Mary louise

Just wondering if it's absolutely necessary to include an old divorce certificate of my canadian husband's.

He was married to an American in the mid eighties, divorced 3 years later -and he has obviously lost the certificate at some point which has not been an issue until now, when we want to try to immigrate to Canada.

Spousal sponsorship papers say that you should include copies of divorce certificates for previous marriages so I spent a couple of weeks trying to locate the court where his divorce was filed. He can't remember but they lived in LA and that's where his ex continued to live after they separated - and sure enough, eventually I got confirmation from Los Angeles Superior Court, that the divorce papers are held there in their Archived record dept.

So it turns out, you can only request copies of archived records through the post and you also need to send a US money order for $16 and a stamped addressed envelope. US money orders - only place I found to get them was Barclays and they cost £25 ! And I can't buy US stamps here so can't send them a stamped addressed envelope. When I emailed to explain all this and how I could get around it, they suggested I have someone in the area come pick it up !! No, I can't just add an amount on for postage apparently

As I don't know anyone in LA, got my step-daughter in Michigan to mail everything to them. She sent it priority mail on 10th Oct - it still hasn't turned up at Archives & records office - zip code CA 90012 but tracking number on USPS website says they did try to deliver it there on 12th Oct but office was closed, then they eventually delivered it to CA 90053 (?) on
16th Oct !!

I sent USPS an email on 17th Oct, asking where the heck my letter is and why they delivered it to another zip code - they haven't replied but they did email me yesterday asking me to take part in their customer service survey !!

Chewing my own leg off would be less painful.

Trying to get hold of this thing has taken over a month now, not to mention the money and inconvenience and hours spent on laptop. Are they likely to turn down my application because we haven't got it or would it suffice to explain we tried to get a copy but failed miserably due to the *?!!*** good ole USA and their ridiculous systems ?

And yes, I have not let my husband forget that if he hadn't lost the thing in the first place...

Siouxie

It is on the checklist for spousal sponsorship (#16) and should be included, or you risk the application being returned.

They do need to check that people were free to marry - hence the requirement - you can read more in the manual under section 5:32/5:33
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resourc...p/op02-eng.pdf

You can check out 'what' is at a zip code here - it may help you track it down! http://ca.postcodebase.com/search/node/CA%2090053

Mary louise

Thanks for that Siouxie.

Will plod on, trying to get it...i feel a migraine coming on..

JAJ

It might be ok. If the Court is using a PO Box, then this may have a different zip code to the street address and the mail may have been diverted there. Perhaps call the Court to follow up?

Otherwise you need to prepare to send the request again - this time using a courier service (UPS, FedEx, etc), not USPS.

I will make the observation that it seems to be common for people to lose their divorce records. However, it is absolutely critical to keep this as it establishes the validity of any subsequent marriage. In general, every person needs to take close care of their civil records - proof of birth, name, citizenship and marital status. Missing records can cause serious problems at certain stages of life.

AdrianR

Wouldn't worry about it.

Archive requests are dealt with at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse on N.Hill street, LA 90012. The border for 90053 is a few blocks away and probably, as JAJ says, is the location for the PO Boxes for the Civic Centre complex in that area.