Hola, I have a rather complex relationship situation that I would be grateful for some advice on. My girlfriend is a Colombian national. She has been living and working in Spain for four years and overstayed her visa. She returned voluntarily to Columbia November 15th 2004. I am a British born national and I live in London. While my girlfriend was living in Spain, I visited regularly and we have been in a relationship for about 14 months. We want to get married and eventually live together in Spain.

Ok, that's the background info . . . this is the problem.

My girlfriend, Rocio, wants to return to Spain to live and work. I have business commitments in the UK and cannot emmigrate to Spain immediately, niether can I yet afford to. We anticipate that Rocio will have difficulty obtaining another visa due to her 'illegal' overstay.

My question is one of strategy. Where would it be best to get married in order to secure a visa for her to re-enter Spain?

I understand that, if we get married in Colombia, there is a procedure to follow in order for her to enter and reside with me in England (being married to a British national) but, she would then have to reside in England for 2 years to get nationalized. My question is, if we take this route, what passport would she hold, and can she immediately travel freely to Spain and apply to set up residence in Spain as my spouse who is living in England?

Or, where do we get married if she wants to live in Spain but is refused a visa to enter Spain (if, for example, we needed to marry in Spain for her to obtain a Resident's Permit). A Catch 22 senario . . .

Any ideas?