If the marriage is to be conducted according to the rites of a religious denomination other than the Church of England, notice of marriage must still be given to the authorized registrar for the area concerned, who will grant a license.
The building where the marriage is to take place must normally be registered for marriages, except in the case of Jewish weddings and the registrar or other authorized person must be present to register the marriage.
Roman Catholic Ceremony
A Roman Catholic priest will require up to six months' notice of an intended wedding and longer if possible. This is regarded as an essential period of time for preparation, whether both parties are Catholic or not. If one party is a non-Catholic, there will be a different form of service.
Banns are required to be read out in the parish churches of both bride and groom, except when one of them is a non-Catholic, in which case no banns are read.
Jewish Ceremony
Civil law allows Jewish weddings to take place anywhere; in a synagogue, private house, hired hall or in the open air. They can also take place at any time except the Jewish Sabbath or festival or fast days.
Quaker Ceremony
If only one partner is a member of the Society of Friends the other will be asked to state that he/she is in sympathy with the nature of the marriage and also to provide two letters of recommendation from members of the Society. Their Registering Officer gives advice and information, then completes the required formalities for the wedding to proceed.
Your local religious body or one of the following organizations should be able to provide further help and advice:
Catholic Marriage Care, Clitherow House, 1 Blythe Mews, Blyfhe Road,
London W14 ONW Tel: 0171 371 1341
Jewish Marriage Council, 23 Ravenshurst Avenue,
London NW4 4EE Tel: 0181 203 6311
Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Friends' House, 173-177 Euston Road,
London NW1 2BJ Tel: 0171 387 3601
THE ROYAL NAVY
If one of the parties to the marriage is a serving member of the Royal Navy, the banns may be published aboard ship by the chaplain or commanding officer. In the case of a wedding in a register office or other registered building, the commanding officer may record the particulars in place of the registrar and issue the necessary certificate 21 days after notice has been given.
SCOTLAND
The law on marriage in Scotland is now governed by The Marriage (Scotland) Act 1977. The couple can be married by a registrar or assistant registrar, and the wedding will normally be held in their office. Alternatively, if they want a religious ceremony, they can be married by any member of the clergy, parson, priest or officer of any denomination who is entitled to undertake marriages under the Marriage (Scotland) Act. Whatever the type of wedding there must be two witnesses present who are at least 16 years of age.
In order to set the wedding wheels in motion, the couple must each get a marriage notice form from a registrar of births, marriages and deaths in Scotland. It does not matter which registrar is initially approached, but when the forms are filled in, they must be returned to the registrar for the district where the ceremony is to take place. Ideally, this should be done a month or more before the wedding date, and except in very exceptional circumstances a minimum of 15 days' notice must be given. If either party has been married before, the notice period is six weeks.
The marriage notice form is designed to establish whether the two parties are eligible to get married - for example, in terms of age, existing marital status and sex - and that they are not related to each other in any way which forbids marriage. They have to sign a declaration that the information given is true; if it is not, the marriage will not be valid.
When the marriage notice forms are returned, the registrar will also wish to see the relevant birth certificates. If either party has been widowed or married before, he or she will also need to produce a death certificate for their former spouse, or a copy of the divorce decree, remembering that a decree nisi from a court outside Scotland is not sufficient. If either party lives outside the United Kingdom, evidence is required to show that there is no legal reason in their own country why the marriage should not proceed. When producing any foreign documents, it is important to get a certified translation, and if there is any doubt about what is needed, the registrar should be consulted.
If there is delay in getting any of the required documents, it is best to return the marriage notice form anyway, explain the situation, and get the documents to the registrar as soon as possible.
The registrar will check the facts given on the marriage notice form and then prepare a marriage schedule. For a civil marriage they will keep the schedule in their office until the wedding, but for a religious ceremony it must be collected in person, not more than a week before the wedding. After the ceremony both parties sign the schedule, as do the two witnesses and whoever conducted the wedding. The schedule must be returned to the registrar within three days so that they can register the marriage.
As well as getting the marriage notice organized in good time, it is important to inform the person who will perform the ceremony of the preferred date. Particularly in towns, and at popular times of year, you will need to book early.
If one party lives in England or Wales but is marrying someone who lives in Scotland (or whose parents live in Scotland), and wants the wedding to be in Scotland, it is possible to give notice without actually going north of the border to do so. Notice must be given to the Superintendent Registrar of the district in England or Wales, and similar notice given in Scotland in the normal way.
Notices issued in England and Wales are valid in Scotland and vice verso, provided only one of the parties is resident in Scotland. However, marriage by license in a register office in England or Wales is not possible in this case.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Church of Ireland
Marriage in the Church of Ireland may take place by means of:
- Banns.
- License.
- Special License.
