Post by Notary on Oct 27, 2015 14:13:08 GMT
Getting Married
You are a foreigner and you have intentions of getting married with a Chinese National? Here's how you should go about doing it.
Step #1: Ensure that your partner is aware of the commitments of being married.
Step #2: Be clear on whether if there are certain unsaid expectations - Asians are generally very conservative, they tend not to spell out everything clearly upfront. You really don't want a last minute surprise (eg: My mum and dad wants us to have a wedding ceremony back in my village, you need to give a dowry of 100,000 RMB, you need to add my name to your current property and etc.).
Step #3: Go to the China Chinese partner's registered jurisdiction (户口 hu kou) and look for the appropriate marriage registration office.
Step #4: Submit the following:
China Chinese Partner
1. A Certificate of Marriageability
2. Birth Certificate
3. Household registration book (户口本 hu kou ben)
4. A health certificate obtainable from a regional-level local hospital (rumour says that this is not always compulsory)
5. Marriage Application Form (obtainable from the marriage registration office)
Foreign Partner
1. A valid passport
2. A valid Visa
3. A health certificate from a local hospital designated by the marriage registration office (Rumour says that this is not always compulsory)
4. Three photos of the marrying couple, taken together (photo taking services are available near the marriage registration office)
5. A registration fee of around 9 RMB
6. Marriage Application Form (obtainable from the marriage registration office)
7. Proof of single hood from your local registry of marriage
8. Get it endorsed by your foreign ministry to proof that the document is certified original and real from your country's registry of marriage
9. Get the document translated into Chinese at your country's embassy in China
10. Do a statutory declaration (also must be translated into Chinese) on your single hood in China at your country's embassy
[Application requirements may vary from office to office]
Step #5: Wait for the application to be approved, takes about an hour or so.
Step #6: Collect the certificate once it is ready
Getting a Divorce
If both parties are mutually agreeing to the divorce, everything can be settled within 1 day.
Step #1: Call the marriage registration office first before making a trip there (procedures may vary from province to province).
Step #2: Walk into the marriage registration office where you were first married, speak to an officer about your intentions
Step #3: Bring along the household registration book (户口本 hu kou), marriage certificates, a divorce agreement signed by both parties, ID / passport and a nominal fee
Step #4: Wait for outcome
However, if both parties are not mutual with the divorce, Chinese law require mediation and if only mediation fails then only a divorce will be granted. A divorce will be automatically granted in cases of abuse, drug use, gambling and desertion (A spouse must be absent for two years before the deserted spouse can be granted divorce).
Do take note that if you are a foreigner, getting a divorce in China puts you at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to the splitting of assets, the law will rarely be on your side, so try and keep things civil with your soon-to-be-ex, and try to negotiate all terms beforehand and have a plan for how you will split your assets. Also, if children are involved, be very cautious, China is not a signatory country to the Hague Convention, the treaty which deals with international kidnapping and custody cases. This means that even if you have been awarded custody of your child by your home country’s legal system, China is not under any obligation to honor your custody agreement, or to return your child to you if the Chinese parent takes the child abroad without your consent.
You are a foreigner and you have intentions of getting married with a Chinese National? Here's how you should go about doing it.
Step #1: Ensure that your partner is aware of the commitments of being married.
Step #2: Be clear on whether if there are certain unsaid expectations - Asians are generally very conservative, they tend not to spell out everything clearly upfront. You really don't want a last minute surprise (eg: My mum and dad wants us to have a wedding ceremony back in my village, you need to give a dowry of 100,000 RMB, you need to add my name to your current property and etc.).
Step #3: Go to the China Chinese partner's registered jurisdiction (户口 hu kou) and look for the appropriate marriage registration office.
Step #4: Submit the following:
China Chinese Partner
1. A Certificate of Marriageability
2. Birth Certificate
3. Household registration book (户口本 hu kou ben)
4. A health certificate obtainable from a regional-level local hospital (rumour says that this is not always compulsory)
5. Marriage Application Form (obtainable from the marriage registration office)
Foreign Partner
1. A valid passport
2. A valid Visa
3. A health certificate from a local hospital designated by the marriage registration office (Rumour says that this is not always compulsory)
4. Three photos of the marrying couple, taken together (photo taking services are available near the marriage registration office)
5. A registration fee of around 9 RMB
6. Marriage Application Form (obtainable from the marriage registration office)
7. Proof of single hood from your local registry of marriage
8. Get it endorsed by your foreign ministry to proof that the document is certified original and real from your country's registry of marriage
9. Get the document translated into Chinese at your country's embassy in China
10. Do a statutory declaration (also must be translated into Chinese) on your single hood in China at your country's embassy
[Application requirements may vary from office to office]
Step #5: Wait for the application to be approved, takes about an hour or so.
Step #6: Collect the certificate once it is ready
Getting a Divorce
If both parties are mutually agreeing to the divorce, everything can be settled within 1 day.
Step #1: Call the marriage registration office first before making a trip there (procedures may vary from province to province).
Step #2: Walk into the marriage registration office where you were first married, speak to an officer about your intentions
Step #3: Bring along the household registration book (户口本 hu kou), marriage certificates, a divorce agreement signed by both parties, ID / passport and a nominal fee
Step #4: Wait for outcome
However, if both parties are not mutual with the divorce, Chinese law require mediation and if only mediation fails then only a divorce will be granted. A divorce will be automatically granted in cases of abuse, drug use, gambling and desertion (A spouse must be absent for two years before the deserted spouse can be granted divorce).
Do take note that if you are a foreigner, getting a divorce in China puts you at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to the splitting of assets, the law will rarely be on your side, so try and keep things civil with your soon-to-be-ex, and try to negotiate all terms beforehand and have a plan for how you will split your assets. Also, if children are involved, be very cautious, China is not a signatory country to the Hague Convention, the treaty which deals with international kidnapping and custody cases. This means that even if you have been awarded custody of your child by your home country’s legal system, China is not under any obligation to honor your custody agreement, or to return your child to you if the Chinese parent takes the child abroad without your consent.