Hi Ail,
My husband is from Central Java, and yes, finally the nightmare of dealing with the DoJ is behind us for the moment. I think you need to better understand the processes better so you can make an informed decision.
Option 1 (come to Ireland on Tourist visa, get married and stay)
------------------------------------------------------------------
- 1) you organise a marriage date with a registrar in Ireland. Note that 3 months notice is required. you can do this by post
2) your husband applies for a C-Type tourist visa to enter Ireland (6-8 weeks)
3) he enters on his tourist visa and you marry
4) he stays in Ireland
5) he applies to the Dept of Justice for a change in visa status to stay here on the basis of marriage to an Irish citizen
6) application process takes 12-18 months, during which time your husband may not work or exit the country
7) after about 12 months the DoJ will look for proof of relationship, address etc.
8) DoJ will assess the application and relationship
--if his applicaiton is accepted
9) he will be granted a Stamp 4 residency permit.
10) he can then apply at the DoJ for a re-entry visa
Option 2 (come to Ireland on Tourist visa, get married and leave)
------------------------------------------------------------------
- 1) you organise a marriage date with a registrar in Ireland. Note that 3 months notice is required. you can do this by post
2) your husband applies for a C-Type tourist visa to enter Ireland (6-8 weeks)
3) he enters on his tourist visa and you marry
4) he returns to Indonesia after the marriage, before the date of expiry of tourist visa
5) he applies for a D-spouse (spouse of irish citizen) visa to return (6-8 weeks)
--- if granted
6) he returns to ireland and enters on his D-Spouse visa
7) he presents himself to the GNIB where they will issue him with a Stamp 4 residency permit. This is not negotiable. If he is granted a D-Spouse visa he will be issued with the Stamp 4 5 year residency permit
8) he can then apply for a re-entry visa
Option 3 (Marry in Indonesia and apply to come to Ireland on a Spouse visa)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- 1) Get married in Indonesia. Make sure to do a civil wedding also (if you are doing a religious one, as religious weddings are not recognised on their own).
2) he applies for a D-spouse (spouse of irish citizen) visa to return (6-8 weeks)
--- if granted
3) he returns to ireland and enters on his D-Spouse visa
4) he presents himself to the GNIB where they will issue him with a Stamp 5 residency permit. This is not negotiable. If he is granted a D-Spouse visa he will be issued with the Stamp 4 5 year residency permit
6) he can then apply for a re-entry visa
So you see you do have options, each with different pitfalls. The main pitfall of Option 1 is that your husband will be waiting 12-18 months without any work, or visa to leave the country. The pitfall of Option 2 is that your husband will have to leave after the wedding to return home. As well as being upsetting, it's quite expensive to fly back and forth to Asia simply for a visa. The pitfall of Option 3 is that your family will most likely not make it, and your husband will be left in Indonesia (if you return to Ireland) if his visa is not approved.
Note that if your husband is granted a D-Spouse visa, and he enters Ireland, it is not up to the GNIB about whether to grant or not grant the Stamp 4 residency permit. That decision will have already been made by the Dept of Justice. All the GNIB are doing is entering that Stamp on your husbands passport. I wouldn't worry about that.
In general the DoJ do not do interviews, which is a real pity actually. Instead the burden of proof is on yourself and your husband, so you will have to proove through paperwork that your relationship is legitimate.
Whichever option you choose, make sure to get lots of paperwork and documents to establish your relationship. I know this is a lot harder to do in Indonesia than Ireland. Photos of the wedding can help. You could include letters of testimony from your family or friends in Ireland, even better if they are politicians or respected members of society (solicitors, priests etc.).
All the best
