Russian Women Dating BLOG

Marriage agencies are not all created equal. Many are legit but some are merely out to scam vulnerable and lonely hearts.

Thousands of single men in developed countries are turning to marriage agencies in the hope of finding a mate.  These agencies act as a go-between, cashing in on a very lucrative industry by introducing men and women from various countries for dating or marriage purposes.

Known by several names like international marriage agencies or international introductory agencies, international marriage broker (IMB), or the somewhat derogatory mail-order bridge agencies, these organizations make money by selling the contact details of the women to their male members. 

If you’re considering engaging the services of a marriage agency to help you find a potential lifetime partner from, let’s say Russia, Thailand or the Philippines, there are some things to take into account to ensure that you don’t get ripped off by bogus marriage brokers. Only a select few marriage agencies are backed up with credible customer reviews based on real life experiences, so make certain you research which services are legit, and which one’s are not.

The most common way with which some marriage agencies or brokers scam their male clients is by selling fake profiles of women to them, using photos or images of women  culled from the Internet. Another ploy is to pose as companies looking for female models and have photos of these women fill their online catalogues which they then sell to the male members.

There are also risks on the part of the women.  In 2010, Vietnamese authorities became alarmed at the growing number of Vietnamese women being sent to foreign countries as mail-order brides after a woman was murdered by her mentally unstable South Korean husband a week after she arrived in his country.

Vietnam remains one of the most popular sources of wife material in Asia. It is estimated that 90 percent of Vietnamese and South Korean weddings were brokered by illegal marriage agencies and that so far, about 40,000 women have been sent to South Korea as mail-order brides.

In 2006, the U.S. Congress enacted into law the Violence Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005 (H.R. 3 402). This law requires the male clients of marriage agencies to fill out a criminal and marital background questionnaire prior to obtaining the contact details of the female members. The agency then checks the men’s information against the database of the National Sex Offenders Public Registry.

Marriage agencies are required to translate the questionnaire into the woman’s native language and provide her with a copy. The woman must express permission that she would like to communicate with the male member before any contact could commence.

The following are some red flags to watch out for when dealing with a marriage agency:

1. The agency is using a P.O Box number instead of a verifiable mailing address.
2. The agency is using a premium rate telephone number.
3. The agency does not allow you to visit its office.
Even still, marriage agencies remain as one of the most common matchmaking platforms known today. When dealing with any matchmaking or online dating service, you should ditch your rose colored glasses and do not make any decision until you have applied due diligence and have verified the history and background of any matchmaking service.   

Matt Fuller is a contributing author and writes about a variety of topics relating to online dating sites and relationships.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS