question about divorce papers

[Ken_Maria 0]

Yep, completely understand. The CO can be as picky as they want to be even though the requirements do not require a certified copy. This is an ongoing problem with the K1/3 process. If you can get a certifed copy, go ahead and get one just in case. Ken

People have been RFE'd for official records not being certified. Just so you know what has happened anecdotally.

[rebeccajo 14]

Yep, completely understand. The CO can be as picky as they want to be even though the requirements do not require a certified copy. This is an ongoing problem with the K1/3 process. If you can get a certifed copy, go ahead and get one just in case. Ken

People have been RFE'd for official records not being certified. Just so you know what has happened anecdotally.

People have been RFE'd stateside. At Service Center stage. Before it gets to the CO.

[declee 0]

There are no national marriage and divorce records. Marriage and divorce are entirely local (e.g., State) matters. In the United States, one state is NOT obligated to even recognize a marriage filed in another state.

This is convenient if you're a polygamist, or if you need to "omit" marriage details. Though as someone has mentioned, it's really better to do everything by the book.

[ken and mintra 0]

Ok there is a lot of discussion (borderline arguing) about multiple divorce decrees. The second marriage is proof that he was legally able to marry the second time, however the Embassy still request proof of termination of all marriages. I do not know whay the latest divorce decree is not sufficient?

To dispell the myth, it does not have to be a certified copy of the divorce decree, just a copy. Copies can be obtained from the county court house the divorce was finalized in. Some have websites that you can order them online for a fee of course but others do not. I had to send a money order to the court hosue and pay not only for the copy, but for the return envelope.

Good luck, Ken & Maria

hi guys! i wanna ask something.

my fiance had two marriages before. the problem is he could no longer locate the divorce papers of his first marriage. he said he didn't know where to get another certified divorce papers. how and where can he get another certified divorce papers since the termination of his first marriage was 1998?

is it ok if we just mention in the forms his second marriage since we cannot provide the certified copies of the divorce of his first marriage? will the center know that he has two marriages before?

please help. thanks.

People have been RFE'd for official records not being certified. Just so you know what has happened anecdotally.

I ordered, paid for, and received my certified copies of a divorce that happened over 12 years ago all through the internet. Every state has different laws, policies, and procedures to obtain official records. With the internet and Google it's pretty simple to get a phone number, call the county clerk of courts office, and just ask. Just as every state is different, so is every embassy and their requirements. Why take the risk of just getting copies when you can get "certified" copies just as quickly and easily. It's not worth the worry or potential to get RFE'ed. And, FYI, the Bangkok Embassy does require certified copies of divorce decrees, not copies. When I was gathering my documents I also order or received two of each item. One copy I sent to my fiance and the other I will personally carry with me to the interview with her. Mail has been lost before and I didn't want to risk losing the only papers I had and having everything delayed. It takes long enough as it is. So my recommendation is get only certified copies and get at least two copies of each. It cost a little bit of money but isn't your fiance worth it?

[pushbrk 13,715]

First, you donot need the entire divorce decree, you just need a statement from the courthouse he was divorced stating that his marriage is disolved. Its a one sheet paper. Another resource, I am not sure what state you live in, but you can goto http://www.vitalchek.com/ and get certified marriage, divorce, birth certificates, death.... They charge a small fee to get records for you, and in some states send the certified documents to the state to get apostilled for you as well.

Really?

The clerk in our county does not issue such 'one page' statements that a marriage is terminated. That's what the decree is for.

I wouldn't suggest using certification of documents from some website that pedals them in place of actual certified documents when dealing with immigration.

For US divorce records, you simply ask for and receive whatever it is the appropriate jurisdiction will provide. Sometimes the State controls this (Washington does) and sometimes the County does. Contact the appropriate jurisdiction and obtain a certified copy of whatever they provide in the way of a "Certified Copy of Divorce Decree".

[ramos96 1]

OY VAY here we go again,

FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:

Get Certified Copies of BOTH divorces, the whole ENCHILADA not just a letter the WHOLE thing. I was RFE'ed because of this I sent in only a LETTER. Save yourself the TROUBLE and get BOTH of them and be DONE with it. Trust me the TIME you spend now getting the COMPLETE and PROPER paperwork will save time in the end.

I request a sticky, CAUSE I'm tired of ppl not gettng it thru their skulls Send the WHOLE thing not just a piece why waste time.

