Wedding quest in emigration: Belarusians tell how they got married abroad

Photo: vecteezy.com

Why you can't just get married in a new country

Many countries, including Poland, require proof that a foreigner has the right to marry. For this, Belarusians need to provide a certificate from the consulate stating that there are no impediments to marriage. And for that, in turn, another certificate is needed – one stating that the person is not currently married.

Since 2023, such certificates are only issued in Belarus – personally to the applicant or to another person by proxy, but the power of attorney must be issued in Belarus. Those who cannot travel to their homeland for such a certificate must either obtain a court decision that exempts them from providing such a document, or look for alternative ways to register their relationship.

The ceremony lasted five minutes

Veronika (name changed) and her partner live in Poland, but decided to marry through the American state of Utah, ordering an online registration there. If they had registered their relationship in Poland, the process could have dragged on due to the need to go to court.

To arrange the marriage, the couple contacted an agency that handles such registrations. For its services, the couple paid 500 euros. The entire process took about a month: at the end of April, their ceremony was scheduled, and at the end of May, the marriage certificate with an apostille arrived.

— They offered us a date almost for the next week, but we wanted to choose our own. There were no particular difficulties; they don't require any documents other than a passport photo and a completed form with personal data.

The marriage ceremony itself took place online.

— It literally lasted five minutes. They offered us to pay an extra 100 euros for a more solemn 15-minute ceremony, but we refused.

The couple is independently handling the further recognition of the American marriage certificate in Poland.

Unexpectedly, the couple had more questions not about marriage registration, but about possible divorce. While you can get married in Utah without ever having been there, you need to go there to get a divorce.

— For a divorce, as far as I know, you have to live in Utah for three weeks; we checked this issue just in case. But both decided that it didn't bother us. If something happens, we'll deal with it then. But we talked about it for a long time.

Veronika laughs that this particular feature of the American state was what interested others the most.

— All friends who found out that we were getting married in Utah warned us about divorce.

The couple has not yet had a wedding celebration.

— We only celebrated with our parents; we are still thinking about holding a wedding for the first or second anniversary.

"Besides passport and money, nothing else is needed"

On Threads, many users also share their experience of marriage registration in Utah. Among the main advantages, they name the small number of documents and the speed of processing.

"Besides a passport and money, nothing else is needed there. And you also need two witnesses – they can be anyone," writes user katskonastya.

The cost of registration for the discussion participants was about 280-300 dollars. For example, user stepwise.space said that together with the apostille, she paid about 280 dollars. Then the couple translated the documents for 500 zlotys (140 dollars), paid the fee at the Polish registry office, and registered the marriage certificate in Poland.

What is needed for marriage registration in Utah

According to Utah County authorities, for online marriage registration, spouses will need identity documents, two adult witnesses, and access to video communication. A separate certificate stating that the person is not married is not required.

After the ceremony, the spouses receive a marriage certificate. If they plan to use it in Poland, the document must be apostilled, translated into Polish, and submitted to Polish authorities.

"A maximally pleasant experience, although we thought we would have to 'move mountains'"

Some Belarusians choose other countries.

User _caterina_make_up said that she and her husband decided to get married in Georgia.

"We chose an option without the hassle of documents, flew to Georgia. And we believe we did the right thing," she writes.

For marriage registration in Georgia, identity documents and two adult witnesses are required. If one of the spouses was previously married, documents proving the termination of that marriage must be provided. Marriage registration is free.

Other couples choose Denmark. Catherinewasilyewa says that the procedure turned out to be much simpler than she and her husband expected.

"Flying from Gdańsk takes less than an hour, and there are several flights a day. We managed without translating documents, the package is as simple as possible, the state fee was even refunded to the card, and the apostille was issued in five minutes. A maximally pleasant experience, although we thought we would have to 'move mountains'."

For marriage registration in Denmark, identity documents are required. In addition, authorities may request proof of legal stay in the country and documents regarding the termination of a previous marriage, if any. A fee of 2100 Danish kroner (about 330 dollars) is charged for processing the marriage registration application.

Waiting for permission for a year and a half

Many Belarusians in Poland who cannot obtain a certificate from their homeland about their eligibility to marry are forced to apply to a Polish court with a request to exempt them from the obligation to provide this document.

On Threads, users discuss how long it takes to wait for a court decision. Some say they received it after four months, others waited about eight. However, some couples have to wait much longer.

Dana received a marriage proposal in December 2024. At the same time, the couple learned that a court decision would be required to register their marriage in Poland: the bride and groom are under international protection. They submitted the documents in Sosnowiec, where they lived at the time.

— We were told that we would have to wait for a decision for approximately six months to a year. This suited us: we were not in a hurry.

The couple did not want to register their marriage outside the EU: Dana's passport had expired, and with the travel document replacing it, she is afraid to fly outside the Schengen zone. Online registration was also not considered.

— We still wanted to get married in the registry office, exchange rings, and go through all of it live.

A year and a half has passed since the documents were submitted. Nevertheless, the prospective spouses are not going to look for alternative options.

— Even if we had known in advance that the process would drag on so much, we would still have gone this route. Perhaps we just wouldn't have been so angry.

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