Too much bureaucracy in Ireland? - get married in Denmark

catussa

Hi all
My boyfriend is Brazilian and I am German and we got married one year ago. Got a headache about all the formalities in Ireland and the time it takes to get them sorted out - we would have waited 9 months to get married in Ireland! Not to mention the endless "request 3 papers in Germany - translate to portugues - send to brazil - get paper in Brazil (German paper required for that) - translate brazilian paper into english etc".
We decided to get married in Denmark. they accept German, English and Danish Documentation and do not require translation. My boyfriend had to translate his papers, but I didn't have to translate mine. On top of that they do not require a nasty paper called "ehefaehigkeitszeugnis" (process described above),. which saved us around 800 EUR...To set the wedding up in Denmark we used an agency and they checked all the papers for us and arranged a date to get married (all that within 1 week upon receipt of all the documentation).
NOT to mention the great weather we had in July on the beautiful Island of Bornholm! They also organise weddings at the beach, said enough we didn't know about that ...
Can absolutely recommend it for anyone scared about the formalities and short on time!

galah

oh yes, that dastardly 'ehefaehigkeitszeugnis' is driving us mad as well - and lining the pockets of Ryanair, because we have to go back to Germany AGAIN to submit another valid cert, even though we already submitted one and they said we could send the other one by post (Germans and their stupid rules...). German bureaucrats are very good in retracting their words as well....

But I found the Irish bureaucrats very, very good - very efficient (I never thought I'd say that! ;-)), very friendly, and forward thinking. At least the ladies in the Foreign Affairs office. Much better than the Germans. (still wouldn't want to get married in Ireland though - have you seen what some hotels/venues/service providers charge in this country? Rip-off is too mild a word for that!)

prinz

galah wrote: »

oh yes, that dastardly 'ehefaehigkeitszeugnis' is driving us mad as well - and lining the pockets of Ryanair, because we have to go back to Germany AGAIN to submit another valid cert, even though we already submitted one and they said we could send the other one by post (Germans and their stupid rules...). German bureaucrats are very good in retracting their words as well....

But I found the Irish bureaucrats very, very good - very efficient (I never thought I'd say that! ;-)), very friendly, and forward thinking. At least the ladies in the Foreign Affairs office. Much better than the Germans. (still wouldn't want to get married in Ireland though - have you seen what some hotels/venues/service providers charge in this country? Rip-off is too mild a word for that!)

I'm due to be getting married in the rheinland this December... you're not inspiring confidence Galah Have asked my OH to get the list of what I need from the standesamt is it? Is there really that much to be done - i figured translated birthcert, letter from dept of justice i think indicating freedom to marry, letter from local priest maybe....... anything else i need? Whats this 'ehefaehigkeitszeugnis' . I have been trawling wedding sites and german sites but every one seems to have a different set of requirements.

On the other issue, once all the above is sorted....... happy days, there's no comparison between Ireland and Germany for organising and cost. This country really is a banana republic. Looking forward to relocating to Germany in the future.

catussa

Galah, an advice that might be useful for Germany is to ask for the name of the officer you are talking to when you are asking for information on how to proceed. Especially in the so bureaucratical Germany this can save you a** sometimes.

My experience with the Irish bodies (and that was mostly the beloved immigration office) was horrible: can just say: Banana Republic! (Still hearing my mother saying it over and over again, when I told her how we were treated in the immigration office and on what basis they make decisions there!). I agree that German bodies take longer, but the decisions they make are made on the basis of laws (and therefore are fairer), here in Ireland officers can do whatever they want AND (!!) do not even have to lay down why they made the decision, not even to their supervisors!!!!! (Personal experience when I spoke to the Chief of the Immigration in the Airport!!!)

