If you have doubts surrounding marrying a foreigner in Spain, here we present you a definitive guide, in which you will find all the step by step details that will help you in the process and celebration of your marriage: documentation, interviews, translations…
Spanish citizens and foreigners have the right to get married in Spain, independently from the legal situation of the foreign citizen. This is why every year there are more and more foreigners that decide to get married to a Spanish citizen.
Although the process can appear very tedious, it is a lot easier than it seems. You will see!
Keep reading because all of your questions will be answered!
Necessary documents for marrying in Spain
As the marriage will be celebrated in Spain, the first step should be booking an appointment at the Civil Registry of the local province. Here, the couple should present documents which will differ depending on their specific situation: if they are single, divorced, widowed…
If both parties are single
Documents to be provided by the foreign citizen
- Passport or valid NIE
- Birth certificate. Legalised and translated
- Certificate of Single status
- Certificate given out by the Consulate of the foreigner’s home country in Spain that can validate their ability to get married (some registries don’t demand this)
- Certificate given out by the Consulate of the foreigner’s home country in Spain about the need for the publication of marriage banns
- Certificate of consular inscription given out by the Consulate of the foreigner’s home country in Spain
- Certificate of residency of the foreigner
Documents to be provided by the Spanish citizen
- ID or passport
- Birth certificate
- Certificate of residency of the last two years
- Proof of life and status certificate
If one or both parties are previously divorced
If the Spanish citizen is divorced they should present, as well as the documents mentioned previously, the previous marriage with the divorce registration on the side.
If the foreign citizen is the divorced party, they should present, on top of the previously mentioned, a literal certificate of marriage and divorce issued by their home country.
If one or both of you are widowed
If either of the partners are widowed, they should also include the death certificate of their previous partner and the certified translation if it is not in Spanish.
Certified translations of foreign documents
For a wedding celebration with a foreigner, certified translations of documents are commonly required.
Additionally, for the foreigner, it is necessary to present a certified official translation of all the documents that are not written in Spanish, and the translation should be done by an accredited, certified translator through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, or by Hague Convention Apostille for countries part of the convention.
Self-translated, foreign or uncertified translations are not accepted.
Expiration date of the documents
Some of the documents like the residency certificate and the birth certificates have an expiration date, which is why we recommend obtaining them near the wedding date.
Witnesses
To present the documentation, it is required that two witnesses accompany the couple, and they should present their ID or a valid passport. These witnesses can be family and friends and their purpose is to testify the existing relationship and residency of the couple.
Once the documentation is gathered together
After gathering together all the documents, the couple should take it to the Civil Registry of their judicial area and present the file. Here, the couple will fill out some legal declarations and a declarative document of information, and then the file will be processed.
After this, they will be assigned an appointment for the reserved hearing. The date that the witnesses should appear to ask them a few simple questions about their relationship will also be indicated.
Prevention of marriages of convenience
In order to avoid marriages of convenience, Spanish law demands a government record before the wedding celebration. In many cases, to finalise the process and ratify that it is really a loving union (and not of convenience) it is possible that both members of the couple will have to do a short interview.
It will be a short questionnaire or a reserved hearing of both partners separately in which the administration asks quite simple personal questions about the life and future of their partner and their life together up until then.
For example, they may ask how they got to know each other if the other partner has children, the name of their parents, their job, and what they studied, how long have they lived together, when did they decide to get married…
The person in charge of the Civil Registry will determine if the request for marriage conforms with the necessary requirements for the celebration. Finally, if everything is in order, a decree of acceptance of marriage will be published which will authorise the celebration.
Publication of marriage banns
During the process, the marriage banns will be published if they are necessary. For Spanish citizens, these banns will be published on the bulletin board of the Magistrate’s Court or Civil Registry of the couples’ place of residence in the last two years (unless that place has more than 25,000 inhabitants).
The publication of the marriage banns for foreign citizens will be determined by the internal regulations that will be accredited by the corresponding certificate of the consulate in Spain.
Once they are published, the file will be passed onto the prosecutor, who will verify it and state what he deems appropriate by means of an opinion. If there are no issues, the order of approval of marriage will be issued and the date of the wedding will be fixed. The wedding can be carried out in a different municipality, separate from where the file is processed.
Challenge to marriage
As well as the possible errors that can happen when presenting documents, it is possible that the person in charge at the Civil Registry won’t authorise the wedding if they consider that the only objective of the marriage is:
- To obtain Spanish nationality by means of marriage
- To obtain a Spanish residence permit by means of marriage
- To reunify family
Under this circumstance, the best alternative is to hire an inmigration lawyer who may bring an action before the Court of First Instance.
After the wedding
Once the wedding has been celebrated, the married couple will be given the family book and a marriage certificate.
From this moment, the foreign partner becomes the family of the Spanish citizen and therefore, has the right to reside in Spain.
To obtain this residency, they should go to the Foreign Office of their region and present the following documentation:
- Request Model EX019
- Passport
- 3 Photos
- Partners Spanish ID
- Marriage certificate
- Residency certificates of both people
- Social security card of their Spanish partner
- Proof of economic means
Around two months later, they will receive a response granting the residence of a relative of a Spanish citizen. This residency has a duration of 5 years and allows them to work for a company or be self-employed.
We hope that this guide has been useful and you can plan your wedding in an easy and comfortable way.
At Perfect Venue, we will help you with the preparation for your wedding with a foreign partner in Spain.
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