People who don't get cold feet before they marry would probably not be so relaxed if they appreciated the extent of the bureaucracy involved, especially when marrying a foreigner. Foreigners coming to South Africa to marry face all sorts of challenges, despite the revenue "wedding tourism" brings in.Marriage officers across South Africa complain about the tortuous Home Affairs procedures involved.Three contacted said they now advised foreigners not to marry here because of the arduous process.Among the steps that create such hassles is getting a printed, unabridged marriage certificate, which is so time-consuming that tourists often leave before getting them.Marriage officer Daniel Brits said it was a nightmare."I tell people to get married where they come from. I have to be honest with them. I see hundreds of couples with the same problems."The most common complaint is that each Home Affairs branch has its own rules for marriage paperwork, and even these change depending on who is behind the counter.Marriage officer Stephen Nicholson said each Home Affairs centre made its own rules and that, despite there being a national policy, there was no consistency.A foreigner marrying a South African needs to be interviewed by an immigration officer to ensure that reasons given for the marriage are genuine and not just to get South African residency.Marriage officer Jaco Venter said he "fully supports" the [interview with an immigration officer] to prevent fraud. "The problem," he said, "is that the requirements [for the interview] are not legal."Couples are told to provide proof that lobola has been paid and to have their parents present at the interview, even if they live overseas.Jeremy and Rafael, who asked that their surnames not be divulged, are about to get married. They were told they needed their parents' permission and that their parents had to be present at the interview. Both are in their 30s.Rafael's parents live in Brazil and Jeremy's in Port Elizabeth. It took days of going back and forth between Home Affairs branches in Pretoria and Johannesburg before a proof-of-intent interview could be set up with an immigration officer. When they finally had the interview, it lasted less than a minute.Jeremy said such a short interview defeated the entire purpose of the process.Venter said he knew of two couples whose parents had to fly from the UK for their interviews."Imagine the cost involved. I had a couple that had to return to Zimbabwe to get married because Home Affairs staff here refused to let them get married because they had no proof lobola had been paid."Another problem was that South Africans marrying foreigners needed a "letter of no impediment" from a prospective spouse, to prove they were not already married overseas.Nicholson said Commonwealth countries did not supply that document and other documents they did supply might be rejected, depending on the clerks on duty at that branch at the time.Home Affairs spokesman Mayihlome Tshwete failed to respond to questions...