I plan to marry my fiance in Sweden. They require a Certificate of Singleness. How do I obtain one of these certificates?

Question

I plan to marry my fiance in Sweden. They require a Certificate of Singleness.
How do I obtain one of these certificates?

Answer

To marry in Sweden you must prove you are eligible to marry. Most countries have a national vital statistics registry for births, deaths, divorces, and so forth. When you register to marry abroad you generally must submit a Certificate of Singleness to show you are eligible for marriage.

However, the U.S. does not have a Federal registry of vital statistics. We record vital statistics by State, not at the Federal level. For this reason, there is no U.S. Certificate of Eligibility to marry.

Some States in the U.S. can issue a Certificate of Eligibility to marry, but most do not issue it because they are uncommon in the U.S. and we do not need one to marry here. Even if you were able to obtain a State certified Certificate of Marriage, this will likely not be enough to marry overseas. You likely will need to have the State Certificate of Marriage authenticated through the U.S. government at the Federal level and through a Swedish consulate for it to be acceptable in Sweden.

The best way to marry in Sweden would be to produce a U.S. Affidavit of Singleness. You can obtain one by visiting your nearest U.S. consulate abroad when you go to marry in Sweden. In your case, you would go to U.S. consulate in Stockholm. You likely do not need an appointment in advance. Show your U.S. passport and ask for the American Interests section of the consulate. Report that you are marrying in Sweden and that you need an Affidavit of Singleness. The costs should be about $10 and it should take only a few moments to obtain. I hope this information helps.

Please let me know when you are ready to proceed with immigration processing for your future husband and I would be glad to assist.