Hello,

My friends also got married with First Choice but in Greece. It took them the full three months to get their certificates. If the three months haven't passed yet there is no point in phoning them as all they will say is it will take three months.

I can sympathise - Ours took six months from Dominican Republic - Must admit first choice were very poor in making any effort to speed tha matter up. Manana takes on a whole new meaning.

Hi all,

Maybe I am a bit slow, but why do you have to wait so long? Why don`t you get the certificate on the day of marriage like you do here?

Same thought in my mind. A marriage is a contract made between two people. What is it to do with the TO? Might not be a romantic way of putting it but you do need that document for all sorts of reasons. Should you not have it then as you did not get married in the UK then the marriage is not legal without it. As a matter of interest we have an endorsement on ours.

fwh

As a matter of interest we have an endorsement on ours.

Three more and your marriage is disqualifed for 3 months?

It is a good story over a drink but due to an error technically we were not married. When it was discovered we were required to do it again with the same witnesses. Problem was they were both out of the country and were not due back within the time limit set. We then had to get a legal authorisation for the endorsement to make it legal. But yes could get disqualified. Then I would have to iron my own shirts.

fwh

Then I would have to iron my own shirts

OMG!! Micky, are you sure you are married and not just "Living in fun"??

Can we please not stray off topic - Thanks.

i got married in olu deniz turkey in june and was given my marriage cert straight away, mind you it was a carry on weeks beforehand organising it lol !!!!

In South America and they Caribbean they have their own way of doing things and it is the local jurisdiction of government that dictates when you will receive your marriage certificate, nothing to do with your tour operator, they are powerless to interfere in the running of a foreign nation !

Can someone explain what proof you have that you are married? As I explained earlier when we got married then due to the register not being completed correctly we technically were not legally married. The error came to light when the minister had his books audited. It was quite complicated when the original witnesses were out of the country, one of them for six months sorting it out. Should there be a similar mistake from several thousand miles away then you could have all sorts of problems and a great deal of expense. Again I ask the question what is it to do with the TO - You have not married Thomas Cook - First Choice etc. You may have contracted with them to arrange things but that is all.

fwh

Hello there Fwh.
Well the fact the our contract was with Fca is the sole point to this. It states in the brochures when booking that the tour operator is responsible for all third parties invloved. They are responsible for the receiving of all legal documents and they state that this is provided as part of the wedding package. We had our wedding organised through them and we have not yet received the documents that they are responsible for and we have paid for. For example; If I bought a setee from Dfs and it was coming from Italy, if it didnt show up my complaint would be with Dfs not the makers, same sort of thing. Also we didnt receive any paper work before we left either and we do not have any written confirmation that we are married. All we is the wedding booking through first choice.

Hi Micky - Sorry to keep on about this but I do think it important for any others in a similar position. As you have no documentation what is your legal standing in this country? Whilst I appreciate that the TO has the responsibilities for the third parties it is still you and your partner who have got married. As far as I am aware marriage is accepted in all countries as a contract between the the two people concerned. I can understand that documentation in other countries may need to be ratified within their legal system and could be delayed. I find the idea that you are left in limbo is a concern that others planning to wed will find of disturbing. I think others on HT would appreciate if you keep them updated. On a more happy note may I wish you a long and happy life together. Marriage documentation notwithstanding.

fwh

Hi Fwh.
As it stand now we have no proof at all that we are married. We havent been able to change any names etc and I am still even having to use my maiden name. This is what gets to me though... I have emailed the hotel 4 times now asking about the certificate with no reply at all. I email them last night to ask whether we could purchase a day pass for their hotel as we are going back to Cuba in November and they replied this morning telling me that we can. Never mind, Im sure if Im patient enough it'll come. I jus never have been blessed with patients! Lol!!
Thanks, Becky.

Hi Becky,

There is no need to wait for your marriage certificate to come through in order to take your husband's surname if that is what you wish to do. In the UK, women are neither required to take their husbands's surname on marriage nor are they prevented from taking any surname they want. If you now wish to be known by another name you simply need to inform everybody concerned in writing that this is what you want. If you want to make it more 'official' you can swear an affidavit with any notarising solicitor to that effect and include copies of this with your letter - any solicitor should be able to arrange this really cheaply for you. S/he might even suggest that you place small ad in the London Gazette and/r your local paper to that effect too but it isn't a legal necessity. A sworn affidavit should be all that is necessary too for any situations where you need to account for why the name on your birth certificate is no longer the name by which you are known.

I accept of course that this won't cover you for situations where the issue is proving that you and your husband are married (eg pension benefits etc) but there is absolutely no legal reason why you can't change your surname immediately if that is what you want. Women who aren't married can still take their partner's surname if that is how they wish to be known and can even style themselves Mrs too - this is a matter of convention not law. And of course men can just as easily change their names to whatever they want too by the same process.

As long as there is no criminal intent or conscious intent to deceive others by concealing your identity, it's perfectly legal to ask people to call you whatever you want incluidng your bank. For example I continue to use my birth name for many purposes but use a variation of it for professional purposes because that is the name I am known as to most people and have the relevant bank accounts in that name whilst using the other for personal accounts. Most of them are with the same bank who have never had a problem operating more than one account in more than one name for me because I have been able to produce evidence (eg business letters) that this is the name I am known as for the purposes this account will be used for. Of course the easiest documentation to produce in your case would be the marriage certificate but the bank has no legal right to prevent you from changing the name on your account because you can't produce it as long as you can demonstrate that this is the name by which you now choose to be known.

SM

The problem is not what you call yourself - If you have gone to great expense to get married in some exotic location, with all the memories of the occasion, the last thing that you want is for something such as this to cast a cloud. Elsewhere I have told the story of how our marriage documentation was found to be wrong and the problems it could have caused. I really am concerned that having gone to this expense that someone is put in this position. If you pay a TO to arrange all this then you expect them to complete the job they are paid for. It is no good having a memorable day if it is overshadowed by this. The fact that the foreign country you have chosen for your wedding has a problem with paperwork does not absolve the TO/organiser. I would suggest that if a country wishes to continue to be attractive as a venue then the TO/organiser should be applying pressure to improve things. I do wonder if a pile of this documentation is sat in someones intray waiting them to get round to sending it out.

fwh

Hi fwh,

I assume that your reply above is in response to my post and would just like to re-iterate that I accept that the issues raised are wider than just whether Becky can take her husband's name or not but was pointing out to her that, contrary to the impression she seems to be under, she does not have to continue using her maiden name if she doesn't want to and that this at least is one of the things she can cross of 'Things to Worry About' list and there is no need to wait for receipt of her marriage certificate if she wants to change her name on her bank account or set-up a new joint account etc.

This forum has recently seen a number of posts about the anxiety and heartache that some people experience over arrangements for getting married abroad and it does make me wonder whether it's all worth it and whether this should serve as a warning that one needs to think very carefully about taking such a big step, especially with regard to getting married in a third world country where the infrastructure and attitude to marriage and weddings are so very different to here in in the UK.

SM

I agree with you SM - It is a concern that people are paying a heck of a lot of money for what seems to me a third rate service from the TOs - I know from what others tell me - Only youngest not wed and he is likely to do it and tell us after the event - his mother will have something to say if he does. It is a stressful period and you pay the TO to get rid of it. I suspect that the problem is more to do with the TOs than they will admit. These countries gain a great deal of foreign currency from this and I am sure would soon improve the paperwork, if, the TOs who bring that money in for them were to threaten them with alternative destinations. It would be interesting if anyone who knows someone who has been through this and found themselves unable to resolve were to post. I am sure that those reading this topic who are planning to get married will be concerned.

fwh