Hi,

[kaz0612]

Hi all, I have been lucky enough to find this website, pretty much in error! However my name is Karen, I am a non muslim married to a muslim, with 2 wonderful children, I do need advice and hope that somebody can guide me or direct me to the right place... although me and my husband are married through the mosque here in England, we need to legalise things and marry in Algeria, I need information on what documentation is needed, and anything that comes in hand with this process, we are going in about 3 weeks, and I think I might have everything needed, but maybe somebody with experience or knowledge can make sure I have all what I need.

Salam Alekum

PS I too also need to learn arabic and will be looking at a website somebody placed in somebody's log!

[Al-khiyal]

w/salam wa mar7aba, ya Karen, welcome to Algeria.com

I think the first documentation you should be looking at is >>> here <<<

Good luck, insha'allah you will get all the help you need.

[kaz0612]

Thank you very much for your quick reply, very useful information, that I will print and use... I have 2 questions can you please explain, if you know the answer..

1) The birth certificate and inpediment of marriage you say will need to be stamped at the Foreign and Commonwealth office in London, is this a legalisation of documents?

2) It is mentioned that an initial appointment at a centre for marriages to foreigners needs to be made...is this centre in the algerian town hall?, please can you tell me the name of this place in french.

Salam alakum

[Al-khiyal]

w/salam

You'll have to wait until one of our legal experts calls in, I'm afraid - I only knew where that thread was

Don't worry, I am sure that you'll get some clarification soon.

[kaz0612]

Thank you very much for your help, it has been very useful.
Salam Alekum

[Al-khiyal]

w/salam, ya Karen

Mayissa, who knows a LOT about this issue, is extremely busy at present, and cannot get in here until the weekend, at earliest. However, she has instructed me to reply to you as follows:

1) The birth certificate and inpediment of marriage you say will need to be stamped at the Foreign and Commonwealth office in London, is this a legalisation of documents?

"Yes you need to get these stamped at the FCO, otherwise it will pose problems in Algeria. You also need official translations in Algeria into Arabic or French of these documents with the official stamp however it is not expensive and can be done fairly quickly"

2) It is mentioned that an initial appointment at a centre for marriages to foreigners needs to be made...is this centre in the algerian town hall?, please can you tell me the name of this place in french.

Your husband will need to apply to marry a foreign national, this initially will be done at the town hall and whichever Wilaya you are marrying in will advise you of the correct office to attend, ask your husband to get in touch with his local town hall and they can advise. You will also need to have a blood test and a doctor's certificate in order to marry in Algeria this needs to be done first, all of this will be explained at the town hall, but if your husband knows anyone who can enquire on his behalf before travelling this is better, as with Algerian bureaucracy some details are dependent on who is seeing to your case but you will be fine."

***

She did add "He really needs to call the town hall, to be honest, as Algerian "officials" sometimes change their minds about what documentation you need on a daily basis so it is best to have a contact there who tells you what you need in advance and you can go back to that person".

If you any questions about Mayissa's advice, you'll have to wait until the weekend, I'm afraid, as I couldn't clarify anything. The one thing I would say, is that a recent insistence on legal documents being presented in Arabic, not French might be a good reason NOT to rely on any French-language translations alone, and to ensure that any document translations you have are in Arabic - or both.

[kaz0612]

Thank you for your reply, I have read previous conversations Mayissa has had, all in regards to this, it was all very useful, you are all very intelligent and am so happy I found this website. I will follow your advice and make sure we are constantly checking the documents required.

Would you know if it makes a difference in the process when children are involved? We did marry in the Mosque and have the certificate to prove this, since our marriage a few years back we have had 2 children. I am concerned that I will have to fly back with the kids, and still manage to maintain my work, it would be easier if we both came back as he looks after our children, or the other option is the children staying with my husband, which is hard for a mother to do.

Salam alekum