Application for Spouse Visa

[Chixy]

im a filipina citizen married to a british (since may), we got married in usa. but i was married before in manila, but i did file divorce in usa and was already finalized since september last year. will that be a problem? cause i know uk acknowledges divorce, or do i still have to annul him in manila? My appointment will be on 26th of september i just want to make sure theres no hassle from my first marriage

[Admin]

If you have full legal paperwork confirming the divorce that is acceptable in the USA, then it will also be fine in the UK.

It may be worth contacting these for further legal confimation though www.iasuk.org/index.asp

[peterdavid]

Originally posted by Chixy@Aug 22 2005, 06:11 PM
im a filipina citizen married to a british (since may), we got married in usa. but i was married before in manila, but i did file divorce in usa and was already finalized since september last year. will that be a problem? cause i know uk acknowledges divorce, or do i still have to annul him in manila? My appointment will be on 26th of september i just want to make sure theres no hassle from my first marriage

Quoted post

There MAY be a slight problem, and it's all to do with the Philippines backward catholic laws on marriage and their denial of freedom to its own citizens.

Under Philippine law, if you marry in the Philippines, there is no divorce. If the guy you married in Manila was a filipino, and you filed a divorce in the usa, the philippines may not recognise that divorce and may classify you as legally married to the first guy in Manila. The philippines' ridiculous nationalistic and often racist chip on their shoulder policies means they simply refuse to accept that you legally divorced in another country, they can't stand it that you have escaped their 12th century laws and have gained a measure of freedom, and they will enforce that first marriage on you, no matter how unhappy it makes you or how much of your freedom and human rights it robs from you. (As you can tell, I'm not a fan of religious countries, who strip away people's rights on the whim of extremist religious views).

If you are then applying for a visa to the UK on the basis of your second marriage ON A PHILIPPINE PASSPORT, and they check the NSO records (are you applying from the usa or from manila?) and they find this first marriage which, under Philippine law the Philippines is saying is still valid, they may refuse you on the assumption you were not free to marry the second guy as a Philippine national.

A few key questions may help shed more light on this:

1. Are you permanently resident in the usa and applying for a visa from there? If so, you may find it easier to get a visa. If you are applying from the Philippines, they will check the NSO and it will undoubtedly be harder for you.

2. Did you go to the USA on a marriage visa or for a different reason? If the latter, then they may well look more favourably at your application.

3. Have you got evidence (legal opinion, etc) from your american divorce lawyer that it WAS in fact legal for you to divorce your Manila husband from the usa? For example, something confirming that, as you are resident in the usa, their laws take primacy over the Philippine laws and that, under US law, you were definitely free to remarry. This may help.

I would urge you to get the legal side of it all checked out BEFORE you make your application and, if there is a problem, get the Philippine marriage sorted/annulled first. Once the Embassy knows about it, they won't let it go - best to get it sorted before the application so they never find out about it.

Quite simply, the test for a valid marriage is if it is valid in your home country. You would have a good argument (depending on your immigration status) for saying your "home country" is the USA and it's valid there (with legal evidence to support that assertion), but it's better to be prepared first so you can anticipate potential Embassy obstacles, who may decide your "home country" is the Philippines, who, unreasonably, will insist you're still married to Manila man and will simply refuse to acknowledge your USA-derived freedom.