Mail Order Brides – Are They Legal?

The fast pace of modern life does not allow us to spend a lot of time on romantic acquaintances. Things get much more complicated if you want to build a relationship with a woman who lives abroad. But do not rush to feel down and set your mind on a lonely life. After all, you can resort to mail order brides services designed for people who are ready to settle down and get married. But are mail order brides legal in the USA and other countries? This is an important question to take into consideration before looking for a wife abroad. So today, we are going to puzzle out the issue. Moreover, we will tell you about the best and most reliable mail order brides websites to find your soulmate legally.

Legit Dating Sites to Meet Mail Order Brides

The online dating market never ceases to grow and develop. Some sites offer one-night stands and casual encounters, while others promote serious relationships and marriage. Do you want to find a foreign woman who seeks to get married and is ready to move to your country? Then online mail order sites are exactly what you need! We have studied the advantages and disadvantages of different dating platforms and compiled a list of the best sites for finding a bride in 2023. All of them are legal and safe, you will not break the law using them. We have also listed the prices for each service so you can choose the one that’s affordable for you.

1. FindBride – the best dating site with real legal mail order brides from Ukraine and Russia
2. JollyRomance – lots of options for meaningful communication with Eastern European brides
3. LatinWomanLove – a proven site with innovative matchmaking algorithm for meeting gorgeous ladies from Latin America
4. LoverWhirl – the best place to search for legal Asian wives and chat with hotties using the built-in translator
5. AsianFeels – one of the leading dating sites with detailed profiles of hot Asian ladies
6. La-Date – safe and secure dating service to find Latin mail order brides via convenient advanced search

Are Mail Order Brides Illegal in 2023?

All doubts about the legality of mail order brides arise from the very designation of this concept. When a person hears the phrase “mail order brides”, the first thing that comes to mind is the sale and purchase of women. Therefore, there are so many people wondering “Why are mail order brides legal?” However, some men are not so categorical and just doubt whether mail order brides are legal or illegal.

In fact, the concept of mail order spouses does not imply buying or selling women. Nobody is involved in human trafficking. It is safe to say that mail order brides are legal in almost every country. Specially designed mail order sites offer their services so that people from all over the world can find love and create happy families. There is nothing illegal about such platforms and mail order brides in general.

Things you should consider before getting married abroad

If you do not want to pay for a K-1 visa or seek to have your wedding in the home country of your spouse, an international marriage would be a great option for you. But there are some important things you need to know before getting married abroad:

• It does not matter in which country and when you enter into a marriage, it will be recognized as valid in the United States.
• Some countries require more documents for marriage than the United States. The fact is that some of these papers do not even exist in the United States. For example, Turkey and Korea require you to have an affidavit of eligibility in order to get married. While in other countries, you have to provide only a written statement about your ability to marry that was notarized by a USCIS officer.
• The Certificate of Witness to Marriage Abroad was discontinued in 1989, but you still can obtain its copy by contacting the Bureau of Consular Affairs Office.

Mail Order Brides Legality across the World

Many men want to find a foreign bride and wonder “Are mail order brides legal?” And that’s right. It is important to puzzle out all aspects of marriage with a foreign woman so as not to break the law. After all, each country has its regulations regarding mail order brides. Some states do not support this type of relationships, while others issue acts to protect foreign wives who enter their countries. Are mail order brides legal in the United States? Where are foreign wives illegal? Let’s hunt down a question!

USA

American men are the most active users of mail order brides sites. They increasingly turn to marriage agencies to find a from Eastern European, Asian, or Latin wives. Are mail order brides legal in the USA? Yes, they are. This country is loyal to foreign brides. The government even issued special acts regarding the protection of women who are going to marry a resident of the United States. These are the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act (IMBRA). The former protects women who enter the country, the latter is issued for men who want to marry a foreign woman. In simple terms, these regulations ensure that brides who move to the US from overseas and marry local men are fully protected. And the men, in turn, are carefully checked to make sure that they will not harm future wives.

All that is needed for mail order brides to legally enter the country is a fiance visa (K-1 visa). Also, future spouses have to provide some details of their personal information about their criminal record, financial status, previous marriages, number of children, etc.

