Marriage Certificate - Philippines (Manila)

[MrsMelnic8]

MrsMelnic8: thanks for the tips. It seems like if we can get the LRO to get the expedite letter and we can either mail it ourselves or present it in person at the NSO office, it should get into their system quicker. Then we can order 5 hardcopies of the NSO official marriage certificate.

truesmile: Wow I can't believe it would take a year to get a new passport. I've looked at the new passport website at "manila(dot)passport(dot)com(dot)ph/passport-fees-info" and it says 7 days processing for expedited service. The process seems to be streamlined by entering most info online and setting an appointment, and then showing up to take your picture and other biometrics. So really I don't see an issue with getting her new passport to reflect her married name. Only thing is that the marriage certificate is required to enable the new name change. Then the other documents like the Police certificate and Medical can have new new name as well since her passport would be the primary ID. The birth certificate of course will always have her maiden name as that is the NSO record.

UPDATE: I also checked and realized that the passport renewal only needs the certified true copy of the marriage contract from the LRO, NSO marriage certificate isn't required. So this is better, as long as other docs such as Police Cert and Medical don't require it. Allows us to do more things in parallel. In this way, we only need the marriage certificate for the PRV application, so if it can be obtained in a few weeks then the timing should work out great.

Yes you are right. You should be able to do it quicker since you are in Manila anyway. As for me I am from Mindanao which requires 1 hour plane ride going to manila. Ouch thats expensive. Hehe anyway. God bless your process.
Dont worry manila DFA (dept. Of foreign affairs) is where your wife will secure a passport under your family name right? If that's the case then before you file for a passport have a CFO certificate first for your wife which is a requirement for having your family name in the passport. Since you are a foreigner.also set an appointment ahead of time now for your wife's DFA schedule because it is a first come first serve basis in whichever DFA she goes. just give ample time allowance tgat before your passport process you have acquired already your NSO marriage contract, CENOMAR, and CFO.
I have been through all the hassles and it would have been great if someone who knew told me. So i hope i can help in easing your ways. The struggle is really real i even got lost in manila but eventually found my way back. I got so many bloopers but i enjoyed. God is in control.

 

[S_and_C]

Hi MrsMelnic8, thanks again for the information. If you look on the site here (manila.passport.com.ph/requirements) it states the following for the marriage contract requirement when applying for the passport...

For Married Women:

- Marriage Contract (MC) in Security Paper (SECPA) issued by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) or original and photocopy of the Certified True Copy (CTC) of MC issued by the Local Civil Registrar (LCR) and duly authenticated by PSA. Transcribed Marriage Contract from the LCR is required when entries in PSA Marriage Contract are blurred or unreadable.
- Report of Marriage duly authenticated by PSA if married abroad
- Original and photocopy of Commission of Filipino Overseas (CFO) Guidance and Counseling Certificate of Attendance (required for women with foreign national husband).

So, it appears that we can register the marriage at the LCR and have them give us a certified true copy of the marriage contract, and then bring it to NSO (which looks like it's called PSA now) for them to authenticate it. We should be able to then use that for applying for the passport. Then hopefully it won't take them too long to make it available for ordering the PSA/NSO certificate.

Thanks again and God bless.

 

[MrsMelnic8]

Hi MrsMelnic8, thanks again for the information. If you look on the site here (manila.passport.com.ph/requirements) it states the following for the marriage contract requirement when applying for the passport...

For Married Women:

- Marriage Contract (MC) in Security Paper (SECPA) issued by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) or original and photocopy of the Certified True Copy (CTC) of MC issued by the Local Civil Registrar (LCR) and duly authenticated by PSA. Transcribed Marriage Contract from the LCR is required when entries in PSA Marriage Contract are blurred or unreadable.
- Report of Marriage duly authenticated by PSA if married abroad
- Original and photocopy of Commission of Filipino Overseas (CFO) Guidance and Counseling Certificate of Attendance (required for women with foreign national husband).

So, it appears that we can register the marriage at the LCR and have them give us a certified true copy of the marriage contract, and then bring it to NSO (which looks like it's called PSA now) for them to authenticate it. We should be able to then use that for applying for the passport. Then hopefully it won't take them too long to make it available for ordering the PSA/NSO certificate.

Thanks again and God bless.

yes that's right. You're welcome. God bless you too.

 

[S_and_C]

Just an update on our situation. My wife and I got married on April 7, 2016 in the Philippines and I just got back to Canada a few days ago. We are starting to look at our requirements and what we need to gather for the PRV application.

Just to document what we did to try to expedite the marriage certificate, but did not work...

