RFE - Marriage Certificate to show marriage date?

[Timdo72 1]

Hello everyone, I have waited 11 months so far and now got a RFE a few days ago. I am filing a CR-1 for my wife from Vietnam.

 

The RFE letter stated "The photocopy of the English translation of your marriage certificate does not indicate the date of marriage but the date of registration. Submit a photocopy of your original marriage certificate. The marriage certificate must be issued by an appropriate civil authority. In order for the marriage to be considered valid for immigration purposes, it must have been legally valid in the location where the marriage took place. The document must include the date of marriage, date of registration and signature of the registrar."

 

I did submitted a photocopy of my original marriage certificate along with the I-130 to USCIS last year on April 20, 2020. The problem is the marriage certificate from Vietnam only indicates the place of registration and date of registration but not the date of marriage. In Vietnam, the date of registration on the marriage certificate is legally considered the same as the date of marriage. It's the date when both my wife and I signed the marriage certificate in person in front of the registrar to be legally considered as husband and wife. I had my wife in Vietnam asked the registrar to see if the marriage certificate could be edited to include the date of marriage but the response is no. The registrar said that Vietnam uses a unified format marriage certificate that cannot be changed or edited to include the date of marriage. The registrar said that the date of registration is considered the same as the date of marriage on the marriage certification in Vietnam. There is no way that I can get my marriage certificate to show the date of marriage on it but only the date of registration. I am sad, stuck and not sure on how to handle this RFE.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to handle this RFE? Thank you so much in advance!

[Hilde 381]

1 hour ago, Timdo72 said:

Hello everyone, I have waited 11 months so far and now got a RFE a few days ago. I am filing a CR-1 for my wife from Vietnam.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to handle this RFE? Thank you so much in advance!

I would suggest you look at Vietnam embassy specific instructions. Maybe there is information there for you:

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/Visa-Reciprocity-and-Civil-Documents-by-Country/VietNam.html

 

Marriage

Non-Vietnamese nationals married in Vietnam and now seeking a record of the marriage should write to the provincial Justice Department (So Tu Phap)where the marriage/divorce took place. The request should include the date and location of the marriage. The Department will usually respond, but without friends or relatives to follow up, the process may be lengthy.

Common Law Marriages and Marriage of Relatives

Vietnamese law does not recognize common law marriages. Authorities do issue certificates verifying cohabitation but these do not constitute legal marriages. Vietnamese law prohibits marriage between blood siblings, half siblings, first cousins or any two persons related closer than three degrees of separation. The legal age for marriage is 20 for men and 18 for women.