‘Prison Brides’ Star Svea Wants Joseph to Move to Germany, but Is That Even Legally Possible? Details

In Lifetime’s docuseries Prison Brides, seven women from around the world find love in U.S. prisons, risking it all and braving judgment to build futures with their inmate partners.

One couple that’s been getting a lot of buzz is Joseph and Svea. As a refresher, Svea, a midwife from Germany, fell head over heels in love with Joseph, a Michigan inmate who was serving an 11 year sentence for armed robbery.

The pair connected online as pen pals, and Svea visited the U.S. for the first time to meet him, where sparks continued to fly. She returned to the States once more after Joseph was released on parole so they could finally start their life together and start planning their wedding.

But there was a little bit of a plot twist. You see, Svea announced that while she would be by Joseph’s side while he was on parole, she actually had no plans of moving to the U.S. to be with Joseph. Instead, she wanted him to move to Germany to be with her.

Fans were thrown for a loop by this decision, questioning why Joseph, who had just regained his freedom, would relocate to Germany instead of Svea settling down in the States. In fact, many were even skeptical if Joseph was allowed to live in Germany given his criminal record

“Wait… Svea isn’t moving to the US? Will Joseph be allowed to move to Germany??? I’m no expert but I do know that some countries do not allow convicts to move in. Hope they did their research!,” tweeted one fan.

Another wrote: “Svea is crazy for thinking Joseph will leave his family to be with her in Germany!”

So, did this international move actually happen? Given that Prison Brides is filmed months in advance, viewers are wondering: Where are Svea and Joseph now? Are they still together and does Joseph now live in Germany?

It’s unknown if Joseph and Svea are still together and where they are each living as they keep their private lives under wraps. However, it seems unlikely that Joseph would have been allowed to obtain residence in Germany. “Having a criminal record is listed as a specific cause not to give a person a residence permit,” according to Schlun & Elseven, a law firm in Germany.

That said, it doesn’t seem likely that Joseph was able to move to Germany, at least not anytime soon.

If he couldn’t move to Germany to Svea, could that be the end of their relationship? It’s possible. A private Instagram account believed to belong to Svea does still place her in Düsseldorf, Germany, according to her bio. And if unfortunately doesn’t mention anything about her boo, or potential ex-boo, Joseph.

Watch new episodes of Prison Brides on Lifetime on Wednesdays at 9:30 EST.