Getting Married in Pakistan help with documents please???

[CES800]

I'm British and heading to Pakistan to marry my partner of 3 years, he's in the UK at the moment but returning before me to get everything ready and get some documents in place so we can apply for a visa once we are married. I've focused on the documents we need for the visa application so that me and my soon to be husband can settle in the UK so much, I've not checked what I need to actually get married in Pakistan and my partner is very calm and saying we just need passports! Doesn't sound right, I'm probably over thinking though

Passport obviously but any other documents? Pakistan doesn't recognise the certificate of no impediment system, I checked with my local registry office, so what do they need to prove I am legally able to marry? My Dad said he'd write a letter and send a copy of his passport! I've never been married before, no divorce certificates or anything. Any help would be greatly appreciated, I've just registered and hope I'm posting in the correct place, I look forward to any help, hints and tips anyone has got

Thanks, Claire

[ALKB]

I'm British and heading to Pakistan to marry my partner of 3 years, he's in the UK at the moment but returning before me to get everything ready and get some documents in place so we can apply for a visa once we are married. I've focused on the documents we need for the visa application so that me and my soon to be husband can settle in the UK so much, I've not checked what I need to actually get married in Pakistan and my partner is very calm and saying we just need passports! Doesn't sound right, I'm probably over thinking though

Passport obviously but any other documents? Pakistan doesn't recognise the certificate of no impediment system, I checked with my local registry office, so what do they need to prove I am legally able to marry? My Dad said he'd write a letter and send a copy of his passport! I've never been married before, no divorce certificates or anything. Any help would be greatly appreciated, I've just registered and hope I'm posting in the correct place, I look forward to any help, hints and tips anyone has got

Thanks, Claire

Are you a dual national or do you hold a POC?

[CES800]

I was born in the UK, and I no other nationality or passports. Sorry, I don't know what a PCC is so I probably don't have one.

[CES800]

Thanks ALKB for answering by the way, my partner just informed me I don't have a POC and explained what it was? Is that going to be a problem?

[seagul]

Usually without Pakistani national identity card the marriage cannot take place there and since you are only British national perhaps with Pakistani parents/grandparents, therefore, applying POC which is very similar to national identity card will be more wise. Read about it at below:

https://www.nadra.gov.pk/identity/identity-poc/#Q2

[CES800]

According to that link if I'm married I can get a POC, but I can't actually get married as a white british woman in Pakistan as I have no pakistani heritage and therefore don't qualify for a POC.

Now what? If I can't marry my fiance then we can't be together, it was our only option. Wasn't expecting that answer at all, I'm lost for words and devastated.

[seagul]

According to that link if I'm married I can get a POC, but I can't actually get married as a white british woman in Pakistan as I have no pakistani heritage and therefore don't qualify for a POC.

Now what? If I can't marry my fiance then we can't be together, it was our only option. Wasn't expecting that answer at all, I'm lost for words and devastated.

In your first post you had indicated that he has been living in UK from sometime and if he still has got some visa/leave other than visitor/short term temporary visa then you can consider to marry him in UK while have other celebrations/ceremonies in Pakistan.

[CES800]

My partner has no choice but to return, he goes on Saturday, voluntary return. Solicitors told us the only way was to return as a married couple with the appropriate visa. We've planned to get married assuming it would be simple, although the visa application is complicated obviously. Now we've potentially wasted thousands in wedding, travel and solicitors fees, never mind the fact my partner is leaving me on Saturday and according to this I have no way of getting him back.

Back to the drawing board.

[CR001]

My partner has no choice but to return, he goes on Saturday, voluntary return. Solicitors told us the only way was to return as a married couple with the appropriate visa. We've planned to get married assuming it would be simple, although the visa application is complicated obviously. Now we've potentially wasted thousands in wedding, travel and solicitors fees, never mind the fact my partner is leaving me on Saturday and according to this I have no way of getting him back.

Back to the drawing board.

What is his UK immigration history in the UK?

[CES800]

my partner overstayed by quite a long time. He is returning through the voluntary return scheme at our own personal cost (we bought the ticket). Came on a student visa, college had its status revoked, then his English test was revoked, he did it again, got a new college, that had its status revoked and then no other colleges would accept him, put in appeals and they were turned down, judicial review was planned but he ran out of money, two years later we met. we've been together 3 years this Jan (2020)

[CR001]

So when did he first come to the UK and how long has been illegal in the UK?

How has he been supporting himself financially??

Did he do the ETS TOIEC English test and was there an issue from HO accusing him of using a Proxy and not taking the test himself?

[ALKB]

My partner has no choice but to return, he goes on Saturday, voluntary return. Solicitors told us the only way was to return as a married couple with the appropriate visa. We've planned to get married assuming it would be simple, although the visa application is complicated obviously. Now we've potentially wasted thousands in wedding, travel and solicitors fees, never mind the fact my partner is leaving me on Saturday and according to this I have no way of getting him back.

Back to the drawing board.

Do you have a visa for Pakistan?

That would be the first step.

[ALKB]

According to that link if I'm married I can get a POC, but I can't actually get married as a white british woman in Pakistan as I have no pakistani heritage and therefore don't qualify for a POC.

Now what? If I can't marry my fiance then we can't be together, it was our only option. Wasn't expecting that answer at all, I'm lost for words and devastated.

You don't need a POC to get married, it would just serve in place of a visa.

In your original post, you did not clarify whether you are of Pakistani origin, which would have made things simpler.

Nevertheless, foreigners do marry in Pakistan. There is a certain lack of concise online information about this, which is not unusual, I must say (drives me nuts that hardly ever anything is clear cut and straightforward, I am German married to a Pakistani and I used to live in Pakistan for a while).

I found this:

https://www.wikiprocedure.com/index.php ... n_Marriage

No idea how reliable the information is and in my experience, procedures are not always the same everywhere in the country.

The Pakistan Embassy would be a good place to ask. When are you supposed to travel?

You might need a notarised affidavit and not just a letter from your father.

Have you met your future family-in-law? Are they aware of the plans? One of them could enquire with their local union council about requirements.

[CES800]

thank you

ALKB I have my visa for travel in December, tickets all booked. I haven't met my in laws to be yet but we have spoke to the via video chat and text so yes they'd probably be able to help. Thanks for the link I'll check that out and I agree the Internet is a rubbish source of facts about this and the more I read the more I get confused. I emailed the embassy and keep getting a "inbox full" return message, we've been there twice for travel documents and no one can tell us for sure what we needed. I'll try and find a bit more about a notorised avidavit, might give our solicitor a call about that. Thanks again for you help and for sharing your experiences.

CR001 2011 on a student visa, his tests were not taken illegally/falsely but he took the test again and passed with similar scores, I think 1 less on one area so nothing extraordinary. His wasn't accused of anything just told his test certificate was no longe valid and he should take it again.

I've been supporting him for about 36 months, living together for a year, and before that he was sofa surfing and relying on friends.

[CR001]

So when did he first come to the UK and how long has been illegal in the UK?

[CES800]

came in 2011, overstayed from end of 2015

[seagul]

Once you get the Pakistani visa even visit/tourist you can still marry in Pakistan because at least one partner need to be Pakistani national with national identity card. Your first post was giving the illusion that you have pakistani heritage and that is why you was advised for POC card.

[CES800]

Thanks Seagul, that's more positive news. New to these boards and the whole immigration thing so again thanks for persisting and getting the details right with me.