My Indian spouse and I had our traditional marriage ceremony in India in mid-Dec 2014 (he is from the Ladakh in Jammu & Kashmir), and are hoping to start the sponsorship application asap.
A few days after the ceremony, we went to a local advocate, where we exchanged rings, signed papers, and completed all the necessary paperwork. We were then sent the Tehsildar Office to get the instructions for obtaining the Marriage Certificate, It took us the next few weeks to gather all of the documents required by the Tehsildar. Amongst them, the 'Statement In-Lieu of Non-Impediment to Marriage Abroad', which we had to get by flying all the way to the High Commission of Canada in Delhi. Thinking we had everything covered and just had to wait for the Marriage Certificate to be issue - after submitting all of the documents to the Tehsildar Office, I left India at the end of January.
A week later, we were informed that we need to submit some other letter stating I'm unmarried. It turned out that the 'statement in-lieu of non-impediment to marriage abroad' was rejected by the Tehsildar office because it doesn't state that I am unmarried, nor does it even state in the title it's a statement in-lieu of non-impediment to marriage abroad. So basically, the Tehsildar is not issuing our marriage certificate until I can prove I am unmarried with a proper authenticated document that they want.
*****statement content start******
Title: TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN
Ms. _____, a Canadian citizen who states that she resides at ___________, has applied to the High Commission of Canada for a certificate to the effect that she is free to marry, and that according to the Canadian authorities there exists no impediment to such marriage.
Canadian law neither requires nor provides for the issuance of such certificates. Therefore, the High Commission is not in a position to issue the certificate required. This statement, however, is given in the event that it may be of relevance should the authorities of the country concerned be prepared to consider a waiver of the production of the requested certificate.
********statement end******
Q: for those who have experience with marriage abroad, is this statement slightly different? Did the High Commission forget to put the title?
We are stuck without the marriage certificate - not able to apply for visitor visa and definitely cannot start the sponsorship application anytime soon.
I'm currently in China (and will be here for at least another month) while my spouse is in Ladakh, so the option of getting another copy of the statement directly from the Department of Foreign Affairs is not possible at the moment.
Can anyone suggest some possible solutions?
Many thanks in advance!
A few days after the ceremony, we went to a local advocate, where we exchanged rings, signed papers, and completed all the necessary paperwork. We were then sent the Tehsildar Office to get the instructions for obtaining the Marriage Certificate, It took us the next few weeks to gather all of the documents required by the Tehsildar. Amongst them, the 'Statement In-Lieu of Non-Impediment to Marriage Abroad', which we had to get by flying all the way to the High Commission of Canada in Delhi. Thinking we had everything covered and just had to wait for the Marriage Certificate to be issue - after submitting all of the documents to the Tehsildar Office, I left India at the end of January.
A week later, we were informed that we need to submit some other letter stating I'm unmarried. It turned out that the 'statement in-lieu of non-impediment to marriage abroad' was rejected by the Tehsildar office because it doesn't state that I am unmarried, nor does it even state in the title it's a statement in-lieu of non-impediment to marriage abroad. So basically, the Tehsildar is not issuing our marriage certificate until I can prove I am unmarried with a proper authenticated document that they want.
*****statement content start******
Title: TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN
Ms. _____, a Canadian citizen who states that she resides at ___________, has applied to the High Commission of Canada for a certificate to the effect that she is free to marry, and that according to the Canadian authorities there exists no impediment to such marriage.
Canadian law neither requires nor provides for the issuance of such certificates. Therefore, the High Commission is not in a position to issue the certificate required. This statement, however, is given in the event that it may be of relevance should the authorities of the country concerned be prepared to consider a waiver of the production of the requested certificate.
********statement end******
Q: for those who have experience with marriage abroad, is this statement slightly different? Did the High Commission forget to put the title?
We are stuck without the marriage certificate - not able to apply for visitor visa and definitely cannot start the sponsorship application anytime soon.
I'm currently in China (and will be here for at least another month) while my spouse is in Ladakh, so the option of getting another copy of the statement directly from the Department of Foreign Affairs is not possible at the moment.
Can anyone suggest some possible solutions?
Many thanks in advance!