QLD Getting Annulment from Offshore?

[Nick Nolte]

I was married in a civil ceremony in Qld. in 2011. I am an Australian citizen. My wife was on a tourist visa when we married. She returned to the Philippines, returning to Australia for 3 months in 2012. The plan was for her to apply for a spouse visa and live in Australia. Circumstances changed and I went to the Philippines in June 2013 and have been here till now.

In 2014, my wife told me that she was already married at the time she married me. Her husband died 4 months after we married. I forgave her. In the past 3 months, our marriage has broken down. We are involved in a business together and we share an apartment, but no longer live as husband and wife. We would both prefer annulment to divorce, based on religious convictions. My wife will cooperate fully in that process.

My question is this, it seems that I need to reside in Australia for a year in order to apply, although one state or territory may have a 3 month residency period? It would place me in a position of extreme hardship for that to happen. Is there a way that I can achieve annulment while offshore?

 

[Tim W]

Let's be clear about one thing here.
If she was already married to another living person (no matter where that person is/was),
then she cannot have entered into a valid marriage with you.
Further, his death does not retrospectively validate your purported marriage.

I think there's nothing to annul.
From where I sit, she's a widow, and you're single.
I suggest that you and she are not, and have never been, married at all.

 

[Nick Nolte]

Thanks for that. There is no doubt that she was guilty of bigamy, and because there was a marriage, albeit illegal because she was already married, does that not require annulment?

 

[GlassHalfFull]

Yeah I'm not a lawyer but something has to be determined legally for the registry to update your status, surely? I mean, I assume you can't just turn up at Births, Deaths and Marriages with some evidence and declare that you were married illegally? It's likely that Tim is right that legally speaking you were never actually married, but I believe it still has to be officially updated on the records via law proceedings...?

 

[GlassHalfFull]

Does seem to me on reading up that you have no choice but to live in Australia if you want to apply in Australia for the annulment though. Can you not apply for it in the Philippines instead? That seems to be the process that needs to be followed, and the anullment would then be accepted (via family law proceedings - not automatically) in Australia if and when you return. That's my understanding anyway.

 

[Nick Nolte]

Appreciate your comments and they make sense. No divorce in the Philippines. They have annulment but it is a long, drawn out and expensive process.

 

[GlassHalfFull]

Appreciate your comments and they make sense. No divorce in the Philippines. they have annulment but it is a long, drawn out and expensive process.

No problem. It seems to me that since you're still on reasonable civil terms and you intend to remain in the Philippines then it's probably best to take the time and do it properly there. Or alternatively, just ignore it for now. If it doesn't affect your life in any significant way, that is.

It's obviously going to cause a problem if you want to remarry though? Well, except that you aren't legally married and therefore could remarry at any time?! Seems like a pretty strange limbo situation actually and would depend largely on whether the authorities consider you married until proven otherwise, or not.

 

[Tim W]

...does that not require an annulment?"

Not in the way you seem to think.

In Australia, and Order of Nullity is a statement by the court that no legal marriage exists.
It is different to a divorce in that it does not end an extant marriage, because there isn't one.

You're problem is going to be meeting the Australian residence requirement.

Don't confuse the crime of bigamy (prospects of prosecution = near zero)
with the (civil) order of Nullity.
Further, don't confuse it with anything like a religious annulment.
You can comfortably ignore that religious stuff.

 

[Nick Nolte]

The underlying problem is that my "wife" wishes to remarry ASAP, after the sale of our business. That marriage would occur in the USA. Could she work on the assumption that she is indeed a widow and could remarry in the USA without doing anything further? It is highly unlikely that I will ever remarry. When the business is sold I will return to Australia.

 

[GlassHalfFull]

The problem I see is that (unless I'm mistaken), the legal process of marriage pretty much relies on honesty about one's marital status at the time. Authorities usually don't actually check whether you are currently married in another country (which is the reason you were able to go through with the marriage in Australia despite it being legally invalid), so she would probably be able to marry in the US without a problem, but the issue remains that she is doing so yet again fraudulently and if she were to be caught, she'd be in this same situation yet again.

It seems she is being quite irresponsible and leaving a trail of complication behind her. The responsible thing to do would be to annul the marriage(s) properly first before trying to marry someone new.

I understand that you are trying to help her move on, but it seems like your only choices are to do it in the Philippines now (despite the complications and costs) or do it in Australia when you return to live there. I don't have enough expertise to say much more than that. Without being overly moralising, she is the one that has put herself in this pickle...