Catholic Annulment Process (@Celia)

I have no idea- but you should allow vendors on this discussion. Officiants like @Celia may have helpful information for you.

Thanks for the advice! I'm new to WW and am amazed by how much advice/info is on here!

I wish Nonna was here...she would have more details!

(Disclaimer: I am not Catholic, but FH is, so I've heard a lot over the years.) It is my understanding that depending on where you live, and which dioceses you are going through, the times frames can vary, and some can take a long, long time to process. I feel like it is common to take 1 year and sometimes more.

Celia's not Catholic, FYI. There are a few others on here who have gone through the process or know someone.

The length of time depends on the complexity of it and can also vary by Diocese. There's really no set timeline or guarantee as to when it will be done. It also depends on things like how quickly the witnesses get their statements back. One of my close friends went through the process a couple years ago and it was a pretty open and shut case, the ex did not contest it. It took just shy of a year.

And yes, don't set dates or proceed until you have the official word. Most churches won't let you book a date until the annulment is processed.

Never gotten an annulment, but I am Catholic and just want to echo PPs. Definitely don't proceed with your wedding planning until you've officially heard. As PPs have said, it can be a lengthy process depending on several factors.

No advice but FYI, your post is still showing up as "no vendors allowed." Even though you put Celia in the title she won't be able to comment until you edit the post to allow vendors.

I did, it took around 8 months for me to get everything done and finalized back from the diocese.

I help with RCIA I have seen annulments take 8 months to several years.

Thanks everyone!

@Jen D - I updated mine to allow vendors -- good catch!

@mimitrue - do you know how long into the process they contacted witnesses?

@Kristen it was a few years ago so I don't know exactly. I wish I could be of more help.

The only thing I found online was this:

How long does it take to complete the process of annulment?

There is simply no way to promise that your case will be completed within a certain period of time or that the outcome will be in your favor. However, the general norm is that it takes at least one year. The time frame for a declaration of nullity depends on many factors. For instance, witnesses may delay sending in their testimony for several weeks. Or a personal interview with one of the parties to the marriage may be required.

It can take a long, weirdly arbitrary amount of time.

Rebecca is right; I"m way not Catholic, but I have married several couples who were divorced (but not annulled yet) in very civil ceremonies. They were planning to have the church bless their union when the annulment was valid.

But I have to admit something. I don't get the whole annulment thing. I'm not trying to be snarky, but I don't get it; it seems, to an outsider, that with enough time, patience and money, the Catholic church can make your last wedding go away, as if it never happened. No matter how long it was, no matter how earnestly you went into the project, when it crashes and burns they can make it not exist?

Can someone explain this to me?

But back to it.

Maybe DON'T wait; plan and have a blessing. A church should not have the power to hold you hostage.

Two of my friends waited on annulments for their future husbands. Both took about a year to be completed.

@B.roo, in Catholicism, marriage is a sacrament and a lifelong covenant. Because of this, before marrying someone else, the Church requires a "declaration of nullity" and has a tribunal process to basically determine that the first marriage was never valid in the eyes of the Church.

While it is frustrating and unfortunate that the process can be so lengthy, the Church is not "holding future happiness hostage" for no reason. It is because of the nature of the sacrament. Any practicing Catholic is aware of this.

ETA @Celia this website may be helpful if you want to read more about it! http://www.foryourmarriage.org/catholic-marriage/church-teachings/annulments/

I have a friend who just had an annulment, even though he's not catholic and neither was his wife.... but thats none of my business. Theirs took about a month but she went insane so it was sped up.

@Celia, It is really weird. The catholic faith does not believe in divorce so their solution is an annulment..... a divorce without the papers. I am roman catholic, so I feel like I can say this: A lot of stuff isn't allowed in the catholic church (divorce, children out of wedlock, birth control) but the church has found idiotic ways around that, such as an annulment, or health reasons. I take birth control for "medical reasons" and because of that, in the eyes of the 'church', I will still go to heaven. I defected because roman Catholicism is hella twisted.

I'm not a big fan of rules. Especially human constructed ones that suggest the will of God.

I'll leave it there. Because it's not my choice!

It used to be that annulments were very difficult to get. Tribunals have definitely made them "easier" to get in the last 50 days or so, probably partially out of laziness and partially out of a genuine desire to make sure Catholics who have divorced and are in new relationships will still be able to receive the Eucharist. There's a lot of cultural factors at play too, such as the increased likelihood of divorce now vs. 100 years ago.

Convalidations (what people refer to as having the marriage blessed) can often still be hard to get, which is why advice to a Catholic who is trying to live by their faith to just go get married and get the convalidation is bad advice - while it's a possibility, it's not guaranteed, so it shouldn't be taken for granted.

But, if a Catholic couple has children and they then get an annulment, doesn't that make their children 'born out of wedlock', OLaura?

Many, many years ago, a Catholic woman I knew wanted to marry a divorced man. They finally got tired of waiting and paying more and more money for an annulment. They got married in a non-denominational chapel. I don't know if the annulment ever came through.

The church doesn't make any kind of official declarations as to children being born "out of wedlock". Any sex between a couple while they believe to be married - even if it's later shown that there was something causing the marriage to be invalid - is not sinful.

http://www.aboutcatholics.com/beliefs/children-of-an-annulled-marriage/

I'm greek orthodox and we have divorces (you can get up to 3). We consider marriage a sacrament also.

I guess our branch is a little hippy-ish.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage_in_the_Eastern_Orthodox_Church

An annulment through the Catholic church is NOT the same thing as a legal annulment. And the Catholic annulment doesn't take the place of a legal divorce. If a Catholic gets divorced, they can get legally married again but they CANNOT get married in the Catholic church unless they also obtain a Catholic annulment--NOT a legal annulment.

FH has been divorced for over 20 years, so he has been legally free to marry since his divorce became final. We are both Catholic and wanted to get married in the Catholic church, so he had to get his marriage annulled through the tribunal at our diocese. It took about 14 months.