Wedding paperwork: the marriage license, explained
What a marriage license is, the questions to ask your local authority, and the documents almost every jurisdiction asks for, written for couples marrying anywhere.
The short version
- Marriage law is local: notice periods, officiants, witnesses and license validity all differ by country and often by state.
- The license (or notice) comes before the wedding; the certificate is the record you get afterwards.
- Ask your local authority a year out and act as soon as your rule allows.
- Marrying abroad usually needs passports, birth certificates and proof that you are free to marry.
A warning before anything else: marriage law is local, and it is local in ways that surprise people. Notice periods, who may officiate, whether witnesses must be adults, how long a license stays valid: all of it differs between countries, and often between states, provinces or counties within the same country.
So this article does not tell you what your rule is. It tells you what to ask, and what almost everybody is asked for, so that one phone call gets you a complete answer instead of three.
What a marriage license actually is
It is permission to marry, issued in advance by a civil authority. It is not the same thing as the marriage certificate, which is the record issued afterwards proving that you did. Couples routinely conflate the two, and then discover in the last month that they have neither.
A religious ceremony does not always produce a legal marriage on its own. In some countries it does; in others you need a separate civil ceremony, sometimes on a different day. If you are having a religious wedding, this is the first question to ask.
The six questions to ask your local authority
- How far in advance must we give notice, and is there a minimum waiting period after that?
- How long does the license remain valid once issued?
- Which documents do we each need to bring, and do any need translating or certifying?
- Who is legally allowed to officiate here, and must they be registered in advance?
- How many witnesses, and are there age or relationship restrictions?
- Does our religious ceremony count legally, or do we need a separate civil one?
Write down the answers with the date you got them and the name of the person who gave them. If anything later goes wrong, that note is what resolves it.
Documents almost everybody is asked for
- Photo identification: passport or national identity card
- Proof of address, sometimes recent and sometimes in both names
- Birth certificates, occasionally in a certified or long-form version
- Evidence that any previous marriage has ended: a divorce decree or death certificate
- For a marriage abroad, sometimes a certificate of no impediment or equivalent from your home country
The document that catches people out most often is the one proving a previous marriage has ended. Originals are frequently required, copies are frequently refused, and replacing a lost decree can take weeks.
Getting married abroad
Two extra questions. First: will the marriage be recognized at home, and does anything need registering when you return? Second: how long must you be in the country before you may marry? A residency requirement of several days is common and is the reason destination weddings often begin midweek.
Many couples solve all of this by marrying legally at home, quietly, before or after the celebration abroad. There is nothing dishonest in that and it removes an entire category of risk.
When to do it
Ask the questions twelve months out and act on the answers as soon as your local rule allows. This is the one item on a wedding checklist where being early costs nothing and being late cannot be fixed with money.
Every other supplier can be replaced in a week. The paperwork cannot.
Common questions
What is the difference between a marriage license and a marriage certificate?
The license is permission to marry, issued in advance by a civil authority. The certificate is the record issued afterwards, proving the marriage took place. You need the first before the wedding and the second for everything that follows, such as changing your name.
How far in advance do we need a marriage license?
It depends entirely on where you are marrying: some places require weeks of formal notice, others issue a license the same day, and many licenses expire after a fixed period. Ask your local authority twelve months out and act as soon as your rule allows.
Does a religious ceremony make us legally married?
In some countries yes. In others no, and a separate civil ceremony is required, sometimes on a different day. If you are having a religious wedding, confirm this with your local authority before anything else.
What paperwork do we need to marry abroad?
Usually your passports, birth certificates, evidence that any previous marriage has ended, and often a certificate of no impediment from your home country. Also check the residency requirement: many countries require you to be in the country for several days before you may marry.
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