Marrying and Sponsoring a Sao Tomean Citizen
Listen to this articleMarriage to a Sao Tomean Citizen
Every country has its own laws that apply to its citizens marrying a person from a different country. Getting married to a Sao Tomean citizen with the goal of eventually bringing them to Canada to live is a process with many steps.
If you want to bring your Sao Tomean spouse or partner to live in Canada, you must then file a sponsorship application for them to become a permanent resident. If they would like to visit you in Canada while their application is in process, they must also apply for a visitor visa. For more information, please see our family sponsorship page and our visitor visa page.
Sao Tomean Marriage Basic Requirements
The following are just the guidelines of the requirements for marriage in São Tomé and Príncipe. These requirements keep changing and therefore couples are advised to contact marriage authorities in São Tomé and Príncipe for all the necessary requirements and up to date information pertaining to marriage in the country.
Civil Marriage Requirements
- The minimum age of consent to marriage is 18, for both men and women
- Minors under 18 may enter into marriage, under exceptional circumstances, for a justified cause, from the age of 14 for a woman and the age of 16 for a man, but require authorization from their parents or legal representative.
- Parties to a marriage must prove that they are free to marry by producing certificate of No impediment to marriage
- If one partner is divorced, he or she must produce a divorce certificate to prove the same
- There must be at least two witnesses present at the time of marriage
- Foreigners must produce their passport
- Foreigners must also produce their birth certificates
- Notice of marriage must be given
- Death certificate must be produce in a case where one partner’s former spouse is deceased
- All the documents must be translated to Portuguese and must be authenticated
Family Members
If your Sao Tomean spouse has dependent children, this does not affect the Sao Tomean Marriage document application.
If you have dependent children, they have no effect on the application to marry a Sao Tomean citizen.
List of Sao Tomean Consulates in Canada
Calling Sao Tome and Principe from Canada
011 – 239 – 22 or 98 or 99 – local number, where
- 011 is the exit code for Canada
- 239 is the country code for Sao Tome and Principe
- 22 is the landline code
- 98 or 99 is the cellular code
Calling Canada from Sao Tome and Principe
00- 1 – Area Code – local number
- 00- Exit code for São Tomé and Príncipe, and is needed for making any international call from São Tomé and Príncipe
- 1 – ISD Code or Country Code of Canada
Area Codes of Canada
| Province | Code | Province | Code |
| Alberta | 403 / 587 (southern Alberta)
587 / 780 (central and northern Alberta) |
Nunavut | 867 |
| BC | 236 / 250 / 778 (majority of BC)
236 / 604 / 778 (Metro Vancouver) |
Ontario | 226 / 519 (southwestern Ontario)
249 / 705 (northeastern Ontario) 289 / 365 / 905 (Greater Toronto Area) 343 / 613 (eastern Ontario) 416 / 647 (Toronto) 807 (northwestern Ontario) |
| Manitoba | 204 / 431 | PEI | 782 / 902 |
| New Brunswick | 506 | Quebec | 418 / 581 (eastern Quebec)
438 / 514 (Montreal) 450 / 579 (Greater Montreal) 819 / 873 (remainder of Quebec) |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 709 | Saskatchewan | 306 / 639 |
| Northwest Territories | 867 | Yukon | 867 |
| Nova Scotia | 782 / 902 |
Time Difference
Sao Tome and Principe are on GMT+0. They do not observe Daylight Saving Time due to their proximity to the equator.
| Canadian Time Zone | # of Hours Sao Tome and Principe are Ahead | # of Hours during DST |
| Pacific (BC, Yukon) | 8 hours | 7 hours |
| Mountain (Alberta, western Nunvaut, Lloydminster, Saskatchewan) | 7 hours | 6 hours |
| Saskatchewan | 6 hours | 6 hours |
| Central (Manitoba, Northwest Territories, central Nunavut, northwestern Ontario) | 6 hours | 5 hours |
| Eastern (most of Ontario, most of Quebec) | 5 hours | 4 hours |
| Atlantic (Labrador, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI, eastern Quebec) | 4 hours | 3 hours |
| Newfoundland | 3.5 hours | 2.5 hours |
Emergency Information for Canadians in Sao Tome and Principe
There is no Canadian diplomatic mission in Sao Tome or Principe. For assistance, contact the office of the High Commission in Nigeria.
Deputy High Commission of Canada in Lagos4 Anifowoshe Street Telephone: 234 (1) 271-5650 |
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The Government of Canada’s Travel Alerts for Sao Tome and Principe
Sponsoring Your Sao Tomean Spouse to Canada
The sponsorship process is complicated and lasts a long time; to learn more about it, click the button below:
