My wife had her citizenship interview today and will hopefully have her oath ceremony in the near future. We have started thinking about filing petitions for her family members and I was wondering if anyone in here could share their experience with documenting traditional marriages and divorces?
On the State Department's Reciprocity Schedule for Ghana it says that you can use a "Customary marriage certificate," but it says that "[t]he application for the registration of the marriage must be made within three months of the marriage ceremony." My parents-in-law were traditionally married in the 80's, so it would seem to be too late to register. Is their only option to also get married civilly? This is what it the State Department's Reciprocity Schedule for Ghana says "Persons married under customary law who subsequently wish to marry under civil or ordinance law must obtain a civil marriage certificate which reflects the words "married under customary law" in the space provided for "condition."" So have them do a civil marriage?
My wife's sister's situation is even more complicated, she is divorced from a traditional marriage. The State Department's Reciprocity Schedule for Ghana says "Documentation of the dissolution of a customary marriage is a decree, issued by a High Court, District Court, or Circuit Court along with a statutory declaration by the couples families, stating that the marriage in question was dissolved in accordance with customary law. You may find a record of the dissolution of a customary marriage on the reverse of the customary marriage certificate." How can this be recorded on the reverse of the customary marriage certificate if there is no certificate. In addition, what if the other ex-husband's family isn't willing to cooperate?
I feel like there are a lot of headaches in the future. Someone please tell me this isn't as daunting as it seems! I'd appreciate hearing any personal experiences. Thanks!