Schengen Visa and Thai Marriage Certificate

[bigyin]

I have recently obtained a UK settlement visa for my wife and 10 year old Thai step daughter. Have now been thinking ahead in case we want to go to another EU country from the UK on holiday. Everything I have read on this forum suggests that the English translation of the Thai marriage certificate should be certified at MOFA. I was in Pattaya recently and thought I would be lazy and ask Thai Visa Express to get my translated marriage certificate and step daughter's birth certificate certified for me. Paul at TVE was absolutely adamant that there was no need to have the translations certified by MOFA and that the translator's stamp was sufficient which has left me a very confused poster. Can anyone categorically state what is or is not required for Schengen visa purposes in terms of the marriage certificate? I know each country has different requirements but what is the situation? And what about a child's birth certificate? Anything required there.

[MaprangHolmes]

When I applied for a schengen visa for my wife last year at the Spanish consulate in London, I was required to have the translated marriage certificate certified by the Thai Embassy in London. If you are still in Thailand then I would have it certified there as it only costs a few hundred baht and will save you the hassle of sending it to Thai Embassy in London.

This maybe of interest http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/LONDRES/en/Consulado/Pages/DocumentsRequired.aspx

Edited April 30, 2015 by MaprangHolmes

[durhamboy]

M-H, are you sure about this? My wife's settlement visa stamp in her passport says clearly that she is my spouse so surely that is proof that we are married. Under EU law there is no need for a visa anyway. People just get them (free) to make sure there is no hassles at the border.

It seems absurd that a marriage translation needs to be certified by MOFA or Thai Embassies for a tourist visa in Spain when said document doesn't require such bureacratic nonsense for a UK settlement visa!

[Donutz]

non EU (such as Thai) Spouses and other direct family of UK citizens need a visa when visiting the Schengen area, just as those spouses from a Schengenarea national need a UK visa. Such visa are issued ASAP, with minimum paperwork and entirely free though.

There is no legal requirement to provide legalized documents, the requirement is that you provide evidence of family relation which can be done by any means. Usually that means showing marital papers. The embassy may wish to see legalisation of such papers if they cannot be sure the documents were not forged or altered. Some embassies are a bit picky or even violate the EU directive. Spain is notarious for doing so by demanding that the marriage is either registrated or atleast confirmed by the country of the EU national. There is no such requirement! If you can show that you are in a genuine, real marriage that should be sufficient. For the free visa you'd also need to show that the both of you are traveling together (can be a written statement from the EU spouse) and ofcourse ID the both of you. No need to answer questions marked with an * (Insurance, financial means, transporttickets, hotelbookings etc.).

More info:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/746540-schengen-visa-france-luxembourg-for-thai-wife-and-daughter-from-uk/#entry9300771

[7by7]

Further to the above:

I stand to be corrected, but, as I understand it, because UK visas, FLR permits and ILR permits do not state that the holder has residence as the qualifying family member of an EEA or EU national then they are not accepted by other EEA countries and the holder, as Donutz says above, should obtain a visa.

However, from Travel documents for non-EU family members.

Arriving at the border without an entry visa

It is always best for your non-EU family members to be well informed in advance and have all the necessary documents before starting their journey.

However, if they arrive at the border without an entry visa, the border authorities should give them the opportunity to prove by other means that they are your family members. If they manage to prove it, they should be issued with an entry visa on the spot.

"Other means" could, of course, be a marriage certificate.

But as it says there, it is better to obtain the necessary documents, i.e. a visa, in advance.

BigYin, I have heard that some, if not all, EEA countries do insist that the translation of any documents not in an EEA language is stamped as correct, legalised if you prefer, by the issuing country; in the case of Thailand that would be the MFA in Bangkok or a Thai embassy. This seems to be true of France as well as Spain.

If the child is your step child then yes, you need a translation of their birth certificate to show that they are, via their mother's marriage to you, a qualifying family member of yours. You'll need that translation for UK purposes, anyway; and it'll be a lot cheaper to have it done in Bangkok.

Of course, if the child is yours then they will have a British passport and no other documents, or visa, are required.

But you should still get a translation of their birth certificate for UK purposes.

[Donutz]

If translations need to be legalized would depend on the embassy (some may not even ask for it, if their staff can read Thai they could do without translations), most they most likely would wish to see these fancy stamps. Again it would not be a hard requirement (that is simply you making evident that you're legally and genuinly) married but embassies may very well request this just to be on the save side.

So the best approach is: know what the bare minimum is (embassy or broderguard needs to establish that you are married and travel together to an other EU/EEA nation then where you are an EU/EEA national of) and see how easygoing or bureaucratic the embassy in question is. If providing certain 'exta's' such as translations or certain stamps, would be very difficult or costly, you might simply wish to contact the embassy, explain your situation and see what is possible in your case.