, though, as I already have to fight them on borrowing their staff as witnesses. (We have no real friends/no one we'd want to be a witness.) I'm currently compiling a list of reasons why they should give me witnesses, but I'm stuck at "I'm paying their goddamn salaries, putain" ) Actually, as awkward as it'd be afterwards (crossing eachother in the street, as we've undoubtedly done before... ): seeing as you're married, there's two of you. Guess what two people are perfect for? Being witnesses to a stranger's marriage! Think about it. You'll get to meet me. I'm totally awesome. I'm about 30m from Scorpsel Which is about, ehm, quite a way east from Toulouse. However, having looked this up on a map, did you know there's a town called Gap in France? Or am I the only one that finds that amusing?
Any luck with the mairie? If you're anything like your avatar, I'm sure you are! We don't mind being your witnesses, if you're sure that's the way you want to do it. (You did discuss 'picking random geeks on the internet' with your girlfriend, right?) We do have a car - albeit tiny - if that helps. It may open up the option of getting married in one of the neighboring villages, if they are more accommodating to your situation. My favourite is still Poil, but I guess you need to understand French to see why living 'à Poil' is funny
