Immigration
Director Speaks Out Against Marriages By
Proxy
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Immigration Director
Speaks Out Against
Marriages By Proxy
The director of the
Migración y Extranjería
(immigration service),
Mario Zamora, has been
vocal on the
incoveniences found by
his department with the
failure to approve the
reforms to the Código de
Familia and the Código
Notarial that would
eliminate marriages by
proxy.
The practice has given
rise to fraudulent
claims of residency by
foreigners who file for
residency based on the
marriage provisions, in
many cases not knowing
their spouse, before or
after marriage. And the
immigration service has
its hands tied by not
being allowed to
investigate such
marriages and a basis
for denying residency.
Zamora's comments come
following the
announcement last week
by Partido Acción
Ciudadana (PAC)
legislator, Olivier
Pérez, who said his
party will oppose the
reforms when they hit
the legislative floor.
Pérez and fellow PAC
legislators feel that
eliminating the proxy
provisions would
prejudice many Costa
Ricans where they wish
to marry and not need to
be present at the
ceremony.
However, Zamora has some
relief as the head of
the PAC party in the
legislature, Francisco
Molina, said the Pérez
movement is not shared
by all PAC legislators
and brought to a vote,
the majority of the PAC
legislators would vote
to eliminate the proxy
provisions.
Zamora says that to date
some 10.000 marriages by
proxy have been
performed in the country
and that not all are
fraudulent, though the
majority are and since
the marriages are not
classed as a crime, the
immigration service
cannot investigate even
though the signs of what
is happening is clear.
"If I were to order an
investigation, I would
be accused of abuse of
authority, since the
Sala Constitucional
tells me that even
though Juana doesn't
know Pedro, I cannot do
anything to its respect,
because if the marriage
is registered with the
Registro Civil, I have
no power and
automatically I have to
give Pedro or Juana
permanent residency",
said Zamora.
Zamora added that in the
area known as Paso de la
Vaca in downtown San
José, his officials have
detected at least 300
such marriages by
foreigners to Costa
Ricans of the 450
marriages of foreigners
registered in the area.
The immigration director
added that in many of
the cases, women are the
victims, being paid
¢25.000 colones (some
us$50) for the use of
their name on the
marriage certificate,
ensuring that these
women will not qualify
for a housing grant for
being married to a
foreigner.
In addition,
international human
rights organizations
have classed Costa Rica
as a country used by
gangs to traffic and
exploit women sexually,
marrying them to Costa
Ricans so that they can
stay legally in the
country and work in
prostitution.
Zamora said that
marriages by proxy has
fallen worldwide,
representing 0.25% of
all marriages, that is
to say they are a
"rarity". However, in
Costa Rica, they
continue, adding that in
one recent case a lawyer
present 60 such cases of
marriages by proxy for
residency purposes. |
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Costa Rican immigration service director, Mario Zamora.
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