Registering Marriage for US Marriage Visa

[Bryan Scott]

I got married 3 months ago and now I'd like to register the marriage in the states.

 

I am getting conflicting answers.

 

1. Can marriages be registered at he US embassy in Thailand?

2 .Do I need to register through the Attorney General of my State?

3. Do I need to register at the County level of my state?

 

In short - I have had the marriage license translated and certified in Thailand but need to know the next step to ultimately allow her to get marriage visa.

 

Thanks

[ubonjoe]

Your Thai marriage does not have to be registered in the states to get a visa for your wife.

As far as I know there is no way to have it registered anywhere in the states. The embassy certainly will not do it,

What category of visa of visa will she be applying for?

 

I have moved your topic to the visas for other countries forum,

[Bryan Scott]

18 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

 

Thank you.

 

She's an Ubon gal, btw.

 

Well, The US embassy.gov site says I need to contact the AG of my state. So, I have sent an email to both the state AG and county office.

 

REGISTERING YOUR MARRIAGE IN THE USA: You cannot register your marriage through an embassy or consulate as marriage is a state-specific responsibility. Most states recognize the validity of legal marriages registered in Thailand. If you would like to register your marriage in the United States, you must contact the Attorney General in your state of residence to inquire about their specific documentary requirements. Some states may require your Thai marriage certificate to be “certified.” To certify a Thai marriage certificate, please have it translated into English and take both documents to the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Legalization Division. Then make an appointment and bring the MFA-certified documents to our office; we will authenticate the signature of the MFA officer by appointment for the appropriate fee.

 

The last sentence is my next step. The signature must be authenticated at the US embassy.

[Bryan Scott]

2 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

The embassy certainly will not do it,

What category of visa of visa will she be applying for

She just wants to visit America and see my family for a short time. I work here so we'd head back after 3-4 weeks maximum. It seems a CR1 visa is the way to go?

 

Alternatively, should she apply for a marriage (k-3) or Fiance (K-1) visa? 

Headache!

[taxout]

I don't know anything in particular about registering a foreign marriage certificate in the US.

 

But if you're planning to move back to the US, it is possible over the years that you will encounter some bureaucrat, bank official or such who wants to see a marriage certificate, always when you need something done right away, So it is a good idea to have some translated and certified copies made now to take back with you. Getting this sort of thing done in Thailand after you've returned can be an expensive hassle.