A Serbian man and a Kenyan woman went through bureaucratic hell to get married! The love of these two people defeated borders, laws and kilometres!
They say that true love overcomes all obstacles, and an example of that is Obrad Lučić (54) from Belgrade and Anne Franciska Otaja (38) from Kenya, whom neither kilometres, nor time zones, nor years of bureaucratic and administrative complications managed to separate!
Obrad and Anne met online, fell in love, and then, when after two years of being together they wished to marry, they realised it was not all that simple – because they were from two different countries. Each with its own regulations and procedures.
Obrad openly told Kurir what complications and procedural difficulties couples from different backgrounds have to go through.
“Five years ago, after I divorced, I registered on a Christian dating site and that is how I met Anne. We exchanged messages, talked for a long time, shared viewpoints, experiences, everyday situations, and grew close that way,” says Obrad.
A surprise in Nairobi
After two years of intense communication, they decided to meet in person. The emotions were already strong – marriage became a topic of discussion.
“We already knew each other well, loved and respected each other. We talked about marriage and agreed to prepare all the required documentation for the wedding so that we could marry, in case everything was in order when we finally met.
The documents had to be translated, notarised, and then certified in court. That took months and, of course, it was not cheap,” he explains.
At the end of 2024 he finally travelled to Nairobi. However, an unpleasant surprise awaited him there – the first of many.
“The registrar in Nairobi demanded that the documents be additionally certified by the Serbian embassy in Kenya. But the embassy was, at that moment, in the middle of relocating! At the address where it was supposed to be – there was no one. We couldn’t find the staff or any information,” recalls Obrad.
After several days of fruitless searching, he finally managed to get in touch with the embassy – but it was too late. His permitted stay in Kenya was up and he had to return to Serbia. All the effort, expenses and documentation – wasted.
They did not give up. They decided to try again, this time in Serbia. A new round of document collection began – now Anne’s. And this process was also expensive and exhausting.
Complicated in Serbia too
“We paid for the translation of her documents, the visa, health insurance, the plane ticket… She arrived in Belgrade in June this year. There were still some documents that needed to be obtained, and for every visit to the municipality we had to hire an interpreter, who charged €100 per appointment. Everything was complicated,” says Obrad.
But it was worth it – on 21 June they finally got married! However, even that was not the end of their troubles. Although married, they are still separated today.
“In theory we are husband and wife and should be living together, but… Anne came to Serbia with a tourist visa that allows a stay of 90 days. She had to return to Kenya in order to apply for another type of visa that permits a stay of up to 180 days,” says Obrad.
And again – the same documents, the same procedure, the same costs. A new flight, new bureaucracy, new uncertainty.
“To apply for Serbian citizenship, we will have to be married for at least three years. And until then – just paperwork, stress and separation. So far I have spent several thousand euros on translations, court certifications, plane tickets… but nothing is harder than the fact that we are not together,” he says honestly.
Still, he does not lose faith.
“It’s not easy, but we know we will manage. Love is worth the fight,” he says optimistically, adding that he hopes that, in the future, some solution will be found to make procedures easier and costs lower for couples like them.
The Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Justice did not respond to the questions we sent them on this matter.