Dear friends,
Finding a bride via the mail is a practice older than all of us. It actually started back in the 1800’s. It seems like in recent years, it is really gaining popularity. While you do not actually buy a bride, you buy access to a group of ladies that are looking for a foreign man to sweep them off their feet and back to their home country.
As well as some of the unwritten responsibilities that go with choosing a bride via the mail. Or in our current times, choosing a bride via the internet. Then, you can choose if a mail order bride is for you.
Are mail order bride companies legal?
So just as with most things in life, the law differs depending on location. However, because mail order brides are an international transaction, there is an international law that governs the transaction. The law is the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act (IMBRA).
This law was enacted to lessen not only the abuse of marriage-based visa recipients, but to protect the bride as well. The key provisions of this act are: petitioners from the United States are required a background check and the criminal record is disclosed to the visa applicant, the petitioner must disclose to USCIS the method in which she met the fiance.
Another provision is that IMBRA limits the number of finance visas that the United States citizen can apply for. The lifetime limit is two. However, this limit does not apply to spousal visas. To further protect the bride-to-be, if a petitioner has a record of certain violent or sexual crimes, they are immediately disqualified.
The Philippines on the other hand, have enacted an Anti Mail Order Bride Act. So the legality of Mail Order Brides is dependent on location. It is important if this is something you are considering, that you look into the laws of the country your potential bride to be is coming from.
With an overseas transaction, a broker is always recommended. Marriage is no exception. A marriage broker is defined as any for-profit entity, agency or dating site that has the primary purpose of introducing citizens of the United States of America to a foreign national for the purpose of marriage. Finding a licensed and registered marriage broker is a choice that could help your future wife to stay in America with you.
Are foreign mail order brides actually real?
Entering into a marriage with a person from a different continent can come with a few challenges. Whether that continent be Russia, South America, Asia, or parts of Europe. It is important to be aware of these challenges and try to overcome some of them while the relationship is developing.
While sometimes, women are truly looking for a loving, lasting relationship many times there are other factors involved in their decision of becoming a mail order bride. Many times there is a lot family pressure, because one of the sometimes “unwritten” part of the marriage vow is the requirement for you to financially provide for the bride’s family for the rest of their life.
Some of the brides-to-be have a common law husband in their home country that they will want to come back and visit with whenever they can. While this is not the case with all mail order brides. More often than not, these women either come from very poor families who need the money and financial security for their future. Or they come from a family wants the prestige of having a foreigner relative and the money the foreigner brings into the family.
On the other hand, when a bride-to-be is truly looking for her true love, marrying a foreigner comes with the challenges of language and cultural barriers.
While some women abroad speak enough English to communicate the basics. It is very rare to find a foreign national that has not lived the United States for a long time, that understands everyday life, language, jokes, sarcasm, idioms. It can be difficult for the bride to understand the words and phrases we use every day to communicate our unspoken thoughts and feelings.
Imagine after the “honeymoon” wears off, the loneliness that the used-to-be-bride could feel. She is far away from her family and the newness of living in America is wearing off fast. If you want this marriage to have a story book ending, it is important to take time in the dating process to work out some of the challenges.
How to find legitimate International dating sites, apps and services?
Finding a dating website for foreign women is very easy in this world of surfing the web and apps. Just a quick few pushes on the keyboard opens a whole world of women.
But, finding a reputable site that you can trust is a little bit more difficult. Save yourself a broken heart and empty bank account. Take time to research how the website obtains its information and how it verifies the information posted. Some of the sites require users to:
- set up a profile
- find what they are looking for in a spouse
- start communicating with your mail order bride
- then travel to have an in-person date in Ukraine, Russia or another country
It is important that when you put your personal information on a website, it is safe and protected. The website needs to provide you some sort of guarantee the women are real, research the sites anti-scam policy. Make sure the sites SSL number is valid and safe.
As you are choosing the site you want to use to find your special lady. It is important not to lose your power of reason — If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is not true. When you find that beautiful, special lady, some important tips to protect you and help identify a scammer are:
- Google her photo
- If the photo is on a lot of sites, it could be fake
- Video chat with your foreign bride
- Do not send money or shower her with gifts
Most International dating websites like LoveMe.com (read our LoveMe.com Review) and apps are normally not a flat fee. Most of the websites there are charges for dating service, delivering gifts, translation expenses, traveling to the country with the expenses you incur there, the marriage ceremony, visa applications and other documents.
“I do” or “I do not”
The decision to find your bride from Ukraine or significant other on the web through a mail order bride website or app is a weighty one. Many happy marriages have come from this method of online dating.
Many couples have worked through the challenges and have a lasting happy family life. So, the choice is yours, just remember to take your time. Learn about the culture and the family of the lady that caught your eye and is capturing your heart. Really communicate with that special lady.
Meet Krystyna, an esteemed international dating expert, blogger, and the founder of Ukrainian Dating Blog. With over 1000 articles published in English and German, she specializes in cross-cultural relationships, prevalent dating topics, and tackling romance scams.
