Getting Married in France

[whitelilac]

Hello everyone,

Does anyone know what is a marriage bann? Is it just an announcement that son and so are getting married? Or do we have to submit all our papers at this time?

When do we submit all our papers on the day of the rendezvous at the city hall when we get married, or before? And Marriage Banns is is just both of our names
on the list?

Thanks!!

Originally Posted by whitelilac

Hello,

Would you please tell me where one gets married; in the city hall or the prefecture? In our commune or the major city in that region?

Also, we are planning to get married in the winter sometime in November or December, do you think the city hall will be closed during these times since it's right around the holiday season?

And last question, once married, if I am n a tourist visa, will I still have the 3 months to stay and then return to apply for visa, or do I have to return right away. I should probably get married the first week I arrive in France, that way when we wait to get the marriage papers (if it's not handed already to us at the spot), I will have plenty time, not going over the 3 months legal time frame.

And as for translating /notarizing my foreign language documents/birth certificates/citizenship papers into French, will I be OK if I contact my local French Consulate in California and get a list of translator's who can do it for me. Will their French counterparts at the city hall accept this, or do they have their own set of translators they want me to use?


Thank you!

[Bevdeforges]

Boy, I don't dare say anything to you - didn't mean to panic you. It would go a bit more easily if your new DH (dear hubby) was with you when you went to visit the Consulate. AFAIK it's not required, but as you saw on the website, you will have to bring certain documents with you if you go on your own .

You may want to check with the consulate if they will want you to bring his carte d'identité (i.e. the original) as well as a copy for their files. If they'll accept just the copy (or copies), have him handwrite on the copy an "attestation sur honneur" that it's a true copy of his carte d'identité - or ask the mairie (when you get married) to make a copy of his identity card and use their little stamp to verify that this really is a copy of his carte d'identité.

You don't get a carte d'identité until and unless you take French nationality. It's your husband's nationality they want to check - and for France it HAS to be a carte d'identité. A passport doesn't prove your nationality according to the French.

For proof of residence, he needs to give you a utility bill made out in his name (usually electric or telephone bill - usually fixed phone, but they'll often take a mobile phone bill as long as it's sent to him at the address where you will be living).
Cheers,
Bev

[Bevdeforges]

Originally Posted by whitelilac

Hello,

Would you please tell me where one gets married; in the city hall or the prefecture? In our commune or the major city in that region?

Also, we are planning to get married in the winter sometime in November or December, do you think the city hall will be closed during these times since it's right around the holiday season?

And last question, once married, if I am n a tourist visa, will I still have the 3 months to stay and then return to apply for visa, or do I have to return right away. I should probably get married the first week I arrive in France, that way when we wait to get the marriage papers (if it's not handed already to us at the spot), I will have plenty time, not going over the 3 months legal time frame.

And as for translating /notarizing my foreign language documents/birth certificates/citizenship papers into French, will I be OK if I contact my local French Consulate in California and get a list of translator's who can do it for me. Will their French counterparts at the city hall accept this, or do they have their own set of translators they want me to use?


Thank you!

You have to get married in the mairie of the town in which your fiancé is resident (since you are not resident in France). Your fiancé should contact the mairie to determine what dates and times are available in the time frame you're interested in. Some mairies have very full marriage schedules, especially around popular dates. You must book the date in advance.

You won't be able to get married the first week you are in France as you have to submit your dossier of paperwork at least 10 - 15 days before the ceremony, due to the requirement of posting the banns. (I'm tackling your next question here because it fits.) They have to post notice of your intention to marry for 10 days prior to the wedding - in theory so that anyone having knowledge of any reason why either of you can't marry can pipe up. (They don't do that as part of the ceremony in France.) Basically, they tack up a paper on the mairie bulletin board saying that you are scheduled to get married on such and such a date and that if anyone objects, they should go speak to the mairie.

There are also a couple of documents you'll need that you can't get in the US - like the certificat de coutume (which isn't always required but the mairie where I got married was a right PITA about it) and there is another document you'll have to get from the Consulate. (Forget what it's called, but they do them all the time. You do have to go in to the Consulate to get the document, IIRC.)

Have your fiancé ask at the local mairie if they'll accept notarized translations from the US. Each mairie has their own requirements and may ask for more or less than what the American Consulate lists in their paper on the subject. Be sure to get the local mairie's list of required documents for marriage with a foreigner - it's different than the list for two French people getting married. If they insist on a traduction assermenté, figure on it taking 3 to 5 days, a week if you use an online service.

