hi all!!!

i have a dilemma pertaining to getting married in phil specifically in a catholic church... my mom send me this lists on what should be done/completed on my husband's end (requirements) before the church will marry us... my husband is not a devotee to any religion (although he do believe in GOD) and since we got married, we somehow attend to catholic masses in our area (just coz im a catholic [baptized, with confirmation])...
i guess in short my question for you guys is that what should my husband and i will have to prepare for us to be married in phil... just the basic... i hope its not that complicated coz gosh we're just pulling this "getting married in phil" idea just 4 months before we go to phil and we'll be very very very busy w/ our jobs before heading there in oct in God's will... i hope it wont be that as complicated as to what the counsellor in our parish told my mom would be...
HELP

thanks!

church wedding is too hassles in Philippines i mean lots of requirements and seminar to do. But if your partner got enough time of stay in philippines u can marry at church and follow the steps.

the very reason we get married in civil cause my partner's time staying in phils was 3 weeks. After he arrived we proceed to Consular office in Cebu since it is faster to get legal capacity there. Then after having his legal capacity i call local registrar and set an appointment and in 10 days we got our marriage license so the wedding rites follow at judge table.

well maybe when we go back to phils we have to get marry again in the church

i kinda think its gona be hard for us too especially we only have 2 weeks to stay in phil... getting married in the church is mom's wish also thats why we're doing it in the church or w/ the priest... i guess if we can really pull it off, hopefully we can

I got married in a church feb 5, 08 and it is a lot of work. 2 weeks might not be enough time. coz u have a ten day wait, must get the affidavit in lieu of legal capacity to marry, and a lot more stuff. best to talk and ask my wife. you can leave her a PM here and she will answer when she gets online I'm sure..she should be awake and online soon. her name is Jojie.. good luck

thanks!!!

not sure if it helps that we're married here in US already or not, but nonetheless its gona be a hard one... i know you can pull strings at some point and make it happen but to what extent lol...

tnx again

Hi Ronmay!
Here's my 2 cents....

Since you're already married here in the US, you won't have to get a legal capacity for your husband from the USEM. All you need to do is bring your marriage certificate from the US and present it to your local parish church (if Catholic) or to your minister (if christian). Catholic church has strict rules in performing marriage rites and longer waiting period but since u are already married, I believe it will be easier. I know this because when my husband and I were planning our future, we also thought about going thru the fiancee visa but decided against it when my parents strongly expressed their wish for us to get married in church first. Here's a pinoy website that may help you with all your planning and might answer some of your legal questions. www.weddingsatwork.com

planning a wedding is one of the most unforgettable moments of a girl's life i hope you have fun

God bless!

I married my wife in the Catholic church in the Philippines. I did it in 20 days and it took a lot of planning and strategy.
We are both cradle catholics: baptized and and confirmed. Your husband will need to be baptized and confirmed to make it a true sacrament otherwise what is the point.

You need to go to the parish where you will get married and find out their requirements:

Baptismal certificate
Confirmation certificate
annulment decree if any
civil marriage contract
publication of banns
marriage counseling seminar ( we did ours after wedding ) hehehe... They okayed it
List of principal sponsors
Interview with the priest.

I had to get legal capacity to marry at the embassy to give to a civil registrar to get a marriage license. You already have marriage.

10 days may not be enough time. You may find a church that may fudge with the rules but this is a holy sacrament and should be dealt with seriously. It is important that you are both confirmed.

Send me a message if you need help. We just went through the whole thing.

Rickie

Church wedding


1. inquire to the your local civil registrar for there requirements like

* Birth cert.( YOU & YOUR HUSBAND)
* CENOMAR( YOU)
* SEMINAR (BOTH)
* LEGAL CAPICITY( FROM THE CONSULATE) BUT I THINK YOU WON'T DID IT SINCE YOU WERE IN THE STATES
AFTER YOU COMPLETE ALL THE REQUIREMENTS YOU NEED TO WAIT 10 DAYS FOR THE POSTING PERIOD.

nOTE: IF YOUR HUSBAND WAS DEVORCE THEN YOU NEED TO HAVE THE DEVORCE DECREE AS PART OF THE ABOVE REQUIREMENTS


FOR THE CHURH REQUIREMENTS:

MARRIED TO A FORIEGNER:


YOU NEED TO GO TO THE CHANCERY OFFICE

* CHANCERY- Requires that all marriages involving non-filipinos must obtain CLEARANCE from the CHANCERY before any parish may entertain their applications. The same Circulation prohibits priest from baptizing foreigners who are applying for marriage or to perform blesings on couples who cannot be married by reason of DIVORCE of any one othe the parties. The chancery requires the following documents to be submitted:


A. FOR SINGLE PERSONS:

1. BASPTISMAL CERT.(MUST BE ISSUED WITHIN THE LAST 3 MONTHS)
2. CONFIRMATION CERT.(MUST BE ISSUED WITHIN THE LAST 3 MONTHS)
3. MARRIAGE LICENCE(TAKE 10 DAYS TO SECURE) FROM THE CIVIL REGISTRAR
4.PERMIT FROM THE PARISH PRIEST(IF WOMAN IS TO BE MARRIED OUTSIDE HER PARISH)


B. FOR SINGLE FORIEGNERS:


1. CIVIL STATUS CERT. FROM THE RESPECTIVE cONSULATE/EMNASSY
2. PERMIT/RECOMMENDATION FROM CATHOLIC PARISH(EVEN IF THE FOREIGNER BELONGS TO OHTER REGILIOUS SECT SINCE HE IS MARRYING A CATHOLIC THIS TIME)
3. BAPTISMAL CERT.(FOR CATHOLIC PERSON ONLY)
4. CONFIRMATION CERT. (FOR CATHOLIC PERSON ONLY)
5.BITH CERTIFICATE


D. FOR DEVORCE PERSONS:

1. DECREE OF ABSOLUTE DIVORCE(FROM CIVIL COURT)
2. DECLARATION OF FREEDOM TO MARRY FROM CATHOLIC MATRIMONIAL TRIBUNAL OR ANNULMENT(FROM THE CHANCERY OF THE STATE WHERE HE RESIDES)
3.SAME AS ABOVE "A"


E. FOR WIDOWED FOREIGNERS:

1. SAME REQUIREMENTS AS FOR SINGLE "C"
2. DEATH CERT.


NOTE: ONCE YOUR HUSBAND IS DEVORCE YOU NEED TO SECURE THE DECLARATION OF FREEDOM METION IN "D" NUMBER 2. EVEN HE IS A NON CATHOLIC. JUST GO TO YOUR NEAREST CHANCERY OFFICE( CATHOLIC CHURCH)


GOD BLESS! WISH YOU CAN HAVE YOUR HURCH WEDDING HERE.

thats what exactly my mom gave me as a requirements... thanks a lot... he's divorced and i guess my chance is to go to a parish church and ask if they could give me some certificate for my husband w/ out any hasle... i wish we could stay in phil more than 10 days but its just hard for us... and i do take this wedding seriously knowing we never had any cerenomy (just the two of us signing the marriage license w/ out any witness just so we could send the paper right away to the uscis) so we wanted this and especially for my mom/family (its my hubby's bday gift for me to visit phil this yr plus a simple wedding that we've been dreaming of) so hopefully in God's will, we'll be able to make it happen...

thank u all for the ideas...

Oi May, grabe, isakal napud kag usab. ... nangukay ko sa net to find some info re your case. since your married na you don't have to get marriage license na.

Church Wedding Requirements
The process below describes the general procedures for arranging a Catholic wedding in the Philippines. However, the policies and procedures of individual churches may vary.

1. Baptismal and Confirmation Certificates - required for both the bride and the groom. These documents must be new, be annotated: "FOR MARRIAGE PURPOSES ONLY", and have been obtained not more than three (3) months before the date of marriage;

For mixed marriage (different religions) -- a dispensation must be secured from the Parish Office which will be released after the canonical interview with the parish priest or his assistant. These have to be presented one week before the wedding.
(pde pud cguro mo adto sa catholic church dira sa inyo place for him to get baptized para ready na docs nya when you come here.)

2. Marriage License
For those who are first married in a civil ceremony, a certified true photocopy of the Marriage Contract with the registry number of the city or town where the marriage was performed must be submitted one week before the wedding date.

3. Canonical Interview - The parish priest or his assistant will conduct an interview with the bride and the groom one month before the wedding date. The interview will be scheduled upon the signing of the application form.

4. Pre-Marriage Seminar - The seminar will be scheduled during the canonical interview or you may inquire at the parish office. Some churches will allow you to attend other pre-wedding seminars such as the Discovery Weekend or Catholic Engaged Encounter.

5. Permission - The bride must receive permission to marry from her parish, if the venue is in another parish.

6. Wedding Banns - The couple must post the schedule of their wedding in their respective parishes. These will be provided during the canonical interview and have to be immediately brought to the respective parishes of the bride and the groom for posting. These have to be returned to the office after three Sundays. (The respective parishes may ask some requirements for the posting of the banns i.e. a picture each from the bride and the couple.)