We obtained the 4 signed copies of the marriage contract from our Pastor who married us on Thursday, April 7. On Monday April 11, we went to the Local Registry Office at Quezon City Hall to submit them. They stamped them with a local file number and kept 2 of the 4 copies (1 each for LRO, NSO, Pastor and ourselves). We asked about expediting the certificate to NSO for immigration purposes, but were told they do not offer expedite services and we also could not obtain an endorsement letter to submit it ourselves to the NSO office (15 minutes walk away) as it's not their policy. The only time they would do that is if some local office out in the province has submitted it but takes months to reach the NSO by snail mail, then you can go to NSO personally and expedite the entry yourself by proving the NSO copy from the LRO is "in transit". So for our situation, their policy at the LRO is to batch up the marriage contracts and send them to the NSO office every 10th of each month (so May 10 it will go to NSO).

Presumably after that is done it may take a month for it to get in the NSO system so that we can order a marriage certificate online (which only takes a few days apparently). So we're looking at a 2 month wait according to this.

I also called the local MP's office for Ottawa South (David McGuinty) and inquiring whether we could apply for PRV using the local marriage certificate, and then later send the NSO marriage certificate to CIC when we receive it. But they suggest to wait for it. CIC should really become more flexible because we could save 2 months and get sponsor approval prior to obtaining the marriage certificate, and then we could send it in so they could proceed with the processing.

So anyone else have any experiences with this?

 

[philgoodhusband]

Sorry to hear about that. Philippine bureaucracy is world-class when it comes to making things difficult for customers.

I didn't exactly go through the exact same situation (I fall under those whose certificate came from out of town and was able to expedite), but just from observing applicants' experiences and also having heard the same advice before, it does seem better to submit a complete application a bit later than rushing to submit an incomplete package. Now whether the 2-month wait is worth it is up to your judgment.

Of course, the usual caveat about every case being different applies.

 

[philgoodhusband]

Having said all that, congratulations on getting married!

 

[Alidykeman]

Sorry to hear about that. Philippine bureaucracy is world-class when it comes to making things difficult for customers.

I didn't exactly go through the exact same situation (I fall under those whose certificate came from out of town and was able to expedite), but just from observing applicants' experiences and also having heard the same advice before, it does seem better to submit a complete application a bit later than rushing to submit an incomplete package. Now whether the 2-month wait is worth it is up to your judgment.

Of course, the usual caveat about every case being different applies.

I agree with this. better with concrete application.
in our case, we got married in HK last jan 2016. we can simply submit our marriage certificate from HK, but we choose to report it wait 2 months to transfer to DFA manila then to PSA. they said from date of transmittal to PSA will took 2-3 months to get register. but what i did i apply in online 2 weeks after transmittal then a month later we got positive result. better to apply it online first for your NSO copy. at least they will keep you inform about the progress. now i'm just waiting for my appointment to renew my passport using my husband name.

best of luck!

 

[S_and_C]

Sorry to hear about that. Philippine bureaucracy is world-class when it comes to making things difficult for customers.

I didn't exactly go through the exact same situation (I fall under those whose certificate came from out of town and was able to expedite), but just from observing applicants' experiences and also having heard the same advice before, it does seem better to submit a complete application a bit later than rushing to submit an incomplete package. Now whether the 2-month wait is worth it is up to your judgment.

Of course, the usual caveat about every case being different applies.

Hi philgoodhusband, Yes I've thought of the idea is it better to apply 2 months early for maybe a few weeks delay of an "incomplete" application, or simply wait for the marriage certificate and apply then. Applying earlier means the sponsor approval step can be done sooner, and by the time the visa office gets the package and starts processing, we can send in the official NSO certificate. I am wondering if having it incomplete will delegate it to a pile of applications somewhere where it will be forgotten for a period of time before it gets reopened for processing.

Having said all that, congratulations on getting married!

hehe, thanks so much, we are very happy and we had an amazing 2 weeks together. Now we are back to LDR and focussing on gathering the rest of our requirements for the PRV. While we hate being apart, we are in the next phase of being together permanently so I feel good knowing this is the last chunk of waiting we need to endure...

I agree with this. better with concrete application.
in our case, we got married in HK last jan 2016. we can simply submit our marriage certificate from HK, but we choose to report it wait 2 months to transfer to DFA manila then to PSA. they said from date of transmittal to PSA will took 2-3 months to get register. but what i did i apply in online 2 weeks after transmittal then a month later we got positive result. better to apply it online first for your NSO copy. at least they will keep you inform about the progress. now i'm just waiting for my appointment to renew my passport using my husband name.

best of luck!

Thanks Alidykeman. Yes, I was thinking of having my wife contact NSO to ask for the certificate and see what they say. I wondered if the LRO representative said every 10th of the month for pickup because we submitted them on April 11th. Either it was a coincidence or a way for them to make us wait before trying to order one. Perhaps I will ask my wife to order one online on the NSO website and see what happens. She also made an appointment for renewing her passport but the only available slot was in early July. Fortunately, I've been told that she can still use her current passport with her maiden name to apply for the PRV, and then can send in a photocopy later to CIC informing them she has a new passport with her married name. All the forms we filled out are in her married name too, but we will have to determine the best time to submit that. Thanks for the reply.