Oh, and one thing to think about now - the mairie will probably require you to give the name and address of your witnesses as part of the paperwork. They then have to show proof of identity (a passport will do if you have someone coming from the US) in order to serve as witness at the ceremony. No grabbing someone off the street like they do in the movies!
Cheers,
Bev

[whitelilac]

Thank you!

Now I have lots of information and the next step I will ask him to call the city hall and I will take it up with them.I will post here to update, in case someone else is in similar situation, and let you know what's happening.


Bonne journee!

Originally Posted by Bevdeforges

You have to get married in the mairie of the town in which your fiancé is resident (since you are not resident in France). Your fiancé should contact the mairie to determine what dates and times are available in the time frame you're interested in. Some mairies have very full marriage schedules, especially around popular dates. You must book the date in advance.

You won't be able to get married the first week you are in France as you have to submit your dossier of paperwork at least 10 - 15 days before the ceremony, due to the requirement of posting the banns. (I'm tackling your next question here because it fits.) They have to post notice of your intention to marry for 10 days prior to the wedding - in theory so that anyone having knowledge of any reason why either of you can't marry can pipe up. (They don't do that as part of the ceremony in France.) Basically, they tack up a paper on the mairie bulletin board saying that you are scheduled to get married on such and such a date and that if anyone objects, they should go speak to the mairie.

There are also a couple of documents you'll need that you can't get in the US - like the certificat de coutume (which isn't always required but the mairie where I got married was a right PITA about it) and there is another document you'll have to get from the Consulate. (Forget what it's called, but they do them all the time. You do have to go in to the Consulate to get the document, IIRC.)

Have your fiancé ask at the local mairie if they'll accept notarized translations from the US. Each mairie has their own requirements and may ask for more or less than what the American Consulate lists in their paper on the subject. Be sure to get the local mairie's list of required documents for marriage with a foreigner - it's different than the list for two French people getting married. If they insist on a traduction assermenté, figure on it taking 3 to 5 days, a week if you use an online service.

Oh, and one thing to think about now - the mairie will probably require you to give the name and address of your witnesses as part of the paperwork. They then have to show proof of identity (a passport will do if you have someone coming from the US) in order to serve as witness at the ceremony. No grabbing someone off the street like they do in the movies!
Cheers,
Bev

[whitelilac]

Hello there,

It is me again! I just wanted to ask another question. Per French Consulate's website, this is what I need if I am planning on marrying in France and living there:

Demande de visa long séjour en vue de se marier en France avec un ressortissant Français et de s’y installer Retour à la table des matières

Attention : les ressortissants américains qui désirent s’installer en France après le mariage doivent obligatoirement demander un visa de long séjour. Il en est de même pour les ressortissants de tous les autres Etats tiers à l’exception de ceux des Etats de l’Union Européenne, de l’Espace Economique Européen, de Monaco, de Saint Marin, de la Suisse et de l’Algérie.
Le mariage doit avoir lieu dans les deux mois de l’arrivée en France (pour les longs séjours uniquement).

- Le dossier doit comporter 2 jeux de documents : un jeu d’originaux (qui vous sera rendu) et l’autre jeu contenant uniquement les photocopies. Si vous ne détenez pas l’original d’un document, présentez une photocopie dans chaque jeu en justifiant, sur une page séparée, pourquoi vous ne pouvez pas présenter l’original ;
- Document ou photocopie manquant = dossier incomplet = risque élevé de refus de visa ;
- Frais de dossier (non-remboursables) : 146,00 USD au 14 janvier 2008 (contre-valeur de 99 euros).

LISTE DES DOCUMENTS A PRESENTER EN 2 JEUX SEPARES ET TRIES DANS L’ORDRE SUIVANT :