prinz, if you plan well ahead and get the right contacts, procedures (oh yeah I know it is hard, just speak to people and ask them until they are annoyed) you should be fine.
The list of what you need for the Ehefaehigkeitszeugnis can be obtained from the local STandesamt, every Standesamt has other requirements. Once you get married in Germany, it is easier to get the Ehefaehigkeitszeugnis, also because you wouldn't have to translate it afterwards...but for me it would have been just horror and a lot of hassle and money...so better not ...
what they normally require for the ehefaehigkeitszeugnis is:

German applicant:
-birth certificate
-Aufenthaltsbescheinigung (stating where you are registered: residence, also indicated marriage status)
-Passport
Foreign applicant:
-birth certificate
-Certification that you are single (wouldn't know where to get that in Ireland , in Germany all citizens are registered at the local council and a lot of data is kept with that record)
-certified translation of the above (registered translator in Germany!)

I wish you all the best with all the documentation and of course with the wedding, enjoy the beautiful wheather in the Rheinland, it is the best in Germany! And ahhh...enjoy Germany, I really miss it!

prinz

catussa wrote: »

Galah, an advice that might be useful for Germany is to ask for the name of the officer you are talking to when you are asking for information on how to proceed. Especially in the so bureaucratical Germany this can save you a** sometimes.

My experience with the Irish bodies (and that was mostly the beloved immigration office) was horrible: can just say: Banana Republic! (Still hearing my mother saying it over and over again, when I told her how we were treated in the immigration office and on what basis they make decisions there!). I agree that German bodies take longer, but the decisions they make are made on the basis of laws (and therefore are fairer), here in Ireland officers can do whatever they want AND (!!) do not even have to lay down why they made the decision, not even to their supervisors!!!!! (Personal experience when I spoke to the Chief of the Immigration in the Airport!!!)

prinz, if you plan well ahead and get the right contacts, procedures (oh yeah I know it is hard, just speak to people and ask them until they are annoyed) you should be fine.
The list of what you need for the Ehefaehigkeitszeugnis can be obtained from the local STandesamt, every Standesamt has other requirements. Once you get married in Germany, it is easier to get the Ehefaehigkeitszeugnis, also because you wouldn't have to translate it afterwards...but for me it would have been just horror and a lot of hassle and money...so better not ...
what they normally require for the ehefaehigkeitszeugnis is:

German applicant:
-birth certificate
-Aufenthaltsbescheinigung (stating where you are registered: residence, also indicated marriage status)
-Passport
Foreign applicant:
-birth certificate
-Certification that you are single (wouldn't know where to get that in Ireland , in Germany all citizens are registered at the local council and a lot of data is kept with that record)
-certified translation of the above (registered translator in Germany!)

I wish you all the best with all the documentation and of course with the wedding, enjoy the beautiful wheather in the Rheinland, it is the best in Germany! And ahhh...enjoy Germany, I really miss it!

I love Germany . My gf says i need a familienbuch.... something im pretty sure we don't have in ireland. And also a certificate of confirmation to be allowed marry in a catholic church... i got confirmed when i was about 12, can't remember getting a certificate or anything like that.. Im heading over for a long weekend tomorrow morning, i'll give your regards to the Kolner Dom. .

galah

@catussa - It was the same bloody officer who decided to change his mind on the day - first, he told me sending the second 'freedom to marry' cert by post was ok, then he decided on the spot (we were there!) that he actually needed to see us in person again. If that's based on a law, I'd like to see that law. Murphy's, probably...

We don't get married in a church as such, so I don't know anything about all the religious bits and bobs required for that...

But the rest really depends on the German Standesamt you are getting married in, the weather, and the mood of the officer on the day. At least Irish authorities are flexible and usually friendly, the Germans - not so much...

On the upside, we didn't need to provide translations for anything (freedom to marry cert comes in various languages) - so that's another discrepancy, but good for us ;-)

Also, feckin' Ryanair have just decided to pull the flights we told everyone to take to our wedding. Crap. Crap. Crap. Sometimes, I'm tempted to call the whole thing off, fly to Vegas, marry hubby there, and buy myself a nice new car with the rest of the money ;-)