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Getting Married Legally Abroad – Things to remember

  • Ensure you can legally marry on your chosen date. Make sure you get this confirmed, in writing, with the clergy/ celebrant who is to perform the wedding ceremony.
  • Check you have a valid 10 year passport.
  • Take out travel insurance and wedding insurance for all those unforeseen events.
  • It won’t replace your day should things go wrong, but it may remove some of the sting.
  • Find out if there is a minimum residence stay before you can get legally married.
  • Ensure you have a list of all the required documents you will need in order to get legally married in your chosen country.
  • Check whether your documents will need to be translated into the countries own spoken language.
  • Contact your chosen countries embassy in the UK, for further information on getting married in their country.
  • If you are using a travel agent’s wedding package, make sure you know exactly what is included in your package.
  • Ensure the wedding ceremony abroad is legally recognised by the UK. Unless you complete the legalities here first and are using a celebrant’s services of course.

If you are planning a church wedding abroad, you will need to seek permission from the church authorities where you wish to marry. If your wedding is to be preformed in another language, other than English, ensure you have an interpreter present to translate the proceedings. If your marriage certificate is written in a foreign language you will need to ensure it is translated on your return to the UK, and I would always advise you to take a trip to the british embassy in the country of your marriage to let them photocopy your marriage certificate so that it can be registered with the general register office here in England, this can take quite a while however before it comes through, I would also suggest that wherever you get married you pay the extra to have at least 2 wedding certificates, imagine losing your original and then trying to get a copy, much easier to have had two to start with.

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