- 1) La présente liste de documents sur laquelle vous aurez coché chaque document et chaque photocopie que vous présentez afin de vérifier que votre dossier est complet
- 2) 2 formulaires de demande de visa de long séjour dûment rempli et signé
- 3) 2 photographies d’identité récentes aux normes
- 4) ORIGINAL + PHOTOCOPIE : Passeport (émis il y a moins de 10 ans ayant encore au minimum 3 mois de validité après la fin du séjour prévu en France) + photocopie des premières pages
- 5) ORIGINAL + PHOTOCOPIE : Certificat de publication des bans et de non opposition (délivré par la mairie où le mariage sera célébré)
- 6) 2 PHOTOCOPIES : Justificatif de la nationalité française du futur conjoint français : Soit un justificatif d’inscription au registre des Français de l’étranger (telle la carte consulaire en cours de validité) ; Soit la carte nationale d’identité française ; Soit un certificat de nationalité française ; Soit une ampliation d’un décret de naturalisation ou de réintégration dans la nationalité française.
- 7) ORIGINAL + PHOTOCOPIE : Justificatif de la résidence en France du futur conjoint français ou de l’intention du futur conjoint français de s’installer en France
- 8) ORIGINAL + PHOTOCOPIE : Justificatif des moyens de subsistance et d’hébergement (attestation d’hébergement établie par la mairie de résidence de l’accueillant en cas d’hébergement privé) pendant la validité du visa (3 mois)
- 9) ORIGINAL + PHOTOCOPIE : Assurance maladie/ rapatriement sanitaire couvrant la période de validité du visa (3 mois)
- 10) ORIGINAL + PHOTOCOPIE : Justificatifs de moyens personnels suffisants pour retourner dans son pays de résidence au cas où le projet matrimonial ne se réaliserait pas.


I don't understand, they visa is only for 3 months? But I do not need a visa to stay there up to 3 moths, and how is 3 months visa a long sejour?Or do I still have to come back to my home country with this visa? It says that the visa is valid for 3 months ' la periode de validite du visa 3 mois'.But 3 months is not a long stay visa??Or??

Thank you!!

And I still do not know if they will just accept my bf's carte de nationalite etc, if in case I marry in France and come back to get the visa moi-meme alone; I still have not heard back from the Consulate about my question, so I have no idea...

[whitelilac]

'attestation d’hébergement établie par la mairie de résidence de l’accueillant en cas d’hébergement privé'

I also don't quiet understand what they are asking here. They want the city hall to provide proof that I will take private residence while in France on my visa?? What does the city hall have to do with my private lodging?

[Matou]

Carte Nationale d'Identité is an identity card and a proof of French citizenship so you will not have one until you become French...
To mary in France you must have lived in the town where the Mayor maries you for a minimum time (they will also post "bans" at the Townhall) this explains the requirement for a certificate proving that you have been "privately accommodated" if you did not reside in an hotel.

[Bevdeforges]

Whoa, where do you see in all that that the visa you're applying for is only for 3 months?

There are a couple of things about 3 months past the validity of the visa (like for how long your US passport has to be valid) and a few other references to "3 mois" - but you're applying here for a long stay visa, based on your marriage to a French national.

In any event, as I understand the way the rules are now (per the Service-public website), you can go get married in France, but then you have to return to your home country (or where you were legally resident before your marriage) and apply for a long-stay visa as the spouse of a French national.

To get the list of stuff you'll need in order to get married in France, you have to go to the local mairie where your bf lives. There's a whole bunch of other stuff you'll need, and the specific items vary a bit from town to town.
Cheers,
Bev

[Dashenka]

I've been told by perfecture that it's best to get the visa before marriage rather than after to accelerate the carte de sejour process afterwards. My visa was done at the consulate of SF within a week.

Note on birth certificates. They need to be issued 6 months before the marriage date... I had mine redone and translated by a certified translator. Also, you will need to get some other papers from the US embassy.

[Bevdeforges]

Originally Posted by Dashenka

I've been told by perfecture that it's best to get the visa before marriage rather than after to accelerate the carte de sejour process afterwards. My visa was done at the consulate of SF within a week.

Note on birth certificates. They need to be issued 6 months before the marriage date... I had mine redone and translated by a certified translator. Also, you will need to get some other papers from the US embassy.

Elephantly, the situation is changing faster than even Service-public can keep up with it. I was looking for the page I saw recently that said that NO ONE getting married to a French national would be exempt from having to return to their home country to apply for a visa after the marriage - and then I found this:

>>Un décret du 27 avril 2009 dispense, à compter du 1er juin 2009, certaines nouvelles catégories d'étrangers de demander un titre de séjour en préfecture : il s'agit des conjoints de citoyens français, des étudiants, des visiteurs, des salariés et travailleurs temporaires, titulaires d'un visa de long séjour. <<

Of course your mileage may vary, if the local préfecture isn't up to date on the latest changes to the process.
Cheers,
Bev