Information on Safe Migration
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revealing her personal potential, professionally
assisting in the realization of civil and social rights
Hello, France! Or how to marry a Frenchman?
Getting married in Belarus with your fellow citizen is easy. You go to the registry office, fill out an application, pay the state fee, and choose the date for the ceremony. But what if your soulmate is from France and is about to propose, and you really want to say "Yes"? Don't be afraid of the complicated and lengthy procedure for getting married in France. The staff of the hotline for safe travel, stay abroad, and combating human trafficking of the "Business Women's Club" will help you understand its stages.
Preparation
If the bride wants to take her French spouse's surname, it does not mean changing her surname in the passport. French national legislation states that the surname used for marriage is the one listed not in the passport, but in the birth certificate.
There can be no misunderstandings for a bride in her first marriage. But if it's a second marriage and the surnames in the passport and birth certificate are different (in case of divorce), problems may arise, since in Belarus you will be registered under the surname listed in the passport, and in France — under the surname listed in the birth certificate.
Therefore, to meet the requirements of French legislation, divorced women with their ex-husband's surname are advised to return to their maiden name. A certificate of change of surname (with apostille, translation, and notarized) must be provided to the French Embassy in the Republic of Belarus instead of a certificate establishing the connection between different surnames.
To register a marriage, Belarusians need to obtain a special visa — the "fiancée visa". For this, the future spouses must visit the town hall together where the marriage registration will take place (for these purposes, a tourist visa will suffice). Usually, they insist that the couple comes, but if the town hall allows the groom to submit the application on his own, he must send the original dossier to the bride.
At the town hall, you will prepare a special dossier necessary for the wedding. The employee will issue forms (dossier for marriage) — dossier de marriage. In it, you will find a list of necessary documents.
If the documents are submitted in the original, they must be certified with an apostille. If translated into French, they must be certified by a notary. Please note that in some municipalities, they only accept document translations made in France.
Betrothal
It is not possible to have a quiet wedding, as French law requires that a marriage cannot be concluded without prior publication in the press. Engagement is a grand event that the French take very seriously: a wedding date is chosen, a prenuptial agreement is drawn up, and notices are placed in the press.
Wedding ceremony
After the documents and application are submitted, the wedding ceremony will take place on the appointed date. In France, it takes place only in the municipality of the city where the groom or his parents reside. After registering the marriage, a «livret de famille» («family book») is issued.
Recognition of marriage in Belarus.
To make changes to civil status records in Belarus, an international copy of the marriage certificate (form B), issued by the mayor's office at the place of marriage registration, is presented as evidence of marriage in France. Such a document must be legalized (an apostille affixed at the territorial court of appeal in France) and accompanied by a translation into Russian (or Belarusian), made and certified by a notary in the Republic of Belarus, or a translator accredited at the Belarusian Embassy in France.
Spouse visa to France
After marrying a Frenchman, a Belarusian woman acquires the right to apply for a long-term D visa, a spouse visa for the purpose of «family reunification».
It should be borne in mind that a spouse visa is not the same as a fiancée visa to France. The first is issued after marriage, the second is issued before marriage, for the purpose of staying in the country to register it, but after submitting an application to the mayor's office.
Current requirements and the package of documents for the visa can be clarified by visiting the website of the consular service of France in Belarus.
Long-term visa to France – actions after moving
It is necessary to register with the Office of Immigration and Integration (OFII) upon arrival in France. A long-term visa issued for the purpose of family reunification in the first year of stay is recognized as a residence permit. After the first year of stay, you must apply to the prefecture of France to extend the residence permit (no later than 2 months before the expiration of the visa).
Citizenship through marriage
If your actual and material joint life has been continuous, you can become a French citizen two years after getting married. If the two years of living together in marriage were interrupted, the period is extended to three years. After a year of living together, an application is submitted to the court. From that moment on, the applicant's identity is thoroughly checked. Particular attention is paid to the marriage, as fictitious unions are quite common.
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