Thread for Acrra Ghana applicants

[SenoritaBella]

Popping in from the Dakar group. Sorry to read about your refusal.

Traditional marriages in Africa are informal (i.e. no paperwork) and in many cultures, for a woman to re-marry, her family usually returns everything (dowry) that was paid to them by the 1st husband. The man has to accept the items back voluntarily, otherwise, the woman is still considered married to that man. Until this happens, her "new" husband can not pay dowry again, otherwise it means she is married to two men (bigamy).

Unfortunately, a marriage certificate to a new husband looks fine on paper but if the above is not done, she is still considered married to the 1st man. Perhaps the visa officer knows this? It may explain why he believes your relationship is genuine, but also thinks she's still married(even if traditionally) to her 1st husband.

Given the above, I believe a number of questions need to be addressed in your appeal or new application:
1. if this is how a marriage is dissolved in your culture, was this done and did you explain in detail?
2. Did you provide proof e.g. pictures, letters from respective family members involved in the dissolution, date when it happened, etc?
3. Did you pay dowry? Very important, because it's another proof that she was considered 'single' before you married (if this is your/her culture).

Hope things work out for the best on the 2nd try.

@ Lamour, when the VO noticed I got all the questions he asked me about my wife(This is a relationship of 4yrs..I should be able to know my wife in and out, right ?.) he said , you know what I think you are a very smart guy and really , I do not have any issue with your relationship because it is obvious, you guys are in a relationship but my concern is your wife didn't include a divorce paper in the application. I told him there is an affidavit and He said that is not acceptable and I told him it was a traditional marriage btw 2 families...It is informal . He turned it to an argument, so i just held my peace and allow him to speak. May God help us out of this situation!.

 

[ifynwam]

Visas at hand today ;D

Congratulations.I am so happy for you.

 

[doveheart]

Thanks Lamour, Thanks FirstLady and Thanks everyone for the moral Support... @Senoritabella . If no legal document was signed at the time 2 people were entering into a marriage ,it implies that there is no formal agreement btw the two of them .It is an oral agreement and how can anyone proof it ??. if dowry was paid or not, there was no receipt to say , dowry was paid and if it was returned , there was no proof either. My family paid dowry to my wife's family but usually you dont get a receipt to say u pay xoxoxo amount as a dowry. A woman is not a commodity you purchase, you know..... Her ex gave her a notice from the state high court stating categorically that he has moved on with his life and he has re-married that she (my wife) is free to re-marry . This document was included in the application but the VO said that is not a divorce paper . How do you get a divorce paper for a marriage that wasn't formalized?.

Anyways, does anyone knows how long the appeal process takes ???..another endless wait ????.

 

[lamour]

Thanks Lamour, Thanks FirstLady and Thanks everyone for the moral Support... @ Senoritabella . If no legal document was signed at the time 2 people were entering into a marriage ,it implies that there is no formal agreement btw the two of them .It is an oral agreement and how can anyone proof it ??. if dowry was paid or not, there was no receipt to say , dowry was paid and if it was returned , there was no proof either. My family paid dowry to my wife's family but usually you dont get a receipt to say u pay xoxoxo amount as a dowry. A woman is not a commodity you purchase, you know..... Her ex gave her a notice from the state high court stating categorically that he has moved on with his life and he has re-married that she (my wife) is free to re-marry . This document was included in the application but the VO said that is not a divorce paper . How do you get a divorce paper for a marriage that wasn't formalized?.

Anyways, does anyone knows how long the appeal process takes ???..another endless wait ????.

It's very unfortunate how they conclude and base their decision on this. I still can't put myself around it. Appeal process is a good way to go, there is a member on here with username "NKT" who is on the appeal process, maybe send her a PM. I think there is a thread for appeal on the forum as well.
Personally, I will consult an immigration lawyer asap. The wait is a killer.

 

[Ardnacieso]

Hello to everyone does any one know the month Ghana cic is currently working on??

 

[lamour]

Hello to everyone does any one know the month Ghana cic is currently working on??

From the look of things, it's December/January.

 

[Ardnacieso]

Okay thanks Lamour.

 

[lamour]

Okay thanks Lamour.

 

[SenoritaBella]

I'm sure the news is distressing but it's CIC you need to convince. The absence of a "divorce certificate" in itself is not proof of a dissolution of traditional marriage either. If you understand that, you can begin to see where CIC is coming from. The question becomes, what then can you provide to help satisfy this requirement? I believe two things:

1. help CIC understand traditional marriage in your/your wife's culture. I suspect not doing this initially was a mistake, leaving the officer to interpret things in his own way. The payment of dowry and agreement between 2 families is binding, even if there is no formal paperwork. When a woman drinks that palm wine and her husband drinks it too, it's sealed. They are now husband and wife and can move in together. They don't even have to ever sign a marriage certificate. I think this falls under "customary law" - you may want to look into that and see if it exists in your country and how it could help explain your situation.

2. explain "divorce" in a traditional marriage context - just like there was no legal document for the traditional marriage, there won't be for "divorce". However, there are specific things that must take place for a couple to be considered "divorced". State these things and what was done in your wife's case. It may help to draw their attention to that fact that, you paid dowry and her family can not accept dowry from a 2nd man if they haven't returned what was received from her ex, etc.

