What countries can a British citizen get married in...?

Question

...where the marriage ceremony is not recognised as legal by the British authorities/courts? My partner wants to get married but I'm not sure that I want it to be legal...and am considering a ceremony with paperwork that wouldn't require me to be tied financially in any way...

(He's British, and so am I) He did rather well out of his last divorce, I've never been married before and i don't think i really want to although i did sort of say yes, I don't have to do anything about it for a couple of years...

Answer 1

i got married in st lucia we had a wedding certificate etc but on my understanding you can marry anywhere and unless you register it in this country your situation doesnt change,foe example i still use my origan last name with banks etc and im still intittled to put im single on any forms,i wasnt ready but im happy with the arrangement so far..hope this helps.or maybe have a commitment cermony instead.x

Answer 2

I don't think that is the kind of question that you should rely upon the advise of a bunch of unprofessionals like us.

You should probably consult the aid of a solicitor.

Especially since I can't think of any place in the world that British courts don't recognize as legal.

A few centuries ago, when the British Empire was expanding so far and wide in every direction that neither the courts nor the Anglicans could keep up with everybody, is when the crown decided to formally recognize and accept ANY union of any man and any woman at all, who simply decided to let folks know that they were husband and wife, so long as they remained together for a minimum of something like seven years. It's called Common Law Marriage, and in the US, in most states that had once been under the flag of the British Empire, like Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, it is still that way.

All we have to do is let our neighborhood know that we got married, even if there was no ceremony involved at all, and we have to start builidng a life together. We don't even have to live in the same house, nor in the same town, for that matter, we just have to be able to show that our lives had begun being built together. And in seven years, there is not a single gorvernmental agency that can claim to deny the veracity of the marriage.

So, I'd be careful, if I were you, and not even start claiming that you're husband and wife, unless you really do want the courts to consider you to be legally and lawfully bound as husband and wife.. unless your solicitor can assure you that what I'm telling you is incorrect.

Answer 3

I think the British authorities recognise any marriage that's recognised in the country where it was made. I think you should just tell him you don't want to get married.

By the way there is no such thing as Common Law Marriage in English law and there never has been. It's a common fallacy - the answer above that refers to the British Empire is quite wrong and fails to take account of the Hardwick Marriage Act of the early 18th century which regulated marriage very strictly. That Act has never been repealed or revoked and quite specifically did NOT recognise "any union between any man and any woman" - it came into force precisely to prevent such flimsy unions being misrepresented as lawfully binding.

Answer 4

I think you should just wait a few years and see how you feel about it, sounds like you are not yet ready to commit.

Answer 5

I think ,when love is concern you don't care about his citizenship.As long as you love and respect each other.That's the important thing.

Answer 6

i should make the best of those two years and you will know which way your pointed as right now you dont do you