Foreign Marriage Certificate Translation in Namur: SPW Wallonia Family Reunification

Are you based in Namur and need to have a foreign marriage certificate translated for a family reunification application with the SPW, recognition of your marriage at the municipality, or a judicial proceeding? Namur, the Walloon capital, regularly processes family reunification files involving couples married abroad. This guide explains the steps to follow.

See also: translation of marriage certificates in Belgium · translation agency in Namur

Family reunification and marriage certificates in Namur: the SPW procedure

Family reunification is one of the main reasons why Namur residents need to have a foreign marriage certificate translated. The procedure involves several administrations:

• Office des Étrangers : the foreign marriage certificate translated into French is essential to constitute the family reunification file for a non-EU spouse
• Namur municipality : updating the National Register following the recognition of a marriage celebrated abroad
• SPW (Service Public de Wallonie) : certain social status, benefit or housing procedures may require proof of marital status via the translated marriage certificate
• Tribunal de première instance de Namur : binational divorce proceedings, international succession, adoption
• Walloon naturalisation : the translated marriage certificate forms part of the complete file submitted to the SPF Justice via Namur municipality

Procedure for translating a foreign marriage certificate in Namur

The steps to follow depend on the country where your marriage was celebrated:

• Hague Convention signatory countries (Morocco, Turkey, Tunisia, Spain…): apostille in the country of issue, then sworn translation into French by a sworn translator
• Non-signatory countries (DRC, Senegal, Algeria for certain documents, Côte d'Ivoire…): consular legalisation first, then translation
• EU marriages: check whether the European multilingual form is accepted by Namur municipality - some departments still require a sworn translation

Our sworn translators specialise in the most frequently requested languages in Wallonia: Moroccan and Algerian Arabic, Turkish, Lingala, Wolof, Romanian, Polish, Spanish and over 70 other languages.

What a marriage certificate translation includes

• Full identity of both spouses (surnames, first names, dates and places of birth, nationalities)
• Date, location and circumstances of the marriage ceremony
• Identity of the civil or religious witnesses and officiant
• Matrimonial regime if mentioned
• Certificate number and identity of the civil registrar
• Marginal notes: divorce, death, change of name