 

[MrsMelnic8]

Just an update on our situation. My wife and I got married on April 7, 2016 in the Philippines and I just got back to Canada a few days ago. We are starting to look at our requirements and what we need to gather for the PRV application.

Just to document what we did to try to expedite the marriage certificate, but did not work...

We obtained the 4 signed copies of the marriage contract from our Pastor who married us on Thursday, April 7. On Monday April 11, we went to the Local Registry Office at Quezon City Hall to submit them. They stamped them with a local file number and kept 2 of the 4 copies (1 each for LRO, NSO, Pastor and ourselves). We asked about expediting the certificate to NSO for immigration purposes, but were told they do not offer expedite services and we also could not obtain an endorsement letter to submit it ourselves to the NSO office (15 minutes walk away) as it's not their policy. The only time they would do that is if some local office out in the province has submitted it but takes months to reach the NSO by snail mail, then you can go to NSO personally and expedite the entry yourself by proving the NSO copy from the LRO is "in transit". So for our situation, their policy at the LRO is to batch up the marriage contracts and send them to the NSO office every 10th of each month (so May 10 it will go to NSO).

Presumably after that is done it may take a month for it to get in the NSO system so that we can order a marriage certificate online (which only takes a few days apparently). So we're looking at a 2 month wait according to this.

I also called the local MP's office for Ottawa South (David McGuinty) and inquiring whether we could apply for PRV using the local marriage certificate, and then later send the NSO marriage certificate to CIC when we receive it. But they suggest to wait for it. CIC should really become more flexible because we could save 2 months and get sponsor approval prior to obtaining the marriage certificate, and then we could send it in so they could proceed with the processing.

So anyone else have any experiences with this?

Hello it's been awhile since I have logged in. I thought it was way better to have process in Quezon because the main office is in there. Errr that's not so nice. But hopefully by now it is in the system . So how is it going?
Congratulations on your wedding by the way

 

[S_and_C]

Hello it's been awhile since I have logged in. I thought it was way better to have process in Quezon because the main office is in there. Errr that's not so nice. But hopefully by now it is in the system . So how is it going?
Congratulations on your wedding by the way

Hi MrsMelnic8,

We had quite an adventure over the past month and a lot of work (see "our-journey-to-forever" channel on YouTube , but we have -almost- everything we need. Upfront Medical, Police cert, pictures, plus all the other relationship proof and such. The only thing missing now is the Marriage Certificate and we can apply for the PRV...

My wife went to the NSO on May 11 to inquire about it (that's Philippines time, so last night for me. and they basically said they haven't even received or begun processing the January 2016 applicants yet?!?!? So from that info it looks like we're 3-4 months minimum away from receiving our marriage certificate.

We're looking into other options to see if there is a way to expedite it. If not, I asked about using the Certified True Copy that has been authenticated and stamped by both the LRO and NSO, but the MPs office tells me there is a high chance of the entire application being rejected as it would be considered "incomplete", due to the missing NSO marriage certificate.

I also inquired to the MPs office about applying for a visitor visa for my wife, and they say they are 99% rejected because us being married represents a stronger tie to me than her home country. Given that the Liberals "priority" is family reunification, they certainly make it bloody difficult to do so. In my opinion, my wife should be able to visit me or stay with me while a PRV is being processed, just like anyone else who is already in Canada applying inland or here on a TRV.

Sigh, well I hope to have more positive updates soon as we do more research. Thanks for the congratulations, we are very happy, but could be happier if we were together. Take care and God bless.

 

[Djl]

Hi MrsMelnic8,

We had quite an adventure over the past month and a lot of work (see "our-journey-to-forever" channel on YouTube , but we have -almost- everything we need. Upfront Medical, Police cert, pictures, plus all the other relationship proof and such. The only thing missing now is the Marriage Certificate and we can apply for the PRV...

My wife went to the NSO on May 11 to inquire about it (that's Philippines time, so last night for me. and they basically said they haven't even received or begun processing the January 2016 applicants yet?!?!? So from that info it looks like we're 3-4 months minimum away from receiving our marriage certificate.

We're looking into other options to see if there is a way to expedite it. If not, I asked about using the Certified True Copy that has been authenticated and stamped by both the LRO and NSO, but the MPs office tells me there is a high chance of the entire application being rejected as it would be considered "incomplete", due to the missing NSO marriage certificate.

