Marrying Thai Girl In Thailand Who's Married Already In Hong Kong

[deankham]

Hi Fella's, some advise please if you can;

I've been seeing my Thai girlfrien for last 8 months while we've both been working in Hong Kong. I've been there on and off for 1 year on business and she's been working there full time for last 5.5 years.

We now want to get married and plan to be based in England but spend several months of the year in Asia.

..That's the simple part explained now the hard bit;

I've never been married, however my girlfriend is currently married in Hong Kong to a HK chinese guy. This was a 'financial' marriage as my GF needed a work permit and had to pay for the wedding. They have never actually lived together since the big day!

Anyway does anyone have any experience with the laws about getting married in Thailand while she is already married in HK? Does she have to go through a lengthy divorce. Does HK marriage mean anything in Thailand? Would UK Visa people know or care?

Any thoughts / comments / words of wisdon greatly apprieciated.

Cheers,

Deano.

[Bagwan]

I would assume that the marriage was registered so that there is always the possibility that it might be uncovered. If you plan to marry in the UK you both have to aver that you are free to marry. It is a criminal offence to lie and the marriage might be annulled. If marrying in Thailand you will have to go the Consular section of the Embassy and declare that you are unattached. You will then pay much gold for an official letter which must be taken to the Foreign Affairs office so that the signatures and official stamps are authenticated and therefore acceptable at your local Amphur. Do register the marriage with the DSS in the UK as there are social security benefits to be had.

My wife was previously married but it was a bit of string around her wrist job rather than the full Monty. My wife did nothing officially except sign the forms at the Amphur. We both assumed that her ex had died since it was known that he was HIV positive when he abandoned her 10 years previously.

I do not want to appear sceptical or even morbid but it is worth bearing in mind that a large proportion of marriages do not last the course and unless everything is kosher there may be difficulties in putting the relationship to bed - or the grave.

[LaoPo]

If you're NOT a troll....

Hire a Chinese HK Lawyer and pay the 'present husband' a visit.

Than you'll know what to do or WHAT can't be done.

LaoPo

Edited July 31, 2007 by LaoPo

[nonthaburial]

This type of "convenience" marriage happens a lot in Hong Kong, all marriages would be conducted at the City Hall and are low profile.

It must be realised that in most of these marriages, the local "guy" makes a bit of money on the deal, however whether they live together or not, the local husband is held responsible for his wife. With this in mind, I feel that as in a lot of other cases I know about, that the guy would not be too unhappy with a divorce.

BUT, if she were to divorce, then its possible she may lose her rights of abode in HK, which then is a different ball game. You did not mention what employment she has there so its difficult to give a direct answer

[Penkoprod]

Are you sure she isnt just marrying you for the free plane ticket to UK?

Seems she has a history of using marriage as a way of getting to live in other countries

You say you have known her for only 8 months

Can you REALLY be sure after such a short time, that she is "the one for you"?

Sorry to sound sceptical, but you wouldnt be the 1st to fall into the "pussy trap" and you wont be the last

Tread VERY carefully would be my advice

Penkoprod

[deankham]

This type of "convenience" marriage happens a lot in Hong Kong, all marriages would be conducted at the City Hall and are low profile.

It must be realised that in most of these marriages, the local "guy" makes a bit of money on the deal, however whether they live together or not, the local husband is held responsible for his wife. With this in mind, I feel that as in a lot of other cases I know about, that the guy would not be too unhappy with a divorce.

BUT, if she were to divorce, then its possible she may lose her rights of abode in HK, which then is a different ball game. You did not mention what employment she has there so its difficult to give a direct answer

.....Thanks for info. As you rightly thought the HK guy didn't go through with it for nothing and made a fair bit of monet out of the deal. I also think (but not sure) if she did divorce that she'd lose her work visa for HK and therefore would have to leave.

In terms of employment; my GF manages a health & Beauty spa in HK. This earns her a reasonable sum of money, enougth to live in HK anyway. We would happily live in either HK or UK but not Thailand yet. This is because we could both earn good money in either but would struggle in thailand.

..I guess another point to think about is that by next Nov 08 my GF will have lived in HK for 7 years so could become a HK resident.

Thanks

[cdnvic]

I think you have to examine very carefully the fact that she married for financial gain once already. I'm usually not one of the cynical ones when it comes to marriage, but this situation certainly raises a yellow flag. Don't think that UK immigration will be any less suspicious than I am either.

