Russian marriage agencies are designed mainly to help North American men meet, and if all goes well, marry Russian women. These services are the ones that gave rise to the term, "Russian mail order bride." However, that phrase can be a bit misleading, because there is a lot more involved with Russian marriage agencies than simply paying money and sending away for a wife.
The process of finding a Russian bride, or even contacting a Russian woman, through a marriage service is often consuming and expensive. Different agencies have different standards and procedures, but regardless of what service a man uses, he will end up spending thousands of dollars if he follows the process through to marriage. The cost arises mainly from the fact that, at some point, he will have to take a trip to Russia. Also, each step of the way, the service will require certain fees to keep things going.
An American man can choose the women he would like to contact from a series of photos and bios that the service provides. When he has narrowed down his list to a set number that he and the service have agreed upon, he sends off a first letter to all of the women he has chosen. If the woman is interested, she will write back to let the man know. All of this correspondence takes place through the marriage agency. They provide translation and delivery of the letters.
After spending time writing and possibly talking on the phone, a man can set up a trip to Russia to meet the woman. The best marriage services handle all of the arrangements of the trip to ensure that both parties feel safe and comfortable at all times. After meeting face-to-face, the two can decide if marriage is something they are interested in. If they are, the man will return to the U.S. and the visa application process can begin.
The Russian woman, with the help of the marriage service, will take care of everything that needs to be handled on the Russian side of things, and the man will handle everything that needs to be done back in America. Once approved, the woman can come to the United States under a provisional 90-day visa. During that time, both people can determine if they still truly want to get married.
Special Features of Russian Marriage Agencies
Some services offer a bit more than others. They can arrange for a man to send a bouquet of flowers, a basket of fine foods, or candy to a woman in Russia. Some also offer video bios of the women that give the man more than just a picture to look at.
When arranging tours of Russia for clients, some services will allow them to meet several women while they are there. They will provide the client with transportation to and translation for each meeting. In some cases, people who work for the marriage service will even help a person to better understand the Russian culture, which might entail giving him tips on how to propose to a Russian woman.
Be Careful When Choosing a Russian Marriage Agency
There are some businesses in the Russian marriage service industry that are less than genuine. They charge people large sums of money just to get the addresses of Russian girls who might be interested in marrying. Oftentimes, these addresses are simply all the addresses in a certain area. There is a good chance that the person living there has absolutely no desire to become the wife of an American.
Many services never actually meet the women before they set their clients up with them. These services place ads in a paper and have photos sent in. There is no way for them to know if the photo and the bio actually represent the woman, because there has not been even a simple interview process.
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