UK

Are mail order brides illegal in the UK? As is the case with the US, foreign brides are legal in Great Britain, but it’s a bit more difficult to bring a woman into the country and marry her. Being a resident of another state, a mail order bride needs to get a visa. It can be a Family visa or a Marriage Visitor visa. The Marriage Visitor visa is similar to the US fiance visa, meaning you have to prove that your relationship is real. The visa is valid for 6 months and allows a woman to stay in the country for 2 years and 9 months. During this time, you have to marry or register a civil partnership. A woman who has lived in the UK for 3 years can apply for citizenship.

Canada 

Canadian laws are less strict than in the US, but there are still some complications regarding mail order brides. Men are allowed to bring their brides to Canada only under the Family Sponsorship program. That is, you need to pay for the entry of your bride into the country about $1 000 and $150 for each of the children of your chosen one. In addition, you have to prove that you can provide for the woman for at least the first 3 years of marriage. Moreover, there is no K-1 visa like the one in the US, so you need to get married within 2 years after the bride arrives in the country. Otherwise, she will be deported from Canada. To obtain citizenship, a mail order bride has to live in the country for 5 years.

Australia

How are mail order brides legal in Australia? Foreign spouses are legal in this country, and local laws are very similar to those in the US. So, a bride has to obtain a Prospective Marriage Visa in order to enter the country and marry you. The Prospective Marriage Visa is similar to the K-1 visa and is valid for nine months. Therefore, you need to get married during this time. After you legitimize your relationship, the woman has to apply for a Partner visa before her fiancé visa expires. Australia is the most expensive country for dating mail order brides as the Prospective Marriage Visa will cost you approximately $7 000. But that’s not an obstacle to true love, is it?

New Zealand

New Zealand men buy about 100 mail order brides every year. It is legal to bring your foreign spouse into the country and marry here. There are two types of visa that your loved one can get – Culturally Arranged Marriage Visitor Visa and Partnership Visa.

The first gives a mail order bride the right to come to the country and stay there, provided that you get married within 90 days after arrival. A woman is not allowed to work, but she can study for 3 months. Also, the visa implies that your wedding has to be held according to a particular cultural tradition. After marriage, the woman can apply for a work visa valid for 12 months. But to do this, your wife has to prove that she can provide for herself during her stay in the country.

The Partnership Visa is ideal for those who want to get married and live with a foreign spouse in New Zealand. To get this visa, you and your fiancée must prove that you have known each other for more than a year and that your financial savings are enough to provide for your beloved while she is in the country. Having received a Partnership Visa, your mail order bride can work and study in New Zealand just like the residents of the country.

Philippines

The Philippines is one of those countries where mail order brides are not legal. There is the Republic Act No.6955 or Anti-Mail-Bride Law which was adopted to prohibit the operation of marriage agencies in the country. However, the law did not give the desired result since it does not apply to the activities of brokers in other countries. This means that you will not find marriage agencies registered in the Philippines, but if you use a dating site based in another country and find a Latin or Slavic girl for marriage, you can bring her to the Philippines and get married here.

Ukraine

Ukraine is a wonderful country not only for a wedding but also for life. According to Ukrainian law, you can bring a mail order bride to the country and marry her without any obstacles. Of course, provided that you are both adults and you do not have an active marriage registration with another person.

What documents do you need to marry a foreigner in Ukraine?

• ­Passport
• ­A divorce certificate (if any), translated into Ukrainian and notarized
• ­A temporary residence permit (if any)

Russia 

Are mail order brides legal in Russia? Absolutely. The country welcomes all foreigners who want to move to live here. Russia is loyal to mail order brides and therefore does not complicate the procedure of registering a marriage with a foreign bride. A woman does not even need any special visa – it is enough to have a student, tourist, or business visa to enter the country and marry a local resident.

How to Know a Mail Order Site is Legal

Now, when we have dealt with the question “Are mail order brides legal in the US and other countries?”, it’s time to discuss another important matter of how do you know if a dating site is legitimate. This will help you avoid being scammed and meet only real women looking for marriage. So, check out the useful tips on how to understand that a dating site is legal.

