Mail-order bride

Mail-order bride is a label applied to a woman who lists herself in a catalog or marriage agency that publishes her intent to marry a foreign man. Although the label is widely used, it has derogatory connotations and may be offensive. Mail-order brides hail from dozens of developing countries and a few from developed ones. Ukraine, Russia, Colombia and the Philippines have particularly large numbers of mail-order brides [1].

Men who list themselves in such publications may be referred to as mail-order husbands. This term is less common and generally implies a man who seeks a mail-order bride. However, a small percentage of mail-order husbands have intentions similar to mail-order brides, i.e. to marry and move to a more favorable environment.

Marriage success statistics

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reports that "...marriages arranged through these services would appear to have a lower divorce rate than the nation as a whole, fully 80 percent of these marriages having lasted over the years for which reports are available." [2]

Immigration issues by country

United States

The United States issues a K-1 "fiancé(e)" visa that is can be used within six months of issue and is valid for a 90-day entry into the U.S.. The K-1 (and K-2 for accompanying minor children) and is classified as a "non-immigrant" visa, though all the immigrant visa checks (i.e., FBI check and medical exam) are required for this visa. While this visa is issued as a single entry visa, should the intending spouse return to her country within the 90 days and seek to return again to the U.S. for the purpose of marriage the Embassy may issue a second visa document. The USCIS reports that approximately 17,263 such visas were issued in fiscal 2001, about 7988 coming from Asia and about 4714 coming from Europe (including all of the former Soviet Union states). It should be noted though, that the K-1 visa is used by Americans who met partners overseas, and perhaps most commonly, by recent immigrants to the US. "Mail-order" style engagements account for a tiny fraction of all K-1 visas. This type of visa application specifies the applicant's fiancé. If the visa holder does not marry the specified fiancé within the validity of the visa, she is required to return to her country of origin. However, if she marries her fiancé, she and her husband can apply to obtain "green card" permanent resident status with her husband (and possible co-sponsors) promising to support her for ten years or until she obtains citizenship. This residence status is conditional for a period of two years, after which the couple is expected to apply to have the condition removed. Removal requires the couple prove that they are married to each other in good faith. If the couples have divorced, the immigrant can apply for a waiver to remove the condition. In all cases supporting evidence is reviewed by the USCIS, often consisting of wedding and vacation photos, love letters, birth certificates of children, and evidence of mutual financial trust such as joint bank account statements, leases signed by both spouses, bills, insurance polices and other documentation demonstrating a genuine marital relationship. If evidence is found to be suspect further investigation by the USCIS may be required. This process is intended to prevent would-be immigrants from abandoning their sponsors immediately after obtaining residency and fraudulent marriages solely for the purpose of immigration. There are exceptions. For example, a woman who is determined to have been a battered wife self-petition under VAWA provisions. Exemptions are also granted if a woman shows that the marriage was bona fide and her spouse died. Additional information on this topic can be found at Immigration Letter Weekly.

The parties can also marry before the fiancée enters the United States in which case the spouse must retain her residence outside the United States and her U.S. citizen spouse (or permanent resident alien) can apply for a permanent residence visa for her, in which case the visa is processed at the consulate and she is issued a "green card" valid from her date of entry into the United States, though she may also be subject to the two year condition as stated above if the date of entry is less than two years after her marriage date.

Canada

Canadian immigration laws have traditionally been similar to but slightly less restrictive than their US counterparts, for instance Canadian law does not require the Canadian citizen to prove minimum income requirements such as in the United States.

Until recently Canada's immigration policy regarding mail-order brides used the "family class" to refer to spouses and dependents and "fiancé(e)" for those intending to marry, with only limited recognition of opposite-sex "common law" relationships; same-sex partners were processed as independent immigrants or under a discretionary provision for "humane and compassionate" considerations.

In 2002, the Canada immigration law was completely revised. One of the major changes was conjugal partner sponsorship, which is available between any two people (including same sex couples) that have had conjugal relations together for at least one year. However Canadian immigration authorities frown upon conjugal partner sponsorship in the case of heterosexual couples and now require the couples to marry before a visa is granted unless some serious reason can demonstrate why the couple is not married.

Taiwan

In Taiwan (Republic of China), mail-order brides come primarily from Mainland China and Southeast Asia, especially Vietnam. Those who come from Mainland China are colloquially known as dalu mei (大陸妹, pinyin: dàlù mèi, literally: little sisters from the mainland).

The marriage and immigration are arranged by licensed marriage brokers. In some cases, the selection of foreign brides could be considered by some as resembling a cattle market or slave trade as depicted in Chien-Chi Chang’s photo book Double Happiness (ISBN 1931788561).

This form of marriage is significant as it is the only legal form of immigration from Mainland China to Taiwan. Although from Mainland China, dalu mei are not normally considered members of the Mainlander minority on Taiwan. There are also mail-order grooms from Mainland China who immigrate to Taiwan, although this is much less common.

Many commentators have pointed out that the immigration of foreign brides from Mainland China and Southeast Asia is already changing the ethnic composition of Taiwan, in that mail-order brides and their children already outnumber Taiwanese aborigines. Some now consider foreign brides to be Taiwan’s fledging fifth ethnic group and are interested in observing how Taiwan’s demographics will gradually change by this group. In recent years, there has been a proliferation of Vietnamese stores and restaurants in Taiwan that are operated by Vietnamese brides.