For the people who only send in the letter or part of the decree and got past, AWESOME for you, but that is not always the case, the point of the website is to help people complete the forms with the information of what they need, share experiences, and to provide a support system for them.

Most of us have been and or are going thru this crazy process.

Peace out,

Ramos

Edited June 30, 2007 by ramos96

[etripke 0]

OY VAY here we go again,

FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:

Get Certified Copies of BOTH divorces, the whole ENCHILADA not just a letter the WHOLE thing. I was RFE'ed because of this I sent in only a LETTER. Save yourself the TROUBLE and get BOTH of them and be DONE with it. Trust me the TIME you spend now getting the COMPLETE and PROPER paperwork will save time in the end.

I request a sticky, CAUSE I'm tired of ppl not gettng it thru their skulls Send the WHOLE thing not just a piece why waste time.

For the people who only send in the letter or part of the decree and got past, AWESOME for you, but that is not always the case, the point of the website is to help people complete the forms with the information of what they need, share experiences, and to provide a support system for them.

Most of us have been and or are going thru this crazy process.

Peace out,

Ramos

Very well put. I have heard so many others cutting corners and trying to do the minimum on this and you really are risking an RFE over it.

[pushbrk 13,715]

OY VAY here we go again,

FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:

Get Certified Copies of BOTH divorces, the whole ENCHILADA not just a letter the WHOLE thing. I was RFE'ed because of this I sent in only a LETTER. Save yourself the TROUBLE and get BOTH of them and be DONE with it. Trust me the TIME you spend now getting the COMPLETE and PROPER paperwork will save time in the end.

I request a sticky, CAUSE I'm tired of ppl not gettng it thru their skulls Send the WHOLE thing not just a piece why waste time.

For the people who only send in the letter or part of the decree and got past, AWESOME for you, but that is not always the case, the point of the website is to help people complete the forms with the information of what they need, share experiences, and to provide a support system for them.

Most of us have been and or are going thru this crazy process.

Peace out,

Ramos

Very well put. I have heard so many others cutting corners and trying to do the minimum on this and you really are risking an RFE over it.

"The whole thing" varies with the jurisdiction. I requested a certified copy of my divorce decrees from the State of Washington. They sent me one page each. It had all the information that was needed, including full names, dates and the judge's signature. If you have more and it is a certified copy, then by all means, send it in. I had nothing from either divorce. On the USC end, there is no need to supply custody arrangements or property settlement information. Again, if that's what you have and its a certified copy and you want to send a lot of extra pages, go for it. If you're going to have to have a certified translation to Chinese made of all those pages, you might want to give some thought to requesting whatever passes as a "Certified Copy of Divorce Decree" in your County or State.

[otherone32 0]

hi guys! thanks for all your replies. i'm just confused. how would the center know that he has two marriages if we will not mention this in the application forms? can they track all marriages? how will this be possible?

thanks again.

They will perform a background check to determine if the information you have provided is true. My advice do not take a chance on causing a delay or possible denial of your application by taking short cuts. Take the time to provide all of the information they request. It will save you a lot of heart ache in the long run.

[desert_fox 32]

There are no national marriage and divorce records. Marriage and divorce are entirely local (e.g., State) matters. In the United States, one state is NOT obligated to even recognize a marriage filed in another state.

This is convenient if you're a polygamist, or if you need to "omit" marriage details. Though as someone has mentioned, it's really better to do everything by the book.

Every state recognizes legal marriages performed in another state. Its called the FULL FAITH AND CREDIT clause of the US Constitution. Repeat your Civics class again.

[pushbrk 13,715]

There are no national marriage and divorce records. Marriage and divorce are entirely local (e.g., State) matters. In the United States, one state is NOT obligated to even recognize a marriage filed in another state.

This is convenient if you're a polygamist, or if you need to "omit" marriage details. Though as someone has mentioned, it's really better to do everything by the book.

Every state recognizes legal marriages performed in another state. Its called the FULL FAITH AND CREDIT clause of the US Constitution. Repeat your Civics class again.

This is why so many States are rushing to pass amendments to their State Constitution, that define marriage as between one man and one woman. It is the only way they can avoid the requirement to recognize same gender marriages from Mass. Yes, States must recognize marriages performed in other States. For instance, you can't marry your first cousin in Washington but if the marriage takes place in a State that allows first cousin marriage, Washington recognizes it. Otherwise we would have chaos.