7. List of names and addresses of principal sponsors (Ninongs and Ninangs) - The list has to be submitted to the parish office one week before the wedding date. Church policy requires at least a pair of sponsors and, ideally, a maximum of six sponsors.


if your mom have any connection or knows anybody who have really good connection sa mga pari or worker sa simbahan mas madali maayos inyo mga kailanganon and less ra jud kaayo ang hasol.

i got this from a lawyer's blog, this might help:

1. The rule for marriages contracted by Filipinos abroad is lex loci celebrationis, meaning, if the marriage is valid in the place where it was celebrated, then it is valid here in the Philippines (with certain exceptions). Your marriage in UAE assuming it complied with all the requirements there (and it does not fall under the exceptions to the lex loci celebrationis rule) is valid here in the Philippines even if it has not been recorded in official records of the Philippine government. Please take note that the marriage certificate or contract is not an essential or formal requisite of marriage under the Family Code. Thus, even if there is no record (as of yet) of your UAE marriage, you are validly married.

2. Thus, if you get married again here in the Philippines, it should only be a pro forma celebration, sort of reenactment of what has already legally taken place in UAE. Meaning, you should no longer apply for a marriage license or sign the marriage certificate, etc. You should definitely inform the officiating minister of your previous marriage in UAE and explain to him that what you need is a reenactment or renewal of vows or a public celebration with family and friends.

The problem is, if you apply for a marriage license and sign the marriage certificate and the officiating minister forwards it to the NSO, you might eventually end up with two marriage certificates on file with the NSO (one from your marriage in UAE and the other one from your marriage here in the Philippines). Needless to say that creates administrative and legal problems for you.

good luck sa mga plans.. if makita to nako article regarding a couple who were married in the US and git married again here in philippines, i will post it here.

God bless always.

Yazi and I are considering the same thing and I was wondering what are the requirements. wouldn't this be a renewal of vows? are the requirements the same except for the marrige license?

this was the additional requirement for renewal of vows.. (http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwha009.html)
9. For renewal of vows - remember to bring a copy of the Catholic Marriage Contract.

every parish has their own policy, what's allowed and what's not (even in the dress code) so better if there is somebody who could inquire at the church where you want to have renewal of vows.

Thanks. it's something we'll have my wife's sister look into.

well you have your mother ask if you need all the same requirements to just renew your vows since your already married ??? there might be a whole different set of steps that need to be done or not done if your married and just want to renew your vows. any way good luck and keep us informed my wife also would like a church wedding in the phils.

Hello RonMay!!!

I understand ur mother that she wants you to be wed in church. It is also our tradition and culture. For a short period of time that you going to stay here in Philippines, just have a simple wedding as you could have. The most important is will be blessed in church. But if parents wants the so called "engrande n kasal" ur 2week vacation is not enough.

Regarding requirements, I guess you could send them in advance to you mother to let the church check if those are okey already. I know there is 3-day seminar in church and 3consecutive sundays publication during masses. For the seminars maybe you could ask the facilitator that u will attend only once for you are from US and limited time (let your mother talk to them). And for the 3 consecutive sundays of publication, You can only have one call "tawag" and paid the last 2 sundays...

For the baptismal certificate of ur husband since he is not a catholic, you are not forced to give. Base on our experience, my brother in law is a protestant, they had wedding in catholic church without converting him but during the communion he was not allowed to received it.

I hope these infos will help you RonMay!!! Good luck and God bless!!!!!!!


Ninfa

i just talked to my mom earlier (like almost everyday regarding this matter) and its still the same, what's listed above regardless if you're married or not here, they still want you to take all the steps (which is a big hassle, if not time consuming)... i am not complaining too much, yet i know its kind of bit hard in our end... rules are rules they say and somehow we need to comply it (its no longer like the old days that its too easy to make. lahi na gyud)... im hoping i could go and visit our church here in our area and ask the priest or somebody who can tell us about it...

thanks all!!!

will keep you posted!

thanks a lot!!!

no it doesnt have to be engrande! lol... just family and really close friends... our problem is the church since they have a lot of stuff to ask. ur advice is helpful and i wish our church in CDO could be the same as urs there... coz that would make it so easier... hopefully we could meet the priest the day before our wedding and have all those seminar get done w/... we'll arrive on oct 28th and get married on the 30th (in God's will) and YES its a tight sked but no choice... lol... right now we'll take it as it is... if we can make it, its great, if not, then i know God has other plans...

Ronmay


i advice you to go to the nearest church near you to ask about thE DECLARATION OF FREEDOM TO MARRY FROM CATHOLIC MATRIMONIAL TRIBUNAL. In my own experienced it took 6 months before we got it. your husband will be givin a questionaire about why he got devorce. and then they will make a investigation about his previous marriages. for sure he will be ask to submit his devorce decree.

like you said regardless if this only a renewal of vows. you still need to comply all those requirements. i give you. and if your husband is chistian or non catholic. don't worry he don't need to be baptize to catholic church.

