ECO Immigration Consultancy's good friend and client Mark Lee Lambatan with his wife Stacey and their baby in the UK. Applicants for the UK Spouse Visa who married their British spouses in the UK without registering their marriage at the Philippines Embassy in the United Kingdom are allowed to register their marriage even if they are already in the Philippines.
One of the major requirements which a UK Spouse Visa applicant must show to the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) is the validity of his or her marriage with the British spouse.
The main document to prove this is the marriage certificate. If the marriage between the Filipino Citizen and the British national was solemnized in the UK when the applicant visited the UK, there would surely be a marriage certificate duly issued by the UK government.
Since one of the spouses is a citizen of the Philippines, then he or she is duty-bound to register the marriage with the Philippine Embassy in London if they want the marriage to be registered with the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) .
According to Philippine laws, “The marriage of Filipino citizens in the United Kingdom or Ireland must be registered with the Philippine Embassy no later than one year after the date of marriage.
“The Report of Marriage, which is equivalent to the Philippine Marriage Certificate, will be sent by the Embassy to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the Philippines’ foremost civil registry authority. It is from the PSA that applicants will get authenticated copies of civil registry forms on security paper for future consular transactions.
“Personal appearance is not required for filing a Report of Marriage. The Report of Marriage may be filed by sending the forms and the documentary requirements to the Embassy by post, together with a self-addressed stamped envelope, the payment in the form of postal money order, and a note providing the Embassy with the applicant’s contact details.” Philippine Embassy in London website.
The same website lists the following requirements for registering the marriage in the UK:
1. Four (4) accomplished Report of Marriage forms, filled out online and printed, or printed and accomplished using a pen with black ink. All entries must be written in block letters and clearly legible. All four (4) copies must be signed by both parties and not just photocopied.
2. Original copy and four (4) copies of the British / Irish Marriage Certificate
3. Four (4) copies each of the data page of the spouses’ valid passports
4. Supporting documents (if applicable):
a. If the Report of Marriage is filed more than one (1) year after the marriage:
Four (4) copies of the Affidavit of Delayed Registration of Marriage
b. If the Filipino spouse is a widow/er at the time of the marriage:
Original and four (4) copies of the Death Certificate/s of previous spouse/s
c. If the Filipino spouse has had a previous marriage annulled or a foreign divorce recognized in a Philippine Court:
Original and four (4) copies of the annotated Philippine Marriage Certificate for the dissolved marriage (See also Judicial Recognition section)
But what if the newly-weds fail to register their UK marriage at the Philippine Embassy, and the Filipina now applying for the UK Spouse Visa needs a copy of the marriage certificate issued by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). If the newly-weds fail to report their marriage in the Philippine Embassy in the UK, then the PSA will not have any basis that the UK marriage took place in the UK and therefore cannot issue a marriage certificate.
The applicant for the UK Spouse Visa who is now back in the Philippines processing her application for the UK Spouse Visa has the option to file for the delayed registration of the marriage in the UK.
According to the PSA, here are the documents that need to be presented in order for the marriage in the UK to be registered with the agency:
1. Report of Marriage Form
Five (5) forms should be printed in A4 paper, originally filled out and item 20 should be notarized by the notary public.
Entries must be TYPEWRITTEN OR PRINTED LEGIBLY
Entries must be at the time of marriage of the spouses/subject
2. Marriage Contract / Certificate (original copy should be submitted to the DFA)
3. Birth Certificate of both parties
For Filipino Nationals - Authenticated Birth Certificate from the PSA
For Foreign Nationals - Birth Certificate issued by the country of birth with official English translation
4. Passports of both parties valid at the time of marriage and current/valid passport of both parties
Photocopies of data pages
In case of unavailability, execute an Affidavit of Non-submission of Document and attach a copy valid/recent passport or any valid ID.
5. Five (5) recent passport size photos of both parties
6. Notarized Affidavit of Delayed Registration [required only for applicants who are married for more than one (1) year]
7. Notarized Affidavit of Two (2) Disinterested Persons [required only for applicants who are married for more than one (1) year]
8. Negative Certification of Marriage Record from the PSA (CRS Form No. 3)
One of the major requirements which a UK Spouse Visa applicant must show to the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) is the validity of his or her marriage with the British spouse.
