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About Ken Rapoza Cruz
Expertise
I can help would be travelers find places to go, help them decide whether or not they should book tour packages in their home country or wait til they arrive in Brazil, and other relevant info about the country and its travel amenities. General questions about Brazil and living in Brazil.

Experience
Ken Rapoza is a former contributing editor at International Living, a monthly magazine about travel and real estate. Rapoza has also given speeches about Brazil travel and real estate offerings at Int'l Living conferences in the US. He now covers Brazil for a major U.S. news agency in New York City. He lives in Sao Paulo.

Publications
International Living, The Boston Globe, The Sun Sentinel, The Washington Times, The Wall Street Journal and many others.

Education/Credentials
BA -- Antioch College
MFA -- Vermont College

You are here: Experts > Cultures > South America for Visitors > Brazil > Marriage

Brazil - Marriage

Expert: Ken Rapoza Cruz - 11/5/2009

Question
QUESTION: Hiya, i am from UK, and i have been with my Brazilian fiance for 9 months now, we want to get married in Brazil, with the view to stay there, we have not been living together, does this pose a problem, and what would we need to do to get the ball rolling? thanks x

ANSWER: she lives in Brazil and you in the UK but she has been your fiance for nine months now? I dont get it. If so, you just go to Brazil and get maried. Its easy. Or you bring her to UK on a fiance visa and marry within nine months, I believe. I might need more details, but I dont see a problem.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Sorry for being so vague! we are both living in the UK at the moment, But he needs to go back Brazil early next year. I was under the impression you had to be living together before they would even concider it? thanks x

Answer
Ah, okay. So you have a few options here.

You can get married in the UK and present those documents to your local immigration authorities, immediately giving him a temporary stay in the country.

He can head back to Brazil, with or without you, and you can get him a fiance visa, if England has those. Then he can come back to England as soon as the visa comes through and you ahve to get married within nine months.

If you have your hearts set on marrying in Brazil, then you can go to Brazil with him on a tourist visa and plan your wedding. Simple as that.

You just have to prove that you are legally married to the Brazilian authorities and all that requires is a marriage certificate. There, you will get a legal residency card, a temporary one. You will get it on that very day. Plus a stamp in your passport that enables you to stay beyond your tourist visa stay.

If the federal police want to investigate your marriage to see if you are really living together in Brazil, they can and will. If it is proven that this was a marriage of convenience, you will be deported immediately.

So that's it.

And remember, being in love doesnt last forever. That feeling ALWAYS wears off. It just does. If you love somone after you are no longer in love, well that can last forever. If you cannot, then the marriage will end and if you have kids, and you want to return to the UK, that will make your life doubly difficult. Think wisely. International cross-cultural relationships are much harder than cross cultural relationships were both parties are from the same country and have a solid base of family and friends in that country.

Good luck and Bon voyage!

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