My girlfriend (coming from Iran) and I (male, coming from Spain) are living and studying in Germany. She has been in Germany for more than 6 years with a study visa. We want to get married. These documents are required:

  • Passport
  • Proof of residence valid for 3 weeks
  • Ehefähigkeitszeugnis

She is waiting for the renewal of her student visa. However the passport hasn't expired. Would it be a problem? Should we wait until she receives a visa extension? Should she apply for another visa?

What is considered a valid proof of residence?

Is an Ehefähigkeitszeugnis issued by the German administration, or should we apply for it in our respective embassies?

  • 2
    German authorities cannot issue an Ehefähigkeitszeugnis for a foreign citizen. – Ex Patriot Jul 29 '18 at 14:54
  • 1
    In most countries proof of residence is a bill(electricity/water/TV), a bank statement or the rental contract. – Duiker101 Jul 29 '18 at 15:45
  • For the time in Germany, German officials will issue a Ehefähigkeitszeugnis for Foreigners, for the time before that the countries she lived in. The Spanish Consulate has a 'konsularischen Standesamt' that will issue the needed document. Proof of residence is, of course, the registration slip (Anmeldebescheinigung) from the registration office. – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 17:15

A general word of advice: German authorities are bureaucratic. You cannot expect to go there with the documents you think you need and get married immediately. Even if you do by chance have the right documents (see below) you will make an appointment for an appointment to be married.

Should we wait until she receive the extension of the visa? Should she apply for another visa?

Go and ask. If her visa is valid right now and at the date of the actual marriage I don't see a problem, but you don't know when that date is... so please don't guess, go and ask.

What is considered a valid proof of residence?

Normally, a rental agreement. You live somewhere, you have a contract. Bring a copy and you should be good.

Ehefähigkeitszeugnis is issued by the german administration, or should we apply for it in our respective embassies?

Now the real fun starts. There are two types of countries: countries that trust their citizens and countries that do not. Germany is not very trusting. While in other countries you swear that you are legally allowed to marry and that's it, in Germany you will need paperwork. You need papers, certifying that you are legally able to marry (i.e. not married, if previous marriage existed then divorced etc). The fun starts when you are from a country that is trusting their citizens because they will simply not have such a certificate. In that case, Germany will need to see other papers they accept instead and obviously that will vary by country.

So do yourself a favor: go get an appointment with Standesamt as soon as possible, talk to a real person and get a definite list of papers you need. There is no way you can navigate this on your own. People at the Amt are friendly and helpful if you come prepared and expect to leave with a checklist to do some work. They can be very unhelpful when you just go in with papers and want to get married. Because you will not have the right papers.

So go and ask. Work with them. Let them present you with a list of what you need and then go get it. Be prepared that this may take several weeks and several hundred € (because you will need a certified translator to translate all of it) just to get to the point where you are allowed to make an appointment to marry.

  • You can also get an Anmeldebestätigung (certificate of registration) from the Einwohnermeldeamt (residents office) as proof of residency. But yes, talk to the officials to find out what you need is really, really good advice. – Martin Bonner supports Monica Aug 3 '18 at 20:40

Ehefähigkeitszeugnis means that the country of your origin will give you a certification that confirms:

  • You are not married already in that (or any other) country
  • You are allowed to marry
  • There are no other reasons that you can not marry

I guess today the most important is, that you are not married already and that you are not (too close) relatives.

A valid proof of residence in Germany is normally your registered address in your passport or visa. You should get those papers at the Einwohnermeldeamt or maybe from the office which treats your visa application.

I don't think they accept any phone bills etc. in germany

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