You may need letters from the families of your wife, her ex and yours to really clarify the specifics of the dowry. Your family may need to explain how they went about establishing that she was indeed 'single' before paying dowry. Just do all you can to gather additional evidence.

To CIC, it was a marriage and in western context, there is usually a divorce certificate. Your job is to help them understand that though you don't have this document, you have information that still serves this purpose. Hope this helps and things work out well.

As for women not being a commodity... I don't think dowry was ever intended as purchasing a commodity. But without deep understanding of culture, it's easy to think that.

Thanks Lamour, Thanks FirstLady and Thanks everyone for the moral Support... @ Senoritabella . If no legal document was signed at the time 2 people were entering into a marriage ,it implies that there is no formal agreement btw the two of them .It is an oral agreement and how can anyone proof it ??. if dowry was paid or not, there was no receipt to say , dowry was paid and if it was returned , there was no proof either. My family paid dowry to my wife's family but usually you dont get a receipt to say u pay xoxoxo amount as a dowry. A woman is not a commodity you purchase, you know..... Her ex gave her a notice from the state high court stating categorically that he has moved on with his life and he has re-married that she (my wife) is free to re-marry . This document was included in the application but the VO said that is not a divorce paper . How do you get a divorce paper for a marriage that wasn't formalized?.

Anyways, does anyone knows how long the appeal process takes ???..another endless wait ????.

 

[lamour]

I'm sure the news is distressing but it's CIC you need to convince. The absence of a "divorce certificate" in itself is not proof of a dissolution of traditional marriage either. If you understand that, you can begin to see where CIC is coming from. The question becomes, what then can you provide to help satisfy this requirement? I believe two things:

1. help CIC understand traditional marriage in your/your wife's culture. I suspect not doing this initially was a mistake, leaving the officer to interpret things in his own way. The payment of dowry and agreement between 2 families is binding, even if there is no formal paperwork. When a woman drinks that palm wine and her husband drinks it too, it's sealed. They are now husband and wife and can move in together. They don't even have to ever sign a marriage certificate. I think this falls under "customary law" - you may want to look into that and see if it exists in your country and how it could help explain your situation.

2. explain "divorce" in a traditional marriage context - just like there was no legal document for the traditional marriage, there won't be for "divorce". However, there are specific things that must take place for a couple to be considered "divorced". State these things and what was done in your wife's case. It may help to draw their attention to that fact that, you paid dowry and her family can not accept dowry from a 2nd man if they haven't returned what was received from her ex, etc.

You may need letters from the families of your wife, her ex and yours to really clarify the specifics of the dowry. Your family may need to explain how they went about establishing that she was indeed 'single' before paying dowry. Just do all you can to gather additional evidence.

To CIC, it was a marriage and in western context, there is usually a divorce certificate. Your job is to help them understand that though you don't have this document, you have information that still serves this purpose. Hope this helps and things work out well.

As for women not being a commodity... I don't think dowry was ever intended as purchasing a commodity. But without deep understanding of culture, it's easy to think that.

Very well said SenoritaBella
Doveheart, Please do all you can to gather all those supporting document/arguments. Legal advice will also be of tremendous help as most lawyers might have dealt with situations like this in the past.

 

[mercyofGod]

Hey Guess what everybody! First l give thanks to the Most High God for His mercy endure forever, my thanks goes to my lovely queen, my wife and my thanks to Lamour, senior members and newbies, thank you everybody...it's over now, l gor PPR few minutes ago from AVO, l pray that the good God will surely do it for you all and you too Lamour l wanna hear the good news from you this week iin Jesus name, love you all God bless.

 

[lamour]

Hey Guess what everybody! First l give thanks to the Most High God for His mercy endure forever, my thanks goes to my lovely queen, my wife and my thanks to Lamour, senior members and newbies, thank you everybody...it's over now, l gor PPR few minutes ago from AVO, l pray that the good God will surely do it for you all and you too Lamour l wanna hear the good news from you this week iin Jesus name, love you all God bless.

I am super happy for you. This GOODNEWS just made my day. It has been a long wait but the storm is over. Well done and congratulations again to you and your wife.

 

[Orangecrush]

Congrats mercyofGod, wonderful news!!

 

[florisak]

Hey Guess what everybody! First l give thanks to the Most High God for His mercy endure forever, my thanks goes to my lovely queen, my wife and my thanks to Lamour, senior members and newbies, thank you everybody...it's over now, l gor PPR few minutes ago from AVO, l pray that the good God will surely do it for you all and you too Lamour l wanna hear the good news from you this week iin Jesus name, love you all God bless.

Great news.it feels so good to finally get to the end of what seemed forever. Congrats mercyofgod.

 

[crucial]

Hey Guess what everybody! First l give thanks to the Most High God for His mercy endure forever, my thanks goes to my lovely queen, my wife and my thanks to Lamour, senior members and newbies, thank you everybody...it's over now, l gor PPR few minutes ago from AVO, l pray that the good God will surely do it for you all and you too Lamour l wanna hear the good news from you this week iin Jesus name, love you all God bless.

WOW!!!! so happy for you mercyofGod!!!!! Congratulations..... The waiting is finally over..We bless God for His mercies and faithfulness.... He made all things beautiful in His time....