Hello Expat.com (or probably James!),
I have spent hours reading up on similar cases on the forum but none of them are quite like mine: I have lived in Brazil and set up a business with my Brazilian girlfriend for 4 years without visa. (Obviously everything is in her name..) It is time to get married and at the same time get a marriage based visa.
I am from Holland and I already once obtained a clean police record and birth certificate from my country because I started a visa application but stopped after I lost faith in the consultant. I have read about having to move abroad for 6 months (which would be the death knell for our business), paying the max fine of R$10,000, and then get married. I have also read on a gringo site that " It is possible to marry to a Brazilian in Brazil regardless of how much time you have overstayed, as this is viewed as a fundamental human right". But the last time I checked with the cartorio, all documents required I can provide (postille, translated etc) but the one that is missing of course, is the valid visa. I am lost.
Is it actually possible to get married and get a 'CASAMENTO RELIGIOSO COM EFEITO CIVIL', which then might be used in the process after which we can married officially?
The priest does not seem to mind, as long as I donate something to the church here...
Your help will be greatly appreciated.
Getting married while having overstayed in Brazil for 4 years
FlyingDutchman
You have two issues here, the marriage and the overstay, so let's unpack them.
The marriage should be relatively easy. The regs say that the foreign partner needs a passport, but they don't actually seem to require a valid visa, just an entry stamp. The inference may seem obvious, but it's not stated, and several people here have reported being married in your situation in a cartório without any trouble. Have you actually been turned down by a cartório, or just assumed that you would be? As business people, you may already be regular clients of a cartório in your neighborhood: that would be where to start. If they're the wrong kind, ask for a referral to the right kind. That personal touch always helps, as you know. If they won't cooperate, it's time to do some cartório shopping.
As for a religious wedding with civil effect, remember that that involves TWO trips to the cartório, one to get your license, and one to hand in the marriage document the priest gives you and receive your civil marriage certificate. So, unless it would be especially meaningful to your fiancée, I'm not sure what that will get you.
With respect to your immigration issue, I think that you should definitely be talking to a lawyer. Some people here have an irrational dislike of Brazilian attorneys, but as anywhere, there are good ones and bad ones. In Brazil, you hire an attorney the way you hire an electrician: referrals and interviews. If you trust your accountant -- and after four years in business, I hope that you do -- that person is a great resource to suggest someone you can trust. That was how we found our attorney. A good lawyer will give you a good vibe, be willing to talk fees upfront, and, since most are not immigration experts, admit readily what s/he does not know, and have a plan of attack for finding out and resolving your situation.
A little good news: you almost certainly won't owe R$10,000. You hit the max overstay under the old rules, and your clock should not have restarted when the new rules went into effect in November. The Federal Police may try to charge you more, but your attorney should be able to shut that down in short order.
Good luck -- let us know how it goes, if you would.
Abthree, thank you so much for such an expansive and thorough response. I am surprised to get such knowledgeable advice.
First off, I will take your 'cartorio shopping' advice to heart as down here, they seem outright jealous when I walk in with my future wife - really strange.
And regarding a lawyer - I will ask for referrals since finding one who has any knowledge in this area, has proven hard. Even this consultant that I mentioned, appeared, after a while, giving me actual wrong advice (hence I left).
Many thanks again
FlyingDutchman
Abthree is spot on. It's good advice. As she stated some cartórios have different standards so shopping should get you one that will work for you.
]jim
Thank you, Jim.
What gets me are the double / different standards. You just never know what you are up against. A friend of mine tried his luck with 5 months after his entry stamp and got married in the cartorio without any problems. As Abthree mentioned they may be more concerned about the entry stamp than the actual validity of the visa...
So, I went to 'his' cartorio but they said they couldn't do it as only the cartorio in my town of residence can do that. And that is the cartorio where they just want to be difficult for the sake of it...
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