The main document to prove this is the marriage certificate. If the marriage between the Filipino Citizen and the British national was solemnized in the UK when the applicant visited the UK, there would surely be a marriage certificate duly issued by the UK government.
Since one of the spouses is a citizen of the Philippines, then he or she is duty-bound to register the marriage with the Philippine Embassy in London if they want the marriage to be registered with the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) .
According to Philippine laws, “The marriage of Filipino citizens in the United Kingdom or Ireland must be registered with the Philippine Embassy no later than one year after the date of marriage.
“The Report of Marriage, which is equivalent to the Philippine Marriage Certificate, will be sent by the Embassy to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the Philippines’ foremost civil registry authority. It is from the PSA that applicants will get authenticated copies of civil registry forms on security paper for future consular transactions.
“Personal appearance is not required for filing a Report of Marriage. The Report of Marriage may be filed by sending the forms and the documentary requirements to the Embassy by post, together with a self-addressed stamped envelope, the payment in the form of postal money order, and a note providing the Embassy with the applicant’s contact details.” Philippine Embassy in London website.
The same website lists the following requirements for registering the marriage in the UK:
1. Four (4) accomplished Report of Marriage forms, filled out online and printed, or printed and accomplished using a pen with black ink. All entries must be written in block letters and clearly legible. All four (4) copies must be signed by both parties and not just photocopied.
2. Original copy and four (4) copies of the British / Irish Marriage Certificate
3. Four (4) copies each of the data page of the spouses’ valid passports
4. Supporting documents (if applicable):
a. If the Report of Marriage is filed more than one (1) year after the marriage:
Four (4) copies of the Affidavit of Delayed Registration of Marriage
b. If the Filipino spouse is a widow/er at the time of the marriage:
Original and four (4) copies of the Death Certificate/s of previous spouse/s
c. If the Filipino spouse has had a previous marriage annulled or a foreign divorce recognized in a Philippine Court:
Original and four (4) copies of the annotated Philippine Marriage Certificate for the dissolved marriage (See also Judicial Recognition section)
But what if the newly-weds fail to register their UK marriage at the Philippine Embassy, and the Filipina now applying for the UK Spouse Visa needs a copy of the marriage certificate issued by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). If the newly-weds fail to report their marriage in the Philippine Embassy in the UK, then the PSA will not have any basis that the UK marriage took place in the UK and therefore cannot issue a marriage certificate.
The applicant for the UK Spouse Visa who is now back in the Philippines processing her application for the UK Spouse Visa has the option to file for the delayed registration of the marriage in the UK.
According to the PSA, here are the documents that need to be presented in order for the marriage in the UK to be registered with the agency:
1. Report of Marriage Form
Five (5) forms should be printed in A4 paper, originally filled out and item 20 should be notarized by the notary public.
Entries must be TYPEWRITTEN OR PRINTED LEGIBLY
Entries must be at the time of marriage of the spouses/subject
2. Marriage Contract / Certificate (original copy should be submitted to the DFA)
3. Birth Certificate of both parties
For Filipino Nationals - Authenticated Birth Certificate from the PSA
For Foreign Nationals - Birth Certificate issued by the country of birth with official English translation
4. Passports of both parties valid at the time of marriage and current/valid passport of both parties
Photocopies of data pages
In case of unavailability, execute an Affidavit of Non-submission of Document and attach a copy valid/recent passport or any valid ID.
5. Five (5) recent passport size photos of both parties
6. Notarized Affidavit of Delayed Registration [required only for applicants who are married for more than one (1) year]
7. Notarized Affidavit of Two (2) Disinterested Persons [required only for applicants who are married for more than one (1) year]
8. Negative Certification of Marriage Record from the PSA (CRS Form No. 3)
 Mark's gig at the Mermaid Pub in Portsmouth | |  Mark and Stacy doing some Christmas shopping at a UK Mall. |
Click this ECO-Friendly contact box for your queries
RSS Feed