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My wife and I got married but have not yet been able to get the marriage certificate made in India (Indian citizens).

We are planning to travel to the UK in March 2018. In our individual applications, we mentioned each other as our spouses and included all requested details (name, date of birth, passport number). Now the checklist is requesting for a marriage certificate.

  • Is this going to be a problem? We are both working so neither is dependent on the spouse.
  • What document/s can I submit in lieu of the marriage certificate?
  • I don't think we have enough time to postpone the visa appointment and get the certificate in time - or is this the only way out?

I would really appreciate any help and my apologies if this is a duplicate question. I could not find any query similar to this. Many thanks in advance.

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I will assume that this is the first UK visa application for both of you because you didn’t provide that piece of the puzzle. There is no specific rule governing this situation, so we must resort to ‘best practices’. And “Best Practices” dictates that you wait until you can submit a proper marriage certificate. You told them you are married and (presumably) that you are travelling as a married couple. They can be quite serious about these things and yes, this evidential failure can contribute to the overall grounds for refusal. If you cannot delay your application(s) you can try to make an explanation in the ‘remarks’ section and hope that your applications are not elevated to the ‘risky’ category.

As a substitute, you might be able to submit an attestation from the celebrant, but this would be taken as an extraordinary step.

In general terms, the rules say that the only things required are a passport, a photo, and the fee. Their ‘checklist’ is meant to show what they will be looking for in practical terms. It is different for each application and it is generated by a programme that examines what the application contains. So if the checklist wants you to submit a marriage certificate, then you should (a) provide one; (b) think up a really convincing excuse; or (c) accept that the risk on the application has been significantly elevated.

Source: Gayot Fow

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  • Hi, thanks for your response. 1. We have both travelled earlier to the UK - my earlier trip was in 2004, my wife's was in 2015. 2. Regarding your point, "As a substitute, you might be able to submit an attestation from the celebrant" - I'm not sure exactly how to go about this. Will try to find out about this. 3. I went through the source you mentioned, but that is for somebody looking to get married in the UK. We are already married, and have the wedding invites, photos from ceremony, etc. as proof - I just don't have the legal certificate from the gov. Will that help strengthen our case?
    – xcentaur
    Feb 16, 2018 at 6:54
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    Would like to close the loop on this. Taking your suggestion, we submitted affidavits (filed separately by each). We both got our visas, so wanted to make a note of what worked. Thanks for your help!
    – xcentaur
    May 11, 2018 at 5:03
  • That’s great! Enjoy your trip.
    – Hanky Panky
    May 12, 2018 at 2:49

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