Edited August 1, 2007 by cdnvic

[seonai]

Moving to General - I'm sure you'll get more help in there

[DamianMavis]

Married after 8 months? Ya that makes sense right? I mean that is normal.... on planet DUMBA$$! For crying out loud, how do you know a person in 8 months? People must be way more skilled than I because it always takes me several years to really start getting to know someone.

Damian

[DirkGently]

Buy a fire alarm to alert you when it crashes and burns.

[mrbojangles]

Do register the marriage with the DSS in the UK as there are social security benefits to be had.

Settlement Visas to the UK specifically state "No recourse to public funds". NHS treatment is free and if there is a child involved, then i believe the UK citizen who is the adoptive parent can claim Child Tax Credit.

The sponsor has to prove that he / she can support their spouse, financially and accomodation wise.

[bangkoksingapore]

her job in hk?

[jetjock]

I think you have to examine very carefully the fact that she married for financial gain once already. I'm usually not one of the cynical ones when it comes to marriage, but this situation certainly raises a yellow flag. Don't think that UK immigration will be any less suspicious than I am either.

I go along with cdnvic 100% on this one. Anytime a yellow flag comes up it is time to exercise caution and slow down. What is the big rush to marry someone you have only known for eight months? Suggest you would be wiser to slow down and investigate situation thoroughly before jumping into the whole marriage thing.

[farang prince]

Don't people ever "shack up" anymore?

[deankham]

I think you have to examine very carefully the fact that she married for financial gain once already. I'm usually not one of the cynical ones when it comes to marriage, but this situation certainly raises a yellow flag. Don't think that UK immigration will be any less suspicious than I am either.

I go along with cdnvic 100% on this one. Anytime a yellow flag comes up it is time to exercise caution and slow down. What is the big rush to marry someone you have only known for eight months? Suggest you would be wiser to slow down and investigate situation thoroughly before jumping into the whole marriage thing.

Guys, I fully take your points on board. I agree that under normal circumstances I'd probably not be thinking about the marriage route yet. My frustration is that I've taken a good job offer back in the UK so need to make some quick(er) decisions. I did try and get my GF a holiday visa for UK but this got turned down, despite my assurances that I'd sponser her and did show plaenty of funds were available. I'd be quite happy with us spending several months in the UK then a month in HK and so on. However the UK imigration office don't seem to like my plan! Hence the marriage thing.

..By the way it was my stupid self that suggested the marriage route to GF not vice versa...but yep all the bad stories I hear are being listened to.

Cheers

[jEFFREYk44]

She is married!

My guess is that a divorce is in order first

[Mahout Angrit]

Marriages, whether in UK, Thailand or HK are valid and recognised worldwide. In these cultures you can only be married once at any one time so to even marry legally anywhere she must first of all divorce.

A settlement visa to UK is by no means a certainty just because you may be married and she would have to apply for that in the country where she is resident (which is currently HK), which might indicate that you will have to marry in HK if you want to take her to UK as your wife.

You seem to say once she has remained in HK for 7 years she gets permanant residence, I recommend you suggest she does that and if nothing else it will test her reactions and you may find out whether she thinks you are worth waiting for.

[pnustedt]

These marriages of convenience are not uncommon in Hong Kong. I suggest your g/f appoints a solicitor and commences divorce proceedings now - even an uncontested divorce in HK will take several months to become absolute (the system is similar to the UK). Then remarry in HK and she can then apply for a HK permanent ID in her new (your) family name.

[Heng]

If you're NOT a troll....

Hire a Chinese HK Lawyer and pay the 'present husband' a visit.

Than you'll know what to do or WHAT can't be done.

LaoPo

LP, your troll sensors are obviously set on high/sensitive. Just looks like a normal inquiry to me.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

her job in hk?

She is still managing a health and beauty spa ( as the OP said )

[thaihome]

My wife and I went through similar circumstances about 10 years ago, except it was Singapore, not HK. You are going to have to bit the bullet some day and go see a lawyer and get the divorce. Took us about 6 months. As we weren’t living in Singapore at the time, we had to make two trips to get it finalized. Ex-husband had no problem and was happy for her.

Listen to the cynics here, but don’t let their suspicions ruin your relationship.

TH

[Shrubbery]

Married after 8 months? Ya that makes sense right? I mean that is normal.... on planet DUMBA$$! For crying out loud, how do you know a person in 8 months? People must be way more skilled than I because it always takes me several years to really start getting to know someone.

Damian

You must be right about other people being way more skilled than you as it's not difficult to get to know someone very well in 8 months. Especially if you spend a lot of time together.

