Foreigners Married to Lao Citizens Now Entitled to Spouse Visa

The Government of Laos will now be issuing foreign spouse visas to foreigners who hold a valid Lao certificate of marriage with a Lao citizen.

Until now, the foreign spouses of Lao citizens received no special privileges or entitlements after completing the lengthy marriage process. Those who held a valid Lao certificate of marriage could remain in Laos by way of a business visa, investment visa, or tourist visa only.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced a new type of visa, the SP-B3, would be issued from 1 August 2018. After this policy change, the government has quietly begun issuing a new type of visa upon request to those holding a licensed and registered marriage certificate.

RDK Group can now assist with your application for a SP-B3 Spouse Visa!

 
The Application Process

The application process for this visa contains a number of steps but is not overly complicated. This is divided into three parts.

Part 1:  Spouse Visa

Documents Required:

1. A copy of the marriage certificate (1 copy)
2. Letter of Proposal – can be obtained at the Consular Office, MOFA (1 copy)
3. A copy of the family book or ID card of the Lao citizen (1 copy)
4. A certificate of residence signed and sealed by the village authorities (1 copy)
5. A copy of the passport of the foreign spouse (1 copy)

Procedures:

The documents listed above must be brought to the Consular Affairs Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), where officers will issue visa authorization. The authorization document must be brought to the border checkpoint specified in the letter of proposal (listed above). The fee for this is 30 USD.

Part 2: Stay Permit

 The documents required are:

 Documents Required:

1. Letter of Proposal or Request to Register for a Stay Permit (the MOFA consular office will assist with this).
2. Certificate of Residence signed and sealed by the village authorities (1 copy).
3. A copy of the family book or ID card of the Lao citizen (1 copy).
4. A copy of the passport of the foreign spouse (1 copy)
5. A copy of the spouse visa (SP-B3) (1 copy)
6. A copy of the Certificate of Marriage (1 copy)
7. Passport photos at 3×4 size (3 photos)

Procedures:

The documents listed above must be brought to the Office of Foreigner Administration for processing.  The fee for the Stay Permit is 1,320,000 kip. 

Part 3: 1 Year Visa

After the officials have issued the Stay Permit, it will be necessary to have the visa converted to a 1 year visa.

The documents required are:

Documents Required:

1. A copy of the marriage certificate (1 copy)
2. A letter of proposal (1 copy)
3. A copy of the family book or ID card of the Lao citizen (1 copy).
4. Certificate of Residence signed and sealed by the village authorities (1 copy).
5. A copy of the passport of the foreign spouse (1 copy)

Procedures:
The documents listed above must be brought to the Consular Affairs Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs for processing. The fee for this is 1,320,000 kip.

Working Under a Spouse Visa

Those holding a spouse visa are entitled to work in the Lao PDR, and the application process is similar to that of an LA-B2 visa.  A company must sponsor an individual residing in Laos under the spouse (SP-B3) visa, in which case the Ministry of Labor will issue a work permit.

Foreign Marriage Certificates

The spouse visa is also available to spouses of Lao citizens who have registered their marriage overseas. In order to apply, the foreign marriage certificate must be authorized at the Treaties and Law Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 This article supplied by RDK GROUP.