Marriage in Colombia

[elkfarmer 4]

I am a US citizen. My fiancée and I want to marry in Colombia and do an Cr1. She has a minor child and owns no property. We are being told by notaries in Medellin that we must get an attorney and it will take 3 months to marry. My papers are new and will expire in 90 days. I need to return to work in USA in a month. Has anyone in Colombia had this problem? Where can we get married without the hassel of an attorney and the 3 month wait?

[Abby&Mario 100]

That all sounds quite strange. I married my Colombian husband in Bogotá in January. All I needed were some translated and apostilled documents -- birth certificate, certificate of non-impediment (certificate of singleness, basically) and a couple of other pretty simple things including a copy of my passport bio page and the page where my most recent entry stamp was. You can't overstay your tourist visa and get married. Translations of documents and corresponding apostilles must be done by an official Colombian translator.

We had to turn in the documents and get them approved by the notary's office before we could pick a date, but that took less than a week. No lawyers, no waiting three months. They didn't even require a witness. What reason did the notaries in Medellín give you for needing an attorney and three months? They had to have told you something. Her having a minor child and owning no property shouldn't affect your ability to get married in Colombia.

[kali1229 6]

I would honestly just go to Bogota and get this done. Good luck.

[LC2016 15]

I know for me (USC) they wanted a single status letter (apostilled from my residing state), a copy of my passport, and my original birth certificate (from my birth state apostilled which they kept). all translated and actually my husband got it all translated in his home town (Pereira) with a certified translator.

Hope this helps

Edited March 20, 2014 by Missing_My_Amor

[Abby&Mario 100]

I would honestly just go to Bogota and get this done. Good luck.

But what makes you think things are different in Bogotá? We checked into getting married in Barranquilla and Cartagena, and the requirements were the same. Occasionally they can vary slightly from notary to notary (what they will accept in lieu of the certificate of non-impediment, for example, which doesn't exist in many parts of the U.S.), but other than that no changes.

[elkfarmer 4]

I am semi-retired in Medellin. Have a year before visa renewal. My fiancé spoke with a local attorney and he said it was the same all over Colombia. I do not speak Spanish. This is all being told to me as the way it is. I wish I knew someone in Medellin that spoke English and I could talk with a notary or an attorney myself.