Some pro-Taiwan independence parties such as the Taiwan Solidarity Union have expressed concerns that brides from Mainland China and their children will adversely influence Taiwan’s political landscape as they acquire citizenship. However, these attitudes are not universal even among pro-independence supporters, and President Chen Shuibian of the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party made a particular point of welcoming these brides at his campaign activities in 2004. Also, there was a poll that suggested that Mainland Chinese brides tend to vote for the same political party that their husbands vote.

Comparison with other matchmaking forms

Classified and online matchmaking services

Main article: online dating service

Classified listings were a common matchmaking practice for many years. With the advent of the internet, online matchmaking websites have prolifrated and largely replaced traditional paper-based classifieds. In contrast to mail-order brides, individuals using these services tend to seek partners with a common culture and language. There is no implied expectation of relocation to a more favorable environment. These services are widely used as an aid to traditional dating with no implied expectation of marriage.

Arranged marriage

Main article: arranged marriage

An arranged marriage is one in which the marital partners are chosen by others, usually parents, based on considerations other than the pre-existing mutual attraction of the partners, while a mail-order bride is selected by a man from a catalog of such women, sometimes with the assistance of a marriage agency.

Legal issues

Marriage agencies and mail-order bride publications are legal in almost all countries. Certain notable legal issues are:

Philippines

• The Philippines prohibits organizing or facilitating marriages between Filipinas and foreign men. The Philippine congress enacted Republic Act 6955 or the Anti-Mail-Order Bride Law in 1990 as a result of stories that appeared in the local press and media about Filipinas being abused by their foreign husbands. Because of this, Filipinas often use "reverse publications"--publications in which men advertise themselves--to contact foreign men for marriage.

Belarus

• Recently in 2005 President Alexander Lukashenka attempted to regulate "marriage agencies" in Belarus and make it difficult for them to operate as he believed that western men were draining his country of all the women of child-bearing age[3]. However as most agencies are being run from outside Belarus (either in Russia, European countries or in the United States) his regime has been unable to stop or otherwise regulate this activity.

United States

• On January 6, 2006, President George W. Bush signed the "International Marriage Broker Regulation Act of 2005" (IMBRA) as part of the H.R. 3402: Violence Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005 [4]. The requirements of the law are controversial, and some commentators have claimed that it presumes that American men are abusers [5]. The law stipulates that, before a foreign woman's address may be sold to a US citizen or resident:

1. The man must complete a questionnaire on his criminal and marital background.
2. The seller must obtain the man's record from the National Sex Offenders Public Registry database [6].
3. The questionnaire and record must be translated to the woman's native language and provided to her.
4. The woman must certify that she agrees to permit communication.

• On March 7, 2006, The United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia issued a restraining order temporarily enjoining the government's enforcement of IMBRA as to one marriage broker based in Atlanta, European Connections and Tours. [7] A trial was held in early April to determine its Constitutionality. A final decision has not yet been rendered, but the temporary restraining order to remain in place until the court decides the issue.

• On May 26, 2006, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio refused to grant a similar restraining order, holding that "While the likelihood of success on the merits on the Equal Protection claim remains too unfocused to say what party is likely to prevail on the merits, all factors that yield a discernable answer point towards denying the requested TRO" [8]

Representation in the arts

The 1986 children's novel Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan, winner of the 1986 Newbery Medal, features a 19th century American mail-order bride, Sarah, who travels from Maine to Kansas to marry a farmer.

The feature-length 1991 BBC TV movie Filipina Dreamgirls was a fictionalised account of the stories of a number of couples.

The 2001 movie Birthday Girl is about a Russian mail-order bride who goes to live with a banker in the UK.

The 2001 graphic novel Mail Order Bride by Mark Kalesniko is about Kyung Seo, who is more fully human than her Canadian suitor ever had anticipated. Neither party to the arrangement is satisfied by their new life together.

The 2003 movie A Foreign Affair starring David Arquette and Emily Mortimer is about two brothers seeking a bride using the internet. The movie "A Foreign Affair" was re-released as "Two Brothers and a Bride" and received good reviews.

The 2003 movie Mail Order Bride tries to find humor in a story about the Russian and Italian Mafia involved in the business of human smuggling.

The 2004 film Mail Order Wife is a mockumentary of a documentarian's attempt to film the marriage between a Queens-dwelling doorman and his Burmese bride.

An episode of Aqua Teen Hunger Force titled "Mail-Order Bride" involves the characters Master Shake and Carl "splitting" a mail-order bride. Shake wants her to cook and clean; Carl wants her for sexual reasons.

External links

Australia

• Migrating as a Spouse, Partner or Fiancé(e)

Canada

• Citizenship & Immigration

Taiwan

• The Taipei Times, (search for "foreign brides" in its full archive search; free registration required)

USA

• The "Mail-order Bride" Industry and Its Impact on U.S. Immigration
• A political advocacy website opposing the International Marriage Broker's Regulation Act
• Mail Order Husbands?, an article that explores the lack of foreign men available for American women
• The Tahirih Justice Center's International Marriage Broker Project to give legal assistance to mail order brides
• Fox News on the International Mail Order Broker Act