Hi there, just want to get this topic on the go again coz I'm having the same dilemma...:-(Me and my husband are gathering the requirements for our church wedding in the Philippines by next year. I have contacted the church in Cebu where we want to get married, but I was asked to contact the Chancery office first. Mix marriages, like for example marrying a foreigner have different requirements. One of the difficult one is the Declaration of Nullity of the previous marriage (since my hubby was a divorcee). At first I was thinking it would just be easy coz we are already married and no need to go through the 11 day wait period for the marriage contract in the Philippines, we'll just provide our marriage certificate here in the US. Oh well, we contacted the Matrimonial Tribunal here in our area, and we were so shock coz we were told that it would take from 12-14 months waiting period to get the Declaration of Nullity of hubby's first marriage. As in, we're shock coz we're planning on getting married in the Philippines on April 2009 and that's just 8 months away. We need to submit the requirements to the Chancery office in Cebu so we can make the reservation of the church. It's so frustrating... I guess, being married already has the disadvantage... coz if we haven't get married yet, hubby can still ask for the Legal Capacity to marry at USEM, and therefore skipping the Matrimonial Tribunal. :-(

I don't know, I'll try to contact the Chancery Office in Cebu again on what we need to do. We might try to talk to the parish priest in our area if we can have a sort of recommendation letter, as substitute for the Declaration of Nullity. It's frustrating... we just want to have a church wedding in the presence of our family and friends as witnesses. The paper work sometimes is just too much... It's just non-stop... government paper works, and then church requirements... I can't decide which is more difficult...

to update my situation, its a sad thing... i guess its not yet the time... yup my hubby was divorce and need to be annulled first (catholic requirements). and that will take 1 to 1 1/2 yrs to process, plus another 8 months process for the seminar, counseling, parenting etc... and my mom doesnt want me to lie that he was single when we got married coz that'll be more lie lol (would have been easier to get approve and be married in phil that way)... so i guess i have to set that catholic wedding aside this coming oct. and probably will get the previous marriage annulled first which i dont know where to start for now... sad sad sad thing for me (would have been a great gift for my mom) but it is also my mom who understand and gave me a very good advice... i wish everybody luck on this matter!!! God bless to all!!!
and see you guys in phil soon in God's plan!

to edit: the 8 months worth of seminar is what the colorado archdiocese wants us to do before they will give us the permit to marry in phil (assuming my hubby will be annulled and ready to be married in a catholic)

I got married in the Philippines last year and I could tell you that even three weeks is pushing it. When I got married, I spent a month in the Philippines and we barely made it.

Here's a link to the American Embassy's guide to getting married in the PI for American citizens. It is pretty accurate.

http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwha009.html

i know its a short period of time (though we have a family/cousin priest who can do it anytime but i dont want him to get all through this issues. unfair for him)... although we might stay in phil for more than a month now even 2 months if we can make our plans finalize for the xmas holiday... BUT the wedding is no longer an option (see my above post) oh well...
God bless!!!

sorry, but your mom's right. the catholic church has a lot of requirements! and aside from the requirements from the parish, you need to ask a family member to go to the Chancery office to get additional requirements for marrying a foreigner. And if your husband is not catholic, i think there are still additional requirements for that.

im getting married in the philippines next year. (im still here though). so i already went to the church and chancery office to get a list of requirements. my fiance and i were also assigned a date for canonical interview 2 weeks before the wedding.

The chancery asked us to get the church permit and precana in the US. the other requirements will be taken cared of by my family 6 months before the wedding (certificates, sunday banns, etc.)

PM me if you need details on the requirements, though im not sure if it would be exactly the same. My fiance is a catholic but considered a foreigner (though he's really pinoy).

if you're serious about having a wedding 4 months from now, get a coordinator. i can give you a list of coordinators if you want. i got a very good coordinator for myself, though she refuses to handle church requirements and likes to focus on the wedding preps only.

let me know if u need any help!

hi Ronmay,

though it's every woman's dream to get married in church, you wouldn't wanted to be so tied up in attending seminars, counseling, you know stuffs like that. But if you and your husband have a lot of time to stay here in the PI, then I think before hand you should have someone here in PI, fixing the First things First. Cause if not, You will be put in a bind. But yeah, My grandma almost spend almost everyday in the church (but still, me and my husband got married in Civil ceremony) You got to secure BC, baptismal, confirmation, and you have to have some "posting" on the church, it's until 3 announcement, for the church to know that there aren't any parties involved in the marriage.. you know, stuffs like that.. So, yeah, that's about it.