• Read user reviews

There is no better way to find out about the legitimacy of a site than by checking its reviews. If the service is really useful and reliable, you will find many love stories of users who have already met their love there. Otherwise, you will learn about the shortcomings of the platform and the dangers that await you.

• Pay attention to profiles

Take a close look at the profile pages of mail order brides presented on a dating site. If every single woman looks perfect, it’s a reason to raise a red flag. Scammers often use fake profiles of girls to extort money from men. They only charge you for their services but do nothing to help you find love.

• Explore payment methods

Dating sites for finding mail order brides can be pricey. Therefore, check which payment systems the resource offers to make sure it’s safe to pay for a subscription. If something makes you suspicious, do not risk your money. It is better to look for another dating service to meet a foreign wife.

• Check for support

Every legitimate dating site cares about its members and tries to solve their problems as quickly as possible. So, check how the support service works, whether the team is responsive, and how quickly they respond. After evaluating all these aspects, you can draw a conclusion about the quality of the dating site.

• Choose a dating site from our list

This is the surest way to make sure that a site is legal. We carefully checked each of the presented resources and can say with confidence that they are all safe and secure. These sites offer profiles of real mail order brides, so you have no reason to doubt the seriousness of their intentions.

How to Avoid Mail Order Bride Scams

Modern dating sites are often used by scammers who come up with various cunning tricks to lure users out of money. There are simple security rules that can protect you from being scammed. Take them into consideration so as not to become another victim of a cruel deception.

• Do not share personal information. This applies to both filling out your profile page and chatting with people you don’t know well. Do not give out your phone number, home address, and place of work until you are sure that a girl on the other side of the screen is real and conscientious.
• Google photos. This is a great way to check if your interlocutor is real or not. If you see that their photo is used by other users on other dating sites, it means that the account is fake.
• Do not send money. Scammers often use the profiles of pretty girls to beg for money from rich foreign men. They come up with compassionate stories and tell them in the very first days of your acquaintance. So you might hear about a sick mom, a stolen purse with a large amount of money, urgent rent, and so on. Ignore such users and block their accounts – these are not brides, these are scammers! Spend money only on premium features and gifts. Do not risk your finances!
• Be careful when using the webcam. Of course, this is a great advantage if a dating site provides the opportunity to communicate via video chat. But you should be careful as some malicious users may use the footage for malicious purposes. This refers to communication using different devices, both a smartphone and a computer.
• Trust your inner voice. If you feel that something is wrong in the behavior of your interlocutor, stop communicating with them. Why waste time on someone you cannot trust? There are many more potential partners to choose from!

How Mail Order Brides Actually Work

Your love journey begins with finding a reliable dating site. Be sure to choose only legal platforms with real mail order brides. Proven sites offer thousands of profiles of the most beautiful women from around the world. The most popular are Asian, Slavic, and Latin ladies looking for marriage. Browse the catalog of potential wives, find the one you like, and start chatting. Online communication usually lasts up to two months, it all depends on the pace of development of your relationship. When you realize that you match each other, you arrange a date in real life.

This is when the next phase of dating begins. First of all, you need to visit your chosen one. You organize the trip and pay all expenses, including flight tickets, accommodation, dinners in restaurants, and gifts for your loved one. The visit usually lasts 1-2 weeks. This time is intended to understand whether you want to get married and are ready for such an important step at all.

If things are going well, all you have to do is bring the bride to your country. You prepare the necessary documents, apply for a visa, and wait for its approval. You also pay for all the expenses of your spouse. After obtaining a visa, the lady is allowed to enter your country and contract a marriage on its territory. So you get married and, after a few years, your foreign wife can apply for citizenship.

Average Mail Order Bride Cost

If you are going to bring an Asian, Latin, or Slavic girl for marriage into the US, you should know not only about the mail order bride legislation but also about the amount of money you will have to spend. Even though you cannot literally “buy” a bride, there are still some expenses that you need to take into account. Keep reading to learn about the principal costs of mail order bride dating.