- Certificate issued by a Registrar.
1. Banns: The banns may be read in the church where the ceremony is to take place if both partners are Protestant Episcopalians.
2. License: One or both partners must be Protestant Episcopalians and one must have spent 14 days immediately prior to the service in the district of the church where it is to take place.
A Church of Ireland licenser will issue the necessary license after having received confirmation of the required seven days' residence in the district prior to service of notice of the proposed marriage. Copies of the notice will be sent to the places of worship which the parties attend, and seven days after service of notice on him the licenser may issue the license.
The marriage must take place within three calendar months of the date of notice.
3. Special License: Provided one or both partners are Protestant Episcopalians, bishops may grant a special license authorizing the marriage to proceed at any time or place within their jurisdiction.
4. Registrar's Certificate: This authorities the marriage to take place in a church providing one or both of the partners are Protestant Episcopalians. If they live in different districts, separate applications must be made and the registrar must send a copy of the notice of marriage to the clergy of the places of worship attended by the partners and to the member of the clergy of the church where the marriage is to be solemnized if this is different. At least one of the partners must have lived for 15 days in the district of the church where the marriage is to take place.
The Roman Catholic Church
Marriage in the Roman Catholic Church may take place by:
- Episcopal License.
- Banns.
- License.
- Certificate issued by a Superintendent Registrar of Marriage.
1. Episcopal License and 2. Banns: Both partners must be Roman Catholic and should apply to their parish priest or priests for information about the steps to be taken.
3. License: One or both partners must be Roman Catholic; where only one partner is Roman Catholic, notice in writing must be given to the person empowered to issue licenses seven days before the license shall be issued and that person must send copies of the notice to the clergy of the places of worship which the partners attend.
4. Registrar's Certificate: This may be obtained to authorize marriage in a Roman Catholic Church when one of the partners is not Roman Catholic.
Presbyterian Church in Ireland
Marriage in the Presbyterian Church in Ireland can be authorized by means of:
- Banns.
- License.
- Special License.
1. Banns: The banns may be read in the church or churches of which the parties are members and the wedding must take place in one of these churches. Authorization of marriage by this method is not permissible if the wedding is going to take place in the church of any other denomination or if one of the marriage partners is a member of another church body, even if that is another Presbyterian church such as the Church of Scotland.
2. License: Marriage by license requires that one or both of the parties must be members of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. Consent of parents or guardians must be obtained if one or both of the partners is under 18 years of age (21 in the Republic of Ireland) and this proviso applies to any of the three forms of authorization.
When application is made to the minister they will issue a certificate confirming that one of the partners has been a member of the congregation for at least the past month. The certificate should be produced for a licensing minister. Allowing at least seven days' notice for granting the license, it will subsequently need to be produced for the officiating minister before the marriage ceremony takes place.
The time restrictions imposed on this method of marriage are:
a. residential qualification of 15 days within the-Presbyterian area immediately prior to the wedding;
b. the wedding must take place within three calendar months of the entry in the licensing minister's notice book;
c. the wedding must take place within one calendar month of the date of the license.
3. Special License: Once again the requirement is membership of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland of one or both parties. The license, which is issued by the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, authorizes the marriage to take place at any time or place in Ireland and is valid for three months. There is no residential requirement for either party.
Your local church or one of the following organizations should be able to provide further help and advice:
Catholic Marriage Care, Clitherow House, 1 Blythe Mews, Blythe Road,
London W14 ONW Tel: 0171 371 1341
Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Church House, Fisherwick Place,
Belfast BT1 6DW Tel: 0123 232 2284
The General Register Office for Northern Ireland,
Oxford House,
49-55 Chichester Street,
Belfast BT1 4HL Tel: 0123 225 0000
MARRIAGES OF BRITONS ABROAD AND FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THE UK
If marriage abroad is contemplated, first find out what documents (if any) will be required for the marriage to be legal. You will probably be asked to provide a certificate of no impediment to marriage, and your birth certificate, proof of residency, proof of no convictions etc. The extent of the requirements varies according to the regulations of each country. If you are still living in Britain, check with the foreign consul of the country concerned.
The marriage will generally be held to be legally valid under British law provided it is performed in accordance with the law of the country in which it takes place and that none of the regulations in British law regarding the relationship of the parties or their freedom to marry aire contravened. The marriage must also be monogamous. However, the situation varies according to individual circumstances and final judgment may rest on a court decision.
On the other hand, marriage under British law is not necessarily valid in every foreign country, so if a foreign national wishes to marry in the United Kingdom, he or she should consult their consul or other representative in Britain to ensure that the contemplated marriage ceremony will be accepted as legally binding in their own country. This applies whether the marriage is to a British subject or to someone of their own nationality.
