Marriage in Jordan

[premo 1]

Hello everyone,

I am planning to marry my fiancé in Jordan. I am a US citizen and he is Jordanian citizen (originally from Gaza). I am not sure about all the paperwork I will need, proof of eligibility to marry, etc. Does anyone have experience with this that can help me. I have only 2 weeks there and want to be sure we do everything we can in advance. Thank you.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

We have several members who were married in Jordan. It can be somewhat complicated, depending on the situation, but I am sure one of them will be along shortly to share some specifics.

Can't your fiance find out this information for you, as he is already there in Jordan ?

[abezyo 35]

As far as Im concerned, Aslong as he is a Jordanian citizen it shouldnt be any problem. The problem you will have with the Sharia couty if youre going that route which I think you are, is with you. They will probably request you to get something from the US Embassy stating that you are single. But you may be able to surpass that. Other than that youll need the blood taken from the medical center as everyone who is getting married does it, youll need your passport and everything translated to arabic as well. Of course youll need the witnesses to be there with you. And be prepared...its a lot of walking upstairs downstairs to one person to the next. Its very unorganized. It took me 2 days to finalize it all. But I got it done. Good luck!

[premo 1]

We have several members who were married in Jordan. It can be somewhat complicated, depending on the situation, but I am sure one of them will be along shortly to share some specifics.

Can't your fiance find out this information for you, as he is already there in Jordan ?

Thank you for the reply. I just wanted to know where in the US to get such a document. He has already gotten information, but he can't tell me where here in the states to get the letter. I do appreciate the input though

As far as Im concerned, Aslong as he is a Jordanian citizen it shouldnt be any problem. The problem you will have with the Sharia couty if youre going that route which I think you are, is with you. They will probably request you to get something from the US Embassy stating that you are single. But you may be able to surpass that. Other than that youll need the blood taken from the medical center as everyone who is getting married does it, youll need your passport and everything translated to arabic as well. Of course youll need the witnesses to be there with you. And be prepared...its a lot of walking upstairs downstairs to one person to the next. Its very unorganized. It took me 2 days to finalize it all. But I got it done. Good luck!

Thank you for your reply abezyo. Did you have to get the paper from US embassy? If so, where in the states did you get it from? I am not sure where to get such documentation. Otherwise, is there anything else I can do from here in your opinion?

thanks so much,

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Thank you for the reply. I just wanted to know where in the US to get such a document. He has already gotten information, but he can't tell me where here in the states to get the letter. I do appreciate the input though

Thank you for your reply abezyo. Did you have to get the paper from US embassy? If so, where in the states did you get it from? I am not sure where to get such documentation. Otherwise, is there anything else I can do from here in your opinion?

thanks so much,

As far as certificate of eligibility to marry, the US does not issue such an official document - it doesn't exist.

Usually, the American needing such a paper in order to satisfy the foreign country's requirements will go to the US consulate in the foreign country and request the paper there. The consulates are well aware of the requirement, and have come up with a solution: they will type out a letter on consulate letterhead that essentially says "Person X attests that he/she is not currently married, and thus is legally eligible to marry" and then you sign it and they stamp it with the official stamp. As was explained to me by a consulate official in Jerusalem, "You can say you are king of the world, sign the paper, and we will stamp it and this means: yes, we witnessed that you said that you are king of the world." But the paper will be accepted by the foreign country as sufficient evidence of eligibility to marry.

There may be other documents that you need, aside from your birth certificate and divorce papers (if applicable,) such as proof of your religion in order to marry in Jordan - someone with specific Jordan experience can answer that. (Whether you are Muslim or Christian or Jewish, you may need to show some kind of evidence of that.) In Palestine (which has regulations and customs very similar to the Jordanian regulations) a letter of consent from the bride's father is also often requested - but this may be up to the individual who officiates the marriage.

This is why I suggested that your fiance get the info - he should speak with the person who will perform your marriage, and get a specific list of what is needed.

(I got married in Palestine, and it was a bit complicated and took more than several days to complete everything.)

Good luck and have a great time in Jordan !

[Cathi 5,784]

As far as Im concerned, Aslong as he is a Jordanian citizen it shouldnt be any problem. The problem you will have with the Sharia couty if youre going that route which I think you are, is with you. They will probably request you to get something from the US Embassy stating that you are single. But you may be able to surpass that. Other than that youll need the blood taken from the medical center as everyone who is getting married does it, youll need your passport and everything translated to arabic as well. Of course youll need the witnesses to be there with you. And be prepared...its a lot of walking upstairs downstairs to one person to the next. Its very unorganized. It took me 2 days to finalize it all. But I got it done. Good luck!

The US embassy in Jordan does not issue any such paper that states you are free to marry or not, they do not have access to this information. This is directly from their site

Proof of Eligibility to Marry

U.S. citizens marrying in Jordan may be asked by Jordanian authorities to obtain a proof of marital status from the Embassy. As the U.S. government maintains no centralized records of marriages and divorces, the Embassy cannot provide you with such a document. The Embassy can provide you with a letter (PDF 75 KB) stating that the Embassy provides no proof of eligibility to marry, which can then be given to the official performing the marriage.

If you look at the end there is a link to the non-specifs letter they issue, I had to get an original, signed one from the embassy before the Sharia court would marry us

[Cathi 5,784]

Hello everyone,

I am planning to marry my fiancé in Jordan. I am a US citizen and he is Jordanian citizen (originally from Gaza). I am not sure about all the paperwork I will need, proof of eligibility to marry, etc. Does anyone have experience with this that can help me. I have only 2 weeks there and want to be sure we do everything we can in advance. Thank you.

I was married in Jordan 2 years ago. You need a copy of your birth certificate, your passport,and divorce certificates if you were married before. If you were divorced before and do not have a copy of your divorce certificate from the US, they will not marry you. You have to go to the US Embassy for this letterhttp://photos.state.gov/libraries/jordan/231771/PDFs/Eligible%20to%20marry%20letter.pdf, it has to be signed and dated at the embassy, you will need an appointment ahead of time, the embassy doesn;t allow walk ins. You will need a blood test that has to be done and stamped at a Government Health Center in the jurisdiction he lives in. You go to the Sharia court of the jurisdiction he lives in to apply for the marriage license, with all your papers. When you apply for a marriage license at the court they will have go to 2 places to get official stamps before they will marry you. The Ministry of Foreign affairs, Ministry of Internal Affairs. After you have everything stamped you go back to the court with 2 male witnesses and wait until it;s your turn. 2 weeks will be cutting it very close. It took us 3 weeks to get everything in Jordan completed and I was very very prepared. They work at a different pace in Jordan and nothing is computerized. Good luck!!!

[qwas112 8]

Is anyone still using this group???