Dr B J Dent

[Huggybearman]

13 hours ago, Barrie J Dent said:

To mr good fellow  so you are saying I need only my divorce  documents, please confirm this is very important as I already have those divorce documents, any further information will be greatly appreciated.

I look forward hearing  from you

 

Barrie J Dent

Hi Barrie and welcome to the forum.

I am a UK citizen and got married here in the Philippines last year.

I have never heard of this FIN document you refer to so you definitely do not need it, whatever it is.

The following is my experience arranging the marriage in the Philippines. I don’t know the procedure if you are arranging this from the UK. Possibly through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Philippine embassy?
It’s quite straightforward once you know what’s expected, it just takes time to arrange and jump through the many hoops!

As you have been married before you will need an original (not photocopy) of your divorce decree. If you were divorced in the UK then you can get that from the County Court where you got divorced.  Cost £10.

I also got a copy of my birth certificate at the same time which I included with the marriage application. Not sure if the birth certificate was strictly necessary, but it’s always better to have these documents. If you don’t have it, Soddes law dictates some official will want it! And getting one to the Philippines would be a right PITA!

You will also need photocopies of your UK passport.

You will then need to go online at the British Embassy website in Manila and fill out an ‘Affidavit of Marital Status’ and make an appointment with them in Manila to swear the Affidavit. You will also need to take your Decree Absolute with you. Cost peso equivalent of £50 payable at the embassy. You will be issued the Certificate immediately.

Your fiancé will require an official copy of her birth certificate and a certificate of no marriage (Cenomar) both obtainable online from the PSA. (Philippine Stastics Authority)

You and your fiancé will have to attend a Pre- Marriage Orientation session at your fiancés local town hall. Once completed you will get a Certificate of Compliance. You will need that before you can get your marriage license.

That session can last around 4 hours, if it is a communal session, but in our case was just a 20 minute chat with a town hall official. Ironically, nothing about marriage, but places to visit in the Philippines! 

Your fiancé will also require to obtain a Community Tax Certificate, also from her local town hall, before they will issue the marriage license.  That shows she doesn’t owe any local taxes to the town hall.

Then you just fill out the marriage certificate application form at your fiancés local town hall and present the various forms which they will keep. So it’s best to keep lots of copies of everything.

The town hall will then issue the Marriage Licence, usually within 10 days, and you are good to go!

One unexpected hurdle we encountered with the Affidavit issued by the British Embassy was with the disclaimer they print on the bottom of the Affidavit. Basically saying that they cannot guarantee the veracity of the content. We had planned on a local judge to perform the wedding but that disclaimer meant, to them, that the Affidavit, and therefor the Marriage Licence, was worthless. This was also confirmed by the senior judge at the family court and they could not conduct the ceremony. Our wedding was then conducted by the City Mayor. If you are having a church wedding then that problem shouldn’t arise.
Only in the Philippines!

I would plan on being in the Philippines about a month before the wedding to complete all this BS! Things always take longer than you anticipate!

Good luck for your upcoming nuptials!

Edited May 6, 2020 by Huggybearman

[graham59]

Good accurate info from Huggybearman.

(I went through the same marriage process back in 2015...and was also a divorcee).  No probs. Just make an appointement with the British Embassy in Manila, and take along the required docs. Do take your birth cert also, incidentally.  

I would add: 

Make sure when perusing 'UK government web sites, that they are GENUINE govt ones, not some misleading immigration agency or other 'advisory' service. 

Edited May 6, 2020 by graham59

[Jollygoodfellow]

4 hours ago, Huggybearman said:

The following is my experience arranging the marriage in the Philippines. I don’t know the procedure if you are arranging this from the UK. Possibly through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Philippine embassy?

It would be the same as Australia when I did mine. No need to go to Manila if the UK has a Philippines embassy as he can do it there if that's more convenient. 

This is what he needs Certificate of no marriage issued from the embassy.

4 hours ago, Huggybearman said:

The town hall will then issue the Marriage Licence, usually within 7 days, and you are good to go!

