It’s always good to know that you’ve helped people achieve their dreams. At Ábaco we are lucky to often have the opportunity to provide the legal knowledge and assistance to do just that. Usually this is when it comes to assisting people in buying their Spanish home. But on 25^th February we were delighted to make dreams a reality in a different way – this time by enabling a couple to tie the knot at the notary.

Mark Thomas and Clive Hancock had been together for over 15 years and having invested all their assets and planned their future in Spain, they wanted to go a step further and seal their relationship formally. ‘We’d been led to believe that the process of a foreigner marrying in Spain was very complicated,’ explained Mark. ‘However, after reading Ábaco’s newsletter ‘The Word On The Street’ we were made aware that getting married at the notary’s office is an option here.’

Prior to this they had been considering marrying in Gibraltar but the prospect of a more local wedding and a simplified service was very attractive to them both. ‘We had started a new life in Spain and had no intention of returning to the UK,’ says Mark. ‘We felt that getting married here was an important part of making the adventure complete.’

More than we expected

‘It was everything we expected and more’ perhaps sums up the feelings of the happy couple after the ceremony. Ábaco’s legal department were delighted to attend and along with the Notary, Tatiana, there was a feeling of euphoria at having been able to assist Mark and Clive make their dreams of marriage in Spain come true.

‘We greatly appreciated the fact that Tatiana was able to conduct it in both Spanish and English, this was a massive bonus for us,’ explains Mark. Their previous experience in the Notary office had been of procedures conducted only in Spanish. They expected that this ceremony would follow suit, so were surprised when Tatiana translated into English for them.

Looking to the future

The move to Spain was the start of an exciting adventure for the couple. They had met through a dating website back in the UK. This wasn’t something either of them had done before and they were thrilled at how quickly their relationship blossomed: ‘I often consider it as good fortune that we ever met like that and hit it off immediately.’ Fifteen years down the line and living in Spain, the wedding was the final piece of the jigsaw as they look towards their future life here.

Like many people who settle in Spain, they were keen to make sure that arrangements were made should anything happen to one of them. Alongside the desire to make their relationship a formal one was that of clarifying it legally against future events. Being legally married means that there is no doubt about the relationship and this can have an impact on legal procedures.  

Legalities aside, the next step after the wedding was to celebrate, of course. Unfortunately, family and friends weren’t able to be there but well wishes and congratulations were received remotely and the couple continued on to Benidorm, where they celebrated their union, now formally recognized as husband and husband. 

Thanks Ábaco

Making the legal arrangements to enable someone to fulfill their dreams is thanks enough. However, Mark and Clive were also keen to express their appreciation for the services that Ábaco had provided. ‘We feel that you have gone above and beyond what we expected, Ábaco has made the adventure a happy and successful one,’ the couple wrote to us.

‘We would recommend Ábaco without any hesitation to any couple considering marrying in Spain and also for the other services you offer as a group.’ A vote of confidence that we are more than happy to receive. Thank you Clive and Mark for your kind comments and everyone at Ábaco wishes you all the best in your newly married life.