[meemiathai]

Married after 8 months? Ya that makes sense right? I mean that is normal.... on planet DUMBA$$! For crying out loud, how do you know a person in 8 months? People must be way more skilled than I because it always takes me several years to really start getting to know someone.

Damian

I married my wife after 2 months we met. We are still together after 8 years. Best thing that happened to me. So 8 months is plenty!

"People must be way more skilled than I because it always takes me several years to really start getting to know someone."

So how many several years did you have already?

And if I read it correctly the OP was asking about something else.

To the OP, does she have Mrs or Miss in her Thai passport? To get married in HK, I think she would have needed to support documents like the Tabien barn(house register), proved single, good record from the thai police....etc So I am not sure how much the thai authorities know about her status. Maybe they won't know anything and you might be able to get married at the same time in thailand but you do know it is criminal offense, right? Are you in a hurry to get her to the UK? Is she willing to give up HK citizenship since it is just 1 more year to go? Just to clarify, is she on a working visa or dependant's visa?

[meemiathai]

I think you have to examine very carefully the fact that she married for financial gain once already. I'm usually not one of the cynical ones when it comes to marriage, but this situation certainly raises a yellow flag. Don't think that UK immigration will be any less suspicious than I am either.

I go along with cdnvic 100% on this one. Anytime a yellow flag comes up it is time to exercise caution and slow down. What is the big rush to marry someone you have only known for eight months? Suggest you would be wiser to slow down and investigate situation thoroughly before jumping into the whole marriage thing.

Guys, I fully take your points on board. I agree that under normal circumstances I'd probably not be thinking about the marriage route yet. My frustration is that I've taken a good job offer back in the UK so need to make some quick(er) decisions. I did try and get my GF a holiday visa for UK but this got turned down, despite my assurances that I'd sponser her and did show plaenty of funds were available. I'd be quite happy with us spending several months in the UK then a month in HK and so on. However the UK imigration office don't seem to like my plan! Hence the marriage thing.

..By the way it was my stupid self that suggested the marriage route to GF not vice versa...but yep all the bad stories I hear are being listened to.

Cheers

Sorry for being a bit off topic. But is anyone going to fight for justice for this thai girl's being treated unfairly? Especially those who complained about the difficulty to come to thailand.

Marriage was what I had to choose in order to stay together.

[pnustedt]

To the OP, does she have Mrs or Miss in her Thai passport? To get married in HK, I think she would have needed to support documents like the Tabien barn(house register), proved single, good record from the thai police....etc

I married my wife (Thai national) in HK after arranging for her to divorce her "husband". She needed her Thai ID, supported by her passport, both were in her own (maiden) name, her HK ID card (temporary at that time) plus divorce papers provided by her solicitor. She was staying with me at the time and that was the address she used. No other documentation was required by her except for the statutory declarations which we made under oath at the wedding.

Incidentally, I too had met her only a few months previous before we started sorting the legalities out and we have been together for over 10 years also. She and I subsequently obtained Permanent HK ID cards and we now live in Thailand.

I think maybe a few members on this forum need to get out a bit more!

Edited August 2, 2007 by pnustedt

[Mahout Angrit]

Sorry for being a bit off topic. But is anyone going to fight for justice for this thai girl's being treated unfairly? Especially those who complained about the difficulty to come to thailand.

Treated unfairly????, by whom? Please explain.

[thedi]

Naturally she has to divorce, before she can marry with you. Marriages are recognized worldwide.

You say her current husband married her only for a financial benefit - he most probably will grab the second chance. But to pay him off now is wiser than to be at his mercy in the future - especially if he has a mind that looks for opportunities to make an easy buck.

Just my two cents

Thedi

[deankham]

Guys.

Never did say thanks for your advice (positive & negative).

...Am gonna wait a bit longer before getting married (and make sure She get's divorced first!).

Only thing I didn't get was what was a Troll?

Cheers,

Dean.

[Richard W]

Only thing I didn't get was what was a Troll?

Try Wikipedia's definition of a Troll.

[DamianMavis]

Meemiathai, 3 times. 3 times I had long term relationships getting to know someone REALLY well (7 year, 5 years and now 3 years) before thinking about marriage, the first 2 times I discovered they were horrible people, now I'm with someone that is great..... I can't imagine the hel_l my life would be if I had rushed into marriage with either of the first 2 women... YIKES! And I never would have stayed available and grew the wisdom to find the woman I'm with now and seriously considering marrying.

Damian