THE CHURCH AND DIVORCE
In the Church of England clergy have the legal right to refuse to marry in church anyone whose previous partner is still alive. However, they will probably be prepared to conduct a Service of Blessing at some time after the civil ceremony has been performed. Despite the Church's general ruling on this matter, some ministers may still offer to perform the full wedding service.
The Church of Scotland will allow a church ceremony if either party has been married before, provided that the couple comply with the required notice period of six weeks. Banns will not be read in church as this requirement was abolished by the Marriage (Scotland) Act 1977.
Civil divorce is not recognized by the Roman Catholic Church. If a divorced person was contemplating remarriage it would have to be established that the first marriage was not recognized by the Roman Catholic Church. This would mean either that a declaration of nullity had been granted by a Roman Catholic Marriage Tribunal or that a previous marriage had not complied with Church Law.
Civil remarriage in England and Wales is allowed if the divorced person can produce a decree absolute. Remarriage in a register office can then proceed in exactly the same way as a first marriage. The decree absolute is obtainable on application by the successful petitioner six weeks after the decree nisi which first pronounced the divorce.
Civil remarriage in Scotland is possible directly after the divorce is announced, because in Scotland there is no equivalent to the decree nisi; the decree is absolute immediately.
CHANGING YOUR NAME
A woman does not have to change her name when she gets married, although it is generally expected and usually makes life a little easier when making joint social, legal or financial arrangements.
Sometimes a woman retains her maiden name for professional purposes, if changing it would be inconvenient or potentially damaging. Having two separate identities is confusing, but it may be the best solution in some circumstances.
If you do decide to change your name, however, there are lots of people who will want to know about it. It may take a little time to get round all the relevant authorities and organizations, but here are some of the more important ones to note:
Employer, bank, building society, savings accounts, insurance companies, credit card companies, passport office (you don't have to change the name on your passport, but it is usually more convenient if you do), Inland Revenue, Department of Health and Social Security, DVLC (for change of driver's license and vehicle registration documents), your doctor and your dentist.
If you are going abroad on honeymoon, you will require a passport. The issue of family passports with particulars of husband and wife included has been discontinued. If you wish to travel abroad in your married name, collect the relevant forms from the Post Office for the issue of a post-dated passport. New applicants and those who wish to have existing passports amended will also need to complete the relevant forms.
Completed application forms should be sent to the Passport Office for your particular area. These are listed on the application form and you should allow at least one month for the application to be processed and up to three months if applying between February and June.
CHECKLIST: CHURCH OF ENGLAND
Both parties must be over 16
If under 18, obtain parents' consent
For divorced people, obtain a decree absolute and agreement of the minister
Choose church
Apply to minister of church
Arrange for publication of banns
Ask minister of church to publish banns
If one partner living in different parish, also arrange for banns to be called in that parish
Banns to be read out during morning service on:
1...
2...
3...
Attend calling of banns
OR Obtain a common license
If one partner living in parish for preceding □ 15 days, he/she can apply in person
Obtain license
OR Obtain a special license
Apply to the Archbishop of Canterbury
Provide sworn statement of reasons special license required
Obtain license
OR Obtain Superintendent Registrar's Certificate
If one partner living in district for preceding seven days, he/she can apply in person
Notice entered
Obtain certificate (after 21 days)
Finalize date of ceremony
Finalize place of ceremony
CHECKLIST: THE REGISTER OFFICE/APPROVED PREMISES
Both parties must be over 16
If under 18, obtain parents' consent
For divorced people, obtain a decree absolute
Provide details of names, ages, addresses etc.
Provide evidence that there are no legal reasons why the marriage should not take place, such as death certificate of former spouse or decree absolute
Choose register office/approved premises
Obtain Superintendent Registrar's Certificate
If both living in district for preceding seven days, one partner can apply in person
If living in different districts for preceding seven days, one partner may apply in person to respective Superintendent Registrars
Notice entered in Superintendent Registrar's notice book
Obtain certificate (after 21 days)
OR Obtain Superintendent Registrar's Certificate and License
If one partner living in district for preceding 15 days, he/she can apply in person
Other partner living in England or Wales at time notice given
Notice entered in Superintendent Registrar's notice book
Obtain certificate (after one clear day)
OR Obtain Registrar General's License
Apply in person to Superintendent Registrar
Obtain license
Finalize date of ceremony
Finalize place of ceremony
CHECKLIST: SCOTLAND
Both parties must be 16 or over
Obtain marriage notice forms
Return marriage notice forms with birth
certificates, and death certificate or divorce decree certificate if second marriage
Collect marriage schedule
Finalize date of ceremony
Finalize place of ceremony
Sign marriage schedule and arrange for it to be signed by two witnesses and person who conducted the wedding
Return marriage schedule to registrar within three days
