Process of getting married in Hungary

Hi xzharism,

I have created a new thread with your post on the Hungary forum for more visibility and interaction with the other members.

Thanks

Priscilla 

Though the answer is yes BEWARE. Make sure you use a registry office where the registrar has done a cross border wedding before. X border weddings are laden with red tape and expense, You will need a certificate of no impediment with authorised translation. You will need birth certificate translated by the office of translation at their charges. The official process will necessitate you going to 4 appointments at the registry office. You will pay 10,000 forints for interpreter at each stage.

I have been through the process, but it's too long with many little details.  It IS on another thread here if you can search for it.  I'm American, so I don't know if the process was any different for me.
First thing I had to do was get a paper from the embassy confirming I am free to marry.  This cost me $50, and is only valid for 6 months.  So I highly advise not securing that until the rest is translated, otherwise it could expire before your other documents are ready.
Find out if your local district office has free or discounted days for the ceremony - at the 11th, Saturdays with the typical fanfare was like, 35,000 HUF but Thursdays were free.  Since I was having an American-style wedding later, we did a simple civil service with no guests, just witnesses and translator.  But Hungarians and their families have VERY DIFFERENT expectations of a wedding, so be sure to discuss with your fiance what you expect and what your families will be offended or pleased by.  And decide if that matters to you.

should have added what you will very soon find out: the aesthetic quality of the registry offices is very varied. if you want photos outside the registry office, there is an issue with flags. many local authorities also fly the CSK flag as well as the Hungarian and EU flags. Not allowed to replace it even temporarily with your own flag. + beware the insistence on having an interpreter who cannot be one of the family and having to pay for that at each stage of the process, no matter how sound yours or your partners Hungarian.

On the other side of the issue, once you marry in Hungary and ever get divorced, you must go into your local district city hall and let them know you are no longer married.
My son ( a dual citizen) married in Hungary around 14 or so years ago, they got divorced just about as soon as she landed in the US( only 2 months later). He never set foot in Hungary again but while I was going through my resident permit hassles, they told me, Oh yes, your son is married here and it is on record. I told them he was divorced and they said he better let them know either at city hall locally or go into the HU embassy wherever he lives and inform them. In Hungary you are still married until they change their paperwork on you.
My son is now married to a Japanese National and might find himself locked up in jail for bigamy if he ever sets foot in HU again, all because he is lazy and never filed for divorce in HU. Just a thought...

Hello,

     I thought I would follow this thread instead of creating a new post. I am an American living in the UK and my partner of almost 4 years is Hungarian. I would like to marry and settle in Hungary with her. Can we just go over to Hungary and get married and then I can apply for residency to stay? Or do I have to apply for a fiancee visa from outside the country before we get married? I was hoping that we could just go there get married and live happily ever after I do note above that there is a lot of paper work to consider for the marriage part. Thanks for anyone who cares to answer my question.

jay free wrote:

Hello,

     I thought I would follow this thread instead of creating a new post. I am an American living in the UK and my partner of almost 4 years is Hungarian. I would like to marry and settle in Hungary with her. Can we just go over to Hungary and get married and then I can apply for residency to stay? Or do I have to apply for a fiancee visa from outside the country before we get married? I was hoping that we could just go there get married and live happily ever after I do note above that there is a lot of paper work to consider for the marriage part. Thanks for anyone who cares to answer my question.

I'd separate the two.

Why don't you just get married in the UK?  The conditions and paperwork is a lot simpler and it will all be in English. 

Many people here in HU have a ceremony at the church but the only recognised legal marriage is the civil one.  That's different from the UK where the priests are marriage registrars as well as religous people. People often get married in HU without any fanfare as it's seen as administrative.

So my advice is the simple civil registration in the UK (you will need two witnesses), takes 3 weeks and you have to live in the area of the  office and theory, stay in the country (but no-one will check).  The 3 weeks is to post the banns (notices) before you can both do the deed.  If you are divorced then you might need a certificate of no impediment from your Embassy. Same for your spouse.

Marriages have to be registered here to be recognised.  Foreign authorities do not automatically send details of marriage to the HU authorities.

Cannot get married in the U.K. due to my status. Was in the US Army stationed in the UK. Got out and and stayed in the UK halfway through our relationship. Would I be able to get married in Hungary and then stay in country? I read somewhere that if you get married in Hungary you do not need a work permit.

jay free wrote:

Cannot get married in the U.K. due to my status. Was in the US Army stationed in the UK. Got out and and stayed in the UK halfway through our relationship. Would I be able to get married in Hungary and then stay in country? I read somewhere that if you get married in Hungary you do not need a work permit.

Who says you cannot get married in the UK due to your status? Plenty of foreign nationals get married in the UK. You only have to show temporary residence and it could easily be any address.  I don't even remember them asking me to prove where I lived in UK but the rules may have changed. I think I had to show my passport but that was only to show it was me, not a fake name etc. If your Hungarian partner lives in the UK, you could just use her address or the address of a friend.  She's entitled to be treated the same as a UK citizen.

You need a residence permit regardless and as a non-EU national, you need a work permit if you want to work. If you have kids, it'll be easier probably to claim for residence in HU.

jay free wrote:

Cannot get married in the U.K. due to my status.

What is your status which would prevent marriage in the UK? In any case getting married in Hungary will still require you as a US citizen to apply for residency in Hungary. Being married to a Hungarian citizen would be the method for your residency application, but it still is a lot of paperwork.