Turkmenistan scraps marriage tax

[Cold Warrior]

Turkmenistan has abandoned a requirement for foreigners to pay $50,000 (£26,000) to marry one of its nationals.
The latest update to the family code means the only restriction for foreign spouses is that they should have lived in the country for at least a year.

In addition, the person they want to marry should be 18 or older.

The $50,000 requirement had been in force since 2001. No reasons have been given for the decision to drop it.

The change came to light when the country's main newspaper, Neutral Turkmenistan, printed the new family code, which made no mention of the marriage fee for foreigners.

On Friday the office of President Saparmyrat Niyazov confirmed that it had been scrapped, the Associated Press news agency reported.

 
The central Asian former Soviet republic, led by the autocratic Mr Niyazov since 1985, has remained largely closed to the outside world.

AP says that despite the change, visitors may find it hard to find a partner to marry there.

The country turns down most visa requests by foreigners, those allowed to come are closely watched, and locals spotted speaking to them face questioning by police, the agency adds.

President Niyazov exerts iron-fisted control over the minutiae of his citizens' everyday lives.

He has been made president for life, but in a surprise move earlier this month said presidential elections would be held by 2009.

[Elen]

Ah:DOne more wisdom of Turkman-bashi - the Father of all Turkomen 

 

 

[philb]

I think I will have to put everything on hold and plan a trip to Turkmenistan:D

[Cold Warrior]

I think I will have to put everything on hold and plan a trip to Turkmenistan:D

Don't forget you have to live there for 1 year before you qualify to marry a national.

[Bruno]

10/05/2004 : American citizen service, steps to a turkmen marriage :

" After submitting all necessary documents, you will receive a marriage date at least one month from the date of registration ... In the past some Americans have been told there is an oral decree of the Hakim (Mayor) of Ashgabat forbidding foreigners from marrying Turkmen citizens. Regardless of what you may be told, you can get married and you do not have to pay any "administrative fees" to do so... NOTE: MARRIAGES BETWEEN TURKMEN CITIZENS AND FOREIGNERS HAVE BEEN TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED PENDING ADOPTION OF A NEW LAW..."

http://turkmenistan.usembassy.gov/marriage.html

" Under current Turkmen law, foreigners who wish to marry Turkmen citizens must meet the following minimum requirements:

• Not less than one year of legal residency in Turkmenistan [/*]
  
• Proof of ownership of property in Turkmenistan [/*]
  
• Proof of payment of a USD 50,000 bond to the account of the State Insurance Organization of Turkmenistan to guarantee child support in case of divorce. [/*]

Even if marriage to a Turkmen citizen takes place outside of Turkmenistan, these requirements must still be met before the Government of Turkmenistan will recognize the marriage."

04/06/2001 :

" Resolution No. 3407, which Niyazov authorized on June 4, stipulates that a special contract is required for marriage between Turkmen citizens and non-citizens. The contract establishes both "the obligations and property rights of the parties to a marriage, and their duties in providing for their children in the case of dissolution." As a guarantee for a child's welfare, Resolution 3407 requires a $50,000 deposit with the State Insurance Organization from non-Turkmen citizens wishing to marry. In addition, the decree specifies that any marriage-minded foreigner must have lived in Turkmenistan for at least a year, and own his or her own living space. "

" Kalym is an engrained, centuries-old Turkmen tradition that survived even under the Soviet regime. At the close of the 1970's, Turkmen poet Toushan Esenova published a scathing article entitled "This Cursed Kalym" in the journal Literaturnaya Gazeta, in which she lamented that not even the Soviet state had been able to eradicate the "feudal" practice. During the waning years of the Soviet Union, a kalym price for a bride from the Tekke tribe in Ashgabat and Mary reportedly could reach as high as 30,000 rubles. This at a time when a typical monthly salary was about 250 rubles and a Volga auto cost approximately 15,000 rubles. "

http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav061901.shtml

22/04/2005 : Turkmenistan scraps marriage tax

" AP says that despite the change, visitors may find it hard to find a partner to marry there. "

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4472623.stm

Now, you have some reference for this topic :D:D

[wxman]

"Even if marriage to a Turkmen citizen takes place outside of Turkmenistan, these requirements must still be met before the Government of Turkmenistan will recognize the marriage."

I wonder how many guys will send $50,000 to the government if they marry outside of Turkmenistan?    $50,000 for child support in Turkmenistan? Yea right, the child will really see that money if marriage ends in divorce. :?