I also inquired to the MPs office about applying for a visitor visa for my wife, and they say they are 99% rejected because us being married represents a stronger tie to me than her home country. Given that the Liberals "priority" is family reunification, they certainly make it bloody difficult to do so. In my opinion, my wife should be able to visit me or stay with me while a PRV is being processed, just like anyone else who is already in Canada applying inland or here on a TRV.

Sigh, well I hope to have more positive updates soon as we do more research. Thanks for the congratulations, we are very happy, but could be happier if we were together. Take care and God bless.

Just some information for you S and C, we got married last September and filed in December and only sent NSO, application went into process Feb in Manila and they just recently asked for additional marriage certicate in April! We didn't encounter any problems and we also used the advice of our consultant so no problems the way we did it!

 

[badpusacat]

Dear S_and_C,

I just got married in Manila and let me share you some tips that hopefully might help your situation. I'm the PR, husband is in Manila.

We got married February and was so devastated when we found out the amount of time that it will require for us to complete the documents needed for the application especially the NSO Marriage Certificate (MC). We went to NSO Main Office, inquire on how to expedite the NSO MC three weeks after we got married. We went on the back office not on the main area where the congested lines are. They advised us to go back to Manila City Hall and ask for Proof of Endorsement (PoE). The PoE is just a piece of paper, like a grocery receipt, that contains the details on when did they transfer our MC from Manila City Hall to NSO. Once we got that piece of paper, we go back to NSO and gave it them and our NSO MC was release after two weeks.

I decided not to change my family name to my husband's surname until we finish the sponsorship process. I just want to start the processing of our sponsorship a-s-a-p. I guess, your wife can do the same thing if you want.

If she opted to change her surname to yours, you can schedule her passport change in the DFA website. Continue checking the DFA site using a computer because sometimes, it shows an available date which is earlier than the usual. I guess these are the people cancelling their schedule. Otherwise, she can do what my husband did, he went to DFA Legaspi because in that branch there is no appointment (my husband had to renew his passport). It is just an overnight trip, tiring but worth trying.

 

[S_and_C]

Just some information for you S and C, we got married last September and filed in December and only sent NSO, application went into process Feb in Manila and they just recently asked for additional marriage certicate in April! We didn't encounter any problems and we also used the advice of our consultant so no problems the way we did it!

That's good to hear, so only 4-5 months for you. It gives us hope that ours will be processed quickly.

Dear S_and_C,

I just got married in Manila and let me share you some tips that hopefully might help your situation. I'm the PR, husband is in Manila.

We got married February and was so devastated when we found out the amount of time that it will require for us to complete the documents needed for the application especially the NSO Marriage Certificate (MC). We went to NSO Main Office, inquire on how to expedite the NSO MC three weeks after we got married. We went on the back office not on the main area where the congested lines are. They advised us to go back to Manila City Hall and ask for Proof of Endorsement (PoE). The PoE is just a piece of paper, like a grocery receipt, that contains the details on when did they transfer our MC from Manila City Hall to NSO. Once we got that piece of paper, we go back to NSO and gave it them and our NSO MC was release after two weeks.

I decided not to change my family name to my husband's surname until we finish the sponsorship process. I just want to start the processing of our sponsorship a-s-a-p. I guess, your wife can do the same thing if you want.

If she opted to change her surname to yours, you can schedule her passport change in the DFA website. Continue checking the DFA site using a computer because sometimes, it shows an available date which is earlier than the usual. I guess these are the people cancelling their schedule. Otherwise, she can do what my husband did, he went to DFA Legaspi because in that branch there is no appointment (my husband had to renew his passport). It is just an overnight trip, tiring but worth trying.

Hi badpusacat. We also heard about the endorsement letter but they called it a Transmittal. Essentially is states that our marriage certificate was sent from LRO to NSO, but they said it was reserved for folks out in the province who may take a long time for the mail to reach NSO, but who want to expedite the process. Perhaps we tried too early and now is the time to try, since the LRO should have sent it to NSO by now.

We have gathered our documents and filled our forms with her married name for consistency. I've been told we can use her existing passport in her maiden name, but if we can get an earlier Passport appointment in the next few weeks that would simplify things. Thanks for the tips.

S_and_C

 

[Fred B]

Even though we paid to have our certificate expedited it took 3 months before we had it in hand. Be prepared for delays, government offices in the Philippines are not known for expediency or efficiency.

I know this thread is 2016 but am hoping for an answer. I am Canadian and am in the Philippines and waiting to apply under the Spousal Family Class. My wife went through a long annulment process and that was done so we were married on December 26th. We have the marriage certificate and now have to wait 20 days to get it signed and then that has to go to the PSA to print on the yellow paper and that takes another 3 weeks.

Is it possible to apply for the Visa using the marriage certificate and then send in the PSA original when we get it or do we have to wait to get the PSA original before sending in the application?