Unless things have changed there is a 10 day wait to allow anyone to protest the marriage. It's meant to be advertised somewhere for 10 days. That was the law and assume still is.

[Huggybearman]

16 hours ago, Barrie J Dent said:

My dilemma is for myself secure a COC  I must get a FIN Card ID, can anybody help me  , to where I can get this confounded ID Card    (Number) in the Uk I think its called a n NRIC  national registration Identification  Card

Barrie J Dent

 

 

The nearest I can think of regarding this FIN thing is a TIN number. This is a Tax Identification Number which your Filipina fiancé will probably have already. She MIGHT need it when she gets her Community Tax Certificate which she needs for the Marriage Licence application. However there is no mention of a TIN number on our copy of the Community Tax Certificate. Possibly because the TIN number is for the national Bureau of Internal Revenue and not for the local Community Tax.

[Jack Peterson]

7 minutes ago, Huggybearman said:

in the Uk I think its called a n NRIC  national registration Identification  Card

 Sorry my friend but that is one thing the UK does Not have, I think that  Huggy has hit it on the Head, I do believe that you are looking for the wrong thing. JFYI Your Passport is your national Identification 

 I am beginning to wonder if  Barry needs the Philippine (BI) Alien Card as many people seem to want this now

 BTW Huggy I attributed a post to you and not Barry sorry my Bad

Edited May 6, 2020 by Jack Peterson
added a footnote

[Huggybearman]

17 minutes ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

It would be the same as Australia when I did mine. No need to go to Manila if the UK has a Philippines embassy as he can do it there if that's more convenient. 

This is what he needs Certificate of no marriage issued from the embassy.

Unless things have changed there is a 10 day wait to allow anyone to protest the marriage. It's meant to be advertised somewhere for 10 days. That was the law and assume still is.

The Certificate of No Impediment has been replaced by the Affidavit of Marital Status.

 

For the OP I am attaching a checklist issued by the British Embassy for UK Citizens wishing to marry a Philippine Citizen.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/660268/Marriage_in_the_Philippines_leaflet_as_of_17_Nov_2017.pdf

[Huggybearman]

55 minutes ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

Unless things have changed there is a 10 day wait to allow anyone to protest the marriage. It's meant to be advertised somewhere for 10 days. That was the law and assume still is.

Thanks for the correction.  10 days, not the 7 I mentioned. I will edit my previous post to reflect that, to avoid any confusion.

Edited May 6, 2020 by Huggybearman

[Jollygoodfellow]

1 hour ago, Huggybearman said:

The Certificate of No Impediment has been replaced by the Affidavit of Marital Status.

OK, thanks. Not sure if that's just a British thing, but Australian embassy still says Certificate of No Impediment.

https://philippines.embassy.gov.au/mnla/marriage.html

[Barrie J Dent]

This is for the attention of Mr jolly-good fellow

My divorce  documents are from  May 8th 1997, I was in Barbados as Food and beverage manager, and I went to the Dominican republic to get a divorce , I have all the great big stamps from judges and lawyers and  also endorsed  by the vice consul of the United states of America with a translation to English from Spanish,  I may sound paranoid but I want all my ducks in a row.  Your views on this matter .  I understand , and I quote from the Philippine authorities say that all divorce documents must be translated into English.  does it bother them or do they just give it the one over????

Barrie J Dent

[Jollygoodfellow]

2 hours ago, Barrie J Dent said:

I may sound paranoid but I want all my ducks in a row. 

Yes to first part 

2 hours ago, Barrie J Dent said:

I understand , and I quote from the Philippine authorities say that all divorce documents must be translated into English.  does it bother them or do they just give it the one over????

Then do what the info says on the Embassy sites then you should be fine. If you have it translated then nothing to worry about.

2 hours ago, Barrie J Dent said:

Your views on this matter

I'm no expert but in your other topic info was provided from members who had experience with marriage and the British-Philippines requirements.  Just do what they ask and have as much evidence/documents ETC as possible.

What part of the Philippines you intend to marry? 

Also when I know you have read this topic I will merge it with your other.