Online expenses:

Leading dating sites offer free registration, but charge money for additional services that make your online communication much more efficient and enjoyable. Mail order sites may provide premium subscriptions, credits, or a combination of both. Premium membership comes with a one-month payment, while credits are used to pay for specific features of the site such as video chat or messaging. The most popular dating sites will cost you $50 – $200 per month.

In addition, reputable mail order bride sites provide gift/flower delivery. So, you can choose any gift (from a bouquet of flowers to perfume or an expensive gadget), and they will deliver it directly to the house of your beloved. In addition to the price for the present, you also pay a service fee. Men typically spend $200 – $300 per month on flowers and gifts for their brides. It all depends on your desire and financial capabilities.

Offline expenses:

Mail order bride dating implies a real-life meeting. Therefore, after chatting on a dating site for several months, you should arrange a trip and visit a woman you want to marry. The overall price of your trip depends largely on the country you are visiting. For example, a ticket to Mexico or Colombia will cost you much less than a ticket to China or the Philippines. Let’s consider the main offline expenses that you will need to cover:

• Round-trip tickets
• Accommodation
• Restaurants and cafes
• Entertainment
• Gifts and flowers
• City transport

The price for a mail order bride starts at $3 000 (for Latin women for marriage) and can reach $10 000 if you are looking for a wife in more expensive and distant countries such as Japan and China.

Marriage expenses:

All women dream of a fabulous wedding, and mail order brides are no exception. To bring your foreign wife to the US and marry legally, you need to pay for a K-1 visa which costs $1 000. As for the wedding itself, its price depends on where and how you want to arrange it. The average price for a wedding in the US ranges from $20 000 to $30 000.

What is Fiancé Visa?

A fiancé (K-1) visa is a special nonimmigrant visa that a mail order bride needs to enter the United States with the purpose of contracting a marriage with its resident. This visa is issued only on the condition that you are going to get married within 90 days after your arrival in the country. If you fail to get married during this period, your bride has to leave the United States. If she stays in the country, it will be considered a violation of immigration law. Thus, your bride will be deported.

Moreover, you need to fulfill a number of requirements to get a K-1 visa. That is, you have to prove that you are really in a relationship and love each other. Also, you need to demonstrate that your plans for marriage are serious. How to do it? You can show your photos, reservations, emails, flight tickets, etc.

After you get married within the period of 90 days, your spouse can apply for temporary resident status in the United States. A K-1 visa costs about $1 000 and requires you to wait 10-13 months for its approval. Although it feels like an unconscionable long time, the result is worth it.

In case you have already married or are planning to marry in a country other than the United States, or if your bride is already a legal resident of the country, then she does not need a K-1 visa.

Important to know: Sponsorship obligations

When you file an I-129F petition, you become a sponsoring partner for a mail order bride. This means that there are certain obligations and requirements that you must comply with. In the context of marrying a foreign woman, being a sponsor means providing financial support for her basic needs. According to the law, you will be responsible for the financial support of your wife until she becomes a citizen of the US or until she has completed 40 quarters of work (10 years).

There are some important things you need to know when being a sponsor for a mail order bride:

• You are allowed to be a sponsor even if you live outside the US.
• Your sponsorship does not end even if you get divorced.
• You are obligated to repay the public benefits that your fiancée receives.
• The income of your household must be equal or higher than 125% of the US Poverty Level. That is, if you act as a sponsor for a bride from another country, your household size includes two people (you and your bride). So you should earn more than $21,775 ($17,420*1.25).

Conclusions

Are mail order brides illegal in the US? No, foreign wives are legal in the United States and many other countries, such as Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and Russia. Where is a mail order bride illegal? Anti-Mail-Bride Law applies only to the Philippines, so you will not find marriage agencies registered there. In order to bring a bride to your country and get married, you must prepare the necessary documents (such as a K-1 visa if you are a US resident) and provide evidence of the reality and seriousness of your relationship.

Be sure to choose only legitimate dating sites to search for Latin, Asian or European mail order brides. Feel free to use the list of the most reliable platforms presented in this article. Thus, you will protect yourself from online scams and meet the best women for marriage. We wish you good luck in your search for love!