International Marriage; Does It Need A Divorce?

[scook542]

My boyfriend and I have been together for five years. We live in Texas and are wanting to get common law married. In 2012 when he was stationed in Japan in the Marines, he married a woman(US citizen) with a Japanese marriage license. They both lived together in the US and filed taxes together but never got a US marriage certificate. He is under the impression that his marriage is not valid in the US, but I have read that any union between two US citizens is recognized by the US government. Does he need a divorce?

 

[cbg]

Yes. If the marriage was valid in Japan where it originated, it's valid everywhere.

 

[adjusterjack]

We live in Texas and are wanting to get common law married.

There is no common law marriage in Texas. It's called a Marriage Without Formalities and the catch is that there is a formality. Scroll down to Subchapter E:

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/FA/htm/FA.2.htm

 

[Taxing Matters]

He is under the impression that his marriage is not valid in the US, but I have read that any union between two US citizens is recognized by the US government. Does he need a divorce?

He needs a divorce. In the U.S. marriage laws are set by the states, not the federal government. Every state in the U.S. must recognize marriages formed in any other state or jurisdiction under the U.S. Constitution's full faith and credit clause. Each state will also recognize marriages that are formed in some other nation so long as that marriage does not violate the public policy of the state. For example, some nations allow marriage with girls as young as age nine, and most states would not recognize a marriage entered into with a nine year-old. A valid marriage entered into in Japan by adults is recognized as valid in Texas and every other state. That means that should he enter into a marriage with you before divorcing the wife he married in Japan two things occur. First, he would be guilty of bigamy, which is a felony offense in Texas with a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Second, the marriage to you would be void.

So if you two want to get married, you need to tell him to get to a divorce attorney and start the process of divorcing his wife. Under Texas law you cannot marry him until after 31 days after his divorce is final.

 

[LdiJ]

My boyfriend and I have been together for five years. We live in Texas and are wanting to get common law married. In 2012 when he was stationed in Japan in the Marines, he married a woman(US citizen) with a Japanese marriage license. They both lived together in the US and filed taxes together but never got a US marriage certificate. He is under the impression that his marriage is not valid in the US, but I have read that any union between two US citizens is recognized by the US government. Does he need a divorce?

Yes, he needs a divorce. The US recognizes legal marriages from any country. Someone who marries abroad does NOT need to get a US marriage certificate.

 

[zddoodah]

We live in Texas and are wanting to get common law married.

You should read the relevant law and otherwise educate yourself about informal marriages in Texas. Pay particular attention to Family Code section 2.401(d).

In 2012 when he was stationed in Japan in the Marines, he married a woman(US citizen) with a Japanese marriage license. They both lived together in the US and filed taxes together but never got a US marriage certificate. He is under the impression that his marriage is not valid in the US

He is wrong. Why does he think that?

but I have read that any union between two US citizens is recognized by the US government.

I don't know what that even means. If two people (regardless of their citizenship) are married in any foreign country in accordance with that country's laws, the marriage will be recognized as valid in every state in the U.S. Your boyfriend's apparent belief that he and his wife needed to get "a US marriage certificate" when they moved to the U.S. is wrong. He is married and will need to obtain a divorce before you and he can enter into a legal marriage.

 

[xylene]

Maybe your fiance cavalier attittude about the need to fully and legally resolve his marriage should tell you something. Something you need to seriously consider.