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monkel · Joined: 29 Apr 2003 Posts: 37 Location: Australia

can anyone give me advice on marrying in turkey? tourists (and that's what we are, according to our visas - one french, one aussie) must do it all the time here, no?

i tried my consulate about 6 wks ago and they have been very UNhelpful; in fact they haven't replied at all.........i now hand over this matter to the superior practical skills of the contributors to this forum!

any help would be greatly appreciated.

cheers!

monkel

Faustino · Joined: 10 Sep 2004 Posts: 601

Are you in a rush? In what way was you consulate unhelpful?

I'd start by getting some proof that you're unmarried.

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

Difficult enough for a Turk and a foreigner - but two foreigners !

Would it not be easier to do it a country where one of you is a native ?

And remember the advice of a great American : " Beware of any enterprise which requires the acquisition of new clothes."

ImanH · Joined: 16 Oct 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Istanbul

We got married in Turkey a year and a half ago and it was actually pretty straight forward (and great - got to be the shortest wedding ceremony ever).
My being a foreigner didn't create any particular problems. My husband is Turkish though and I would say that if one of you doesn't speak Turkish pretty well it would be an entirely different matter, and especially so if your consulates are not being helpful. The British consulate has pages on its web-site dedicated to the issue.
The only annoyance is the medical tests you have to go through, especially if you don't get them done privately. Due to a legal loophole, the only problem I had (and have) was to do with name change, but that won't be a problem if you/your fianc�e plan to change it anyway.
One option might be to see if they have those fixers who do weddings abroad - I'm pretty sure they have them in the UK for Turkey.
Feel free to pm me if you want any more specific information regarding the procedures we went through.

monkel · Joined: 29 Apr 2003 Posts: 37 Location: Australia

thanks for the advice all.....

and scot47: we won't be a'needin new garments. we's just gettin hitched in our sunday best.

calsimsek · Joined: 15 Jul 2004 Posts: 775 Location: Ist Turkey

Sorry I'm missing something here, How can a two no Turks get married in Turkey. You could only get married işn either the French or Australian consulate. A Turk can marry anyone in Turkey. You two are not citizens the Turks can't help you at all. You have to wait for your consulate's help.
Perhapes thing would move much faster if you went the through the Consulate Generals offices in Ankara.

gelin · Joined: 09 Mar 2003 Posts: 144 Location: Istanbul, Turkey

Two non-Turks CAN get married in Turkey. Happens a lot, in fact.

monkel · Joined: 29 Apr 2003 Posts: 37 Location: Australia

yeah, i was assuming that it WOULD happen a lot, especially in Istanbul, surely one of the most romantic and ROMANTICISED cities in the world....

I'm from a famous beach town in Australia and the wedding-honeymoon package is a very popular option. i thought it must exist here too.....

we DO need our consulate's help, of course. i was looking for some tips on how to get the consulate to do scandalous stuff liike ANSWER THEIR EMAILS, or in fact referral to a "fixer" - someone who handles all the paperwork for you: these are very common for people with migration issues, and it turns out there are TRAVEL AGENTS who do it for you here.

calsimsek · Joined: 15 Jul 2004 Posts: 775 Location: Ist Turkey

Fact non Turks can get married in Turkey, but not by the Turks the marriage licence must be submited some where. If one of the parties is not a citizen than that state can not marry you off. You can book a wedding reception, wear a dress and the rest. Yet it will have no legal meaning. How in Gods name is the U$ goverment to know that you got married here unless you inform them. Since a Turkish Degree means little in the west, why do you think a marriage licence will. A licence can only given to the parties if they are some how legal here. This does not stop you getting married in a church. The Turkish state does not accept religous unions here. The church can give you a letter that you can submit to you Gov't and have the union accepted that way.

ImanH · Joined: 16 Oct 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Istanbul

I had understood that one had to be married by the local authorities, irrespective of one's nationality. It was driving me crazy so I did some research.
Both the UK and the US embassy websites indicate that non-Turkish nationals can be legally married by the Turkish authorities.
See for example:
http://www.britishembassy.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1057657712322
http://ankara.usembassy.gov/CONSULAR/ACSMRYG.HTM
This is what the US embassy says about the marriage of US citizens abroad:

calsimsek · Joined: 15 Jul 2004 Posts: 775 Location: Ist Turkey

Well I know when to eat my words sorry. I thought I knew this place well.
Still I think you'll have a tough time getting all this through to the local Turks

monkel · Joined: 29 Apr 2003 Posts: 37 Location: Australia

of course it will be hard - the paperwork required by communist vietnam is NOTHING compared to here - but we are checking it out as an option as we have a lot of time on our hands now..... Very Happy

and i'm thinking it'll cut down on the immigration confusion (and length of time i have to wait to be able to legally work) when we move to germany, where we are also non-citizens.

thanks iman for your positive suggestions!