BOCA insists that now i must go to AIT (they just love saying that!) and get my Taiwan marriage certificate validated by AIT. they couldn’t be more unclear about what exactly AIT would be validating, since its a Taiwanese document, but this apparently has something to do with the US not having a centralized marriage registration system. can anyone tell me what it is they want? i thought (according to the RV application) that i could skip this section because it doesn’t apply in my case.
You need to have your marriage registered in the US somewhere. But before you do you have to get it notarized in Taiwan.
I had to register it myself in my home country as my representative office can’t do it in Taiwan. Until the moment you have registered your marriage you can’t get an ARC I believe.
You can’t get a marriage registered in the US if you got married outside of the US. Marriage certificates in the US are only issued by the county you got married in. However, the US recognizes marriages of US citizens that take place overseas.
You need to get the AIT to notarize a translation of your Taiwan marriage certificate. You also need to get an affidavit from the AIT (you will probably need to fill it out yourself and the AIT will notarize it; anyway, the AIT will give you the affidavit form) that says the US recognizes your marriage. Both are easily accomplished
[quote=“Chris”]You can’t get a marriage registered in the US if you got married outside of the US. Marriage certificates in the US are only issued by the county you got married in. However, the US recognizes marriages of US citizens that take place overseas.
You need to get the AIT to notarize a translation of your Taiwan marriage certificate. You also need to get an affidavit from the AIT (you will probably need to fill it out yourself and the AIT will notarize it; anyway, the AIT will give you the affidavit form) that says the US recognizes your marriage. Both are easily accomplished …[/quote]
You can’t get a marriage registered in the US period – because there is no system of registration there. This is the part that is so frustrating. The Certificate is in Chinese so there is no need to translate it either. I’ll go to AIT and swear to wtf they want me to do just so I can get this process finished.
The Certificate is in Chinese so there is no need to translate it either.[/quote]
The AIT needs an English translation of the Taiwanese marriage certificate so they can verify you’re married. At least that was the rule way back in the early 90’s.
I’ve had 2 rounds of emails with AIT now, and (you guessed it) they have no idea what I need either. They mentioned the affidavit that I am single and free to marry, but I did that already in order to get married. I have an appointment scheduled for 7/11 and I’m going to try one last time to get BOCA to tell me specifically what they require.
My understanding was that a certificate is not required if your country does not have a marriage registration system for foreign marriages (which the US does not have). When asking BOCA, you should make it very clear that the US has no marriage registration system and therefore it is impossible to provide a registration certificate.
that’s my understanding too, and its actually written that way in English on the application form. however in Chinese is says that the marriage must be “validated.” i argued that point with them politely in person and later over the telephone several times. they know there is no registration system in the US. they are stubborn about what they require, and like most situations in Taiwan, the requirement varies with the individual giving the information.
just today i finally found out wft BOCA wants. my wife had to get on the phone and the person she talked with didn’t know/couldn’t tell her, so she went up the chain until someone finally told her what they need. are you ready for this:
BOCA needs AIT to tell them that the US “accepts” this marriage as valid.
what a crock of shit. i need to write a pamphlet when this is over.
I got married in Taiwan last september, am a US citizen, and did not have to furnish any proof that the good 'ol USofA sees our marraige as legal and binding. Whoever fed you that requirement was talking out their bum. Of course, things may have changed since last september…but I highly doubt it.
I would bitch about it some more to the higher ups at BOCA. AIT does not register weddings or “validate” them for the US. The US, as stated before, has no centralized marraige registration system. This is not new news, BOCA should know this already and should have their staff keen to that fact. But alas…should have, could have, would have…this is Taiwan…
you know, i’ve been dealing with the “stop whining, shut up and just do it” attitude from friends, but all i’ve been asking is the “what” i should be doing. its my opinion that BOCA pulled this one out of their ass too, but today i “stopped whining, shut up” and went to AIT. usually when i ask a question there is a good reason for it…
i met with the Special Notary, Mr. Thomas J. Snead, who btw, couldn’t have been nicer. i said “i don’t get this document” and he replied that neither did he. “i read it a few times” he said and went on to say that he didn’t get the point or why it was needed. “the marriage was performed in Taiwan. who cares if its valid in Afghanistan, USA or wherever - i am applying for a Taiwanese resident visa” i replied. both of us were baffled especially when i read paragraph #6, which states:
There is no requirement that US citizens register their marriages at any US Government office in the United States, nor does the AIT in Taiwan require US citizens to register their marriage at their office. It is my understanding that all US states in the US has its own laws concerning marriage and all states generally recognize marriages performed outside their jurisdiction, provided that the marriage was in compliance with the laws of the place in which it was performed.
which means absolutely nothing! this document is completely worthless, legally! so i’ve sworn that i understand that each state has its own laws and decides for itself what is acceptable or not. big fucking deal! thanks for making me go up to Taipei and spend NT$990 that i could have spent on Thai rum later. i’ve been to Taipei more time in the last 6 months than in the previous 6 years. i hate Taipei.
the Notary agreed with me that BOCA is just making me jump through every flaming hoop that it can. he said that there is nothing on that document that BOCA doesn’t already know, and that it doesn’t change/prove anything at all.
For those of you who are in the hoop jumping mood, the name of this document is:
AFFIDAVIT RE: RECOGNITION OF MARRIAGE IN TAIWAN
remember, this document is totally without meaning as its nothing more than a notarized deposition that you recogize the above statement. so what?
I just went through this, so I feel your pain. What you need is:
“AFFIDAVIT RE: RECOGNITION OF MARRIAGE IN TAIWAN”
It is a form that the AIT has. There are some fill in the blank areas. It is pretty painless once you get there, but you can kiss another $30usd away.
They(AIT) actually didn’t even ask to see my marriage cert, if I remember correctly. They do not notarize that the cert is real, they notarize that you are swearing to be telling the truth about the fact you have married a Taiwanese citizen. That being said, I would bring the marriage cert anyway.
Actually, you simply named the document. You did not mention where it comes from or give a detailed explanation of what it means in a legal sense. Anyways, I just tried to help you. I will not make that mistake again.