Marriage to a Malagasy Citizen

Every country has its own laws that apply to its citizens marrying a person from a different country. Getting married to a Malagasy citizen with the goal of eventually bringing them to Canada to live is a process with many steps.

If you want to bring your Malagasy 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.

 

Malagasy Marriage Basic Requirements

Officially, marriage is only possible in accordance with the Malagasy State Department laws pertaining to the status of foreigners on Madagascar, assuming they have a permanent place of residence there. In practice this isn’t strictly enforced however; foreigners who don’t live in Madagascar also get married on the island.

You need the following documents:

• An international birth certificate (registry office)
• Passport or identity card
• Reporting certificate (municipality)
• The proof that there aren’t marriage obstacles
• The divorce document  if necessary
• Parental consent is required where a minor is involved in a marriage contact (below 18 years)
• At least two witnesses must be present

All documents must be translated into French as certified copies. If you haven’t mastered the French language, you should seek an interpreter also to be present at the wedding.

 

Family Members

If your Malagasy spouse has dependent children, this does not affect the Malagasy Marriage document application.

If you have dependent children, they have no effect on the application to marry a Malagasy citizen.

 

List of Malagasy Consulates in Canada

Click here

Calling Madagascar from Canada

011 – 261- Operator Code – Area Code – local number, where

• 011 is the exit code for Canada
• 261 is the country code for Madagascar
• the Operator Code is a two-digit number assigned to each provider (see below)
• the area code is a 1 digit number (by “zone”) and two digit number (by province) for landlines only; the municipal number includes the first digit of the telephone number

 

Operator Codes by Provider

Codes beginning with 2 are landlines or sat phones, codes beginning with 3 are cellular phones.

Airtel Madagascar	33
Blueline MVNO	39
Gulfsat Madagascar	22
Orange Madagascar	32
Telecom Malagasy	20
Telma mobile	34

 

Area Codes of Madagascar (landlines only)

By Zone (old provinces):

Antananarivo (city)	2	Mahajanga	6
Antananarivo (old province)	4	Toamasina	5
Antsiranana	8	Toliara	9
Fianarantsoa	7

 

By Area

Please note that these area codes contain the first digit(s) of the local number you are calling. You must dial the 20 operator prefix before dialling the area code.

Area	Area Code	Dial	Area	Area Code	Dial	Area	Area Code	Dial
Ambatolampy	42	20 42	Fianarantsoa	75	20 75	Moramanga	56	20 56
Ambatondrazaka	54	20 54	Mahajanga	62	20 62	Morondava	95	20 95
Ambositra	47	20 47	Maintirano	69	20 69	Nosy Be	86	20 86
Antananarivo	22	20 22	Manakara	722	20 722	Sainte Marie	57	20 57
Antsirabe	44	20 44	Manakara — Mananjary	72	20 72	Sambava	88	20 88
Antsiranana	82	20 82	Mananjary	729	20 729	Taolañaro	92	20 92
Antsohihy	67	20 67	Maroantsetra	57	20 57	Toamasina	53	20 53
Farafangana	73	20 73	Mid-West Madagascar	48	20 48	Toliary	94	20 94

 

Calling Canada from Madagascar

00- 1 – Area Code – local number

• 00- Exit code for Madagascar, and is needed for making any international call from Madagascar
• 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

Madagascar is on East Africa Time (GMT+3). Madagascar does not participate in Daylight Saving Time due to its proximity to the equator.

Canadian Time Zone	# of Hours Madagascar is Ahead	# of Hours during DST
Pacific (BC, Yukon)	11 hours	10 hours
Mountain (Alberta, western Nunvaut, Lloydminster, Saskatchewan)	10 hours	9 hours
Saskatchewan	9 hours	9 hours
Central (Manitoba, Northwest Territories, central Nunavut, northwestern Ontario)	9 hours	8 hours
Eastern (most of Ontario, most of Quebec)	8 hours	7 hours
Atlantic (Labrador, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI, eastern Quebec)	7 hours	6 hours
Newfoundland	6.5 hours	5.5 hours

 

Emergency Information for Canadians in Madagascar

Consulate of Canada in Antananarivo Immeuble Fitaratra Ankorondrano Antananarivo 101 Madagascar Telephone: (261) 20 22 397 37 Fax: No Fax Email: [email protected] Website: No Website	View Larger Map
Embassy of Canada in Pretoria 1103 Arcadia Street Hatfield Pretoria, 0083 South Africa Postal Address: P.O. Box Private Bag X13, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa >Telephone: 27 (12) 422-3000 Fax: 27 (12) 422-3052 E-mail: [email protected] Website: canadainternational.gc.ca/southafrica-afriquedusud/	View Larger Map

 

The Canadian Government’s Travel Alerts for Madagascar

For travel alerts, click here

Sponsoring Your Malagasy Spouse to Canada

The sponsorship process is long and can be frustrating. Learn more click the button below.

Learn More

Want to know more about marrying in Madagascar? Let us know!

Sponsorship Review

Immigroup will review your completed spousal sponsorship application.. Immigroup will make sure you have not made any mistakes on your application or in gathering the documentation of your relationship. We will assess your sponsorship letter and give you peace of mind that you are submitting an application with a very good chance of success. Don’t lose sleep at night worrying about whether you’ve done enough. Call us at 1-866-760-2623 for a review.