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Steps to a Turkmen Marriage

NOTE: MARRIAGES BETWEEN TURKMEN CITIZENS AND FOREIGNERS HAVE BEEN TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED PENDING ADOPTION OF A NEW LAW.

The Turkmen authorities have informed us that foreigners must take the following steps in order to be married in Turkmenistan:

1. Register your visa: Every foreigner is required by Turkmen law to have his or her visa registered with the local OVIR (Office of Foreign Visa Registration). OVIR for Ashgabat is located at 17, Zhitnikova Street. Tel: 39-84-36.

2. Prepare a marriage letter: In the Consular Section at the American Embassy in Ashgabat you may complete a standard affidavit (svidetel'stvo) in which you swear or affirm to your current marital status and have it notarized. You may complete the form in Russian. If you complete the form in English you must translate it into Russian or Turkmen and have the translation notarized at Notarial Office #1, 125, Azadi St. (next to the Zoo). Working hours for the notarial office are:

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday: 10:00-20:00
Tuesday and Thursday: 8:00-19:00
Saturday: 9:00-13:00

You must present the original and a copy of this affidavit to ZAGS office (Zapis Aktov Grazhdanskogo Sostoyaniya). The American Embassy offers notarial services are Monday & Wednesday: 14:00-16:00 (except holidays). The cost is USD 20 for certifications, USD 32 for authentications, and USD 55 for other notarials. (This fee is waived for volunteers of the U.S. Peace Corps).

3. Make photo copies of the data and visa pages of your passport. These copies should be translated and notarized. Present the originals and translations to ZAGS.

4. The ZAGS Office: If your fiance(e) is from Ashgabat, you must submit the documents you have prepared, your passport and Turkmen visa to the Civil Registry office ZAGS, where you will fill out a marriage application. The Ashgabat ZAGS office is located near the Circus. 141, Magtymguli Street, Tel: 24-41-43, 24-20-35 (chief)

After submitting all necessary documents, you will receive a marriage date at least one month from the date of registration. If your fiance(e) does not reside in Ashgabat, you should register your marriage at the local ZAGS office in the region where he or she is registered (where your fiance(e) has a residence permit - propiska).

5. There is a state duty of 1600 manats which should be paid at the bank on Chekhova Street, and the receipt taken to ZAGS. You must then pay another 5700 manats directly to ZAGS.

Marriages are only performed on Fridays and Saturdays (for Ashgabat).

6. Three to four days before the wedding you must give your passports to ZAGS. They will return them after the wedding. In the past some Americans have been told there is an oral decree of the Hakim (Mayor) of Ashgabat forbidding foreigners from marrying Turkmen citizens. Regardless of what you may be told, you can get married and you do not have to pay any "administrative fees" to do so. If you have any difficulties, please let us know.

7. CONGRATULATIONS! You are married. If your spouse wants to emigrate to the United States of America, come to the Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy in Ashgabat and fill out Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, two (for you and your spouse) Forms G-325, Biographic Information. You will also have to bring one photo of you and one of your husband or wife (requirements are in Form I-130). Include a copy of your passport and a copy of your Marriage Certificate and notarized translation of it into English. If you have been divorced or your first spouse is deceased, you will need a copy of Certificate of Dissolution of Marriage and its notarized translation or a copy of Certificate of Death of previous spouse and its notarized translation.

The Consular Officer in Ashgabat can approve your documents. There is an USD 80 processing fee. The documents are then sent to the Immigrant Visa Section of the American Embassy in Moscow.

You will also be given what is called "Packet 3", which tells you what additional documents you will need. After you collect all the documents you may contact the Immigrant Visa Section in Moscow in person: Monday-Friday from 14:00 - 16:00, or call for information: Tel.: (095) 956-4225, (095) 956-4221.