Documents needed to give notice of a marriage or civil partnership

You will need to provide evidence of:

Your nationality

Please bring one of the following:

• valid passport
• valid British travel document
• biometric residence card or permit
• British birth certificates
  • if you are British and born before 1 January 1983, we will need to see either your full or short British birth certificate
  • if you are British and born on or after 1 January 1983, we will need to see your full British birth certificate, which includes your parents' details, plus either your mother or father's British birth certificate if your parents were married when you were born (if your parents were unmarried when you were born, only your mother's birth certificate can be accepted; please note that if you are providing your father's birth certificate, you must also provide your parent's marriage certificate: if your parents were born outside the UK, then you must provide evidence of British nationality at the time of your birth)
  • if your parents were born on or after 1 January 1983, we will also need to see evidence of their parents' nationality (ss this is quite complex please email life.events@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk for further guidance)

If both parties to the marriage or civil partnership are British, Irish or EEA citizens with EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) status granted or applied for before 30 June 2021 please refer to the documents listed on We are British, Irish or an EEA citizen, as the required documents are slightly different.

Your address

Please bring one of the following:

• utility bill dated no more than three months prior to the date of the appointment
• bank or building society statement or passbook dated no more than one month prior to the date of the appointment
• Council Tax bill dated no more than one year prior to the date of the appointment
• mortgage statement from the last 12 months
• current residential tenancy agreement
• valid driving licence in the name of the person giving notice of marriage
• letter from the owner or proprietor of the address which is the person's place of residence, proof will be required that the person is the tenant or householder e.g. current tenancy agreement / mortgage statement
  This letter must include:
  • the name, address, date and signature of the owner / proprietor
  • confirmation that this person is the owner / proprietor
  • confirmation of the name of the person giving notice and that they have been resident at the address for at least the 8 days immediately prior to the notice appointment

Evidence of your age

If either of you are under the age of 18, we will need to see proof that your parents, or guardians, agree to the marriage. If your parents are divorced, we may also need to see the court order that gives custody to one of them.

Photos

Both of the couple needs to provide a colour, passport size / style photograph, please note if we need to refer your application to the Home Office there will be a further charge of £12 each in addition to your £35 notice fee.

Any name changes

Evidence of any name change (marriage certificate; deed poll etc.)

If you have been divorced or widowed

If you have been married or in a civil partnership before, we will need to see:

• Final order or decree absolute
  • if your divorce was granted in England or Wales and you have been issued with a paper version of your final order or decree absolute from the Court we will need to see this
  • if your divorce was granted in England or Wales and you have been issued with an electronic version of the final order or decree absolute, we will need to see this but not electronically this must be printed and brought to the office in paper format
  • if your divorce was granted outside England and Wales, we will need to see the final divorce documents issued along with a full translation into English if the document was written in any other language
    • a fee is chargeable for clearance of any divorces granted in countries outside England and Wales, the fee will be either £50 or £75, depending on whether these have to be referred to the General Register Office for the Registrar General to confirm whether the document is acceptable under British law; it is not possible to specify how long it may take for approval to come and authorities to marry or form a civil partnership cannot be issued until this approval is received, so please do take this into account when considering a marriage or formation date as there may be a significant delay before a ceremony can take place
  • the death certificate of the spouse / civil partner – if the surviving partner is not mentioned on the death certificate then you must also provide a certified copy of the marriage or civil partnership certificate
  • the presumed death certificate of the spouse

Please note: If you do not bring all the required, original, valid, documentation we will not be able to complete your notice and a further appointment will have to be booked and paid for.

Some of my documents are not in English, what should I bring?

If any of your documents are in any language other than English, you will need to bring the original document plus a full translation, into English, certified at the bottom of the document by the translator stating “I certify this to be a true translation of the document”. The name, address, telephone number and signature of the person who translated the document(s) must be included.

Home Office guidance for couples subject to immigration controls

Registration officials will be required to refer all marriage and civil partnership notices to the Home Office if one or both of the parties are EEA nationals without EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) status granted or applied for before 30 June 2021 or non-EEA nationals who do not provide specified evidence that they have (a) settled status in the UK (Indefinite Leave to Enter or Remain), (b) an EU law right of permanent residence in the UK, (c) a marriage or civil partnership visa, or (d) exemption from immigration control (e.g. with the right of abode in the UK).

The Home Office may decide to extend the 28 clear day notice period to 70 days where a sham marriage or civil partnership is suspected. The Home Office will inform both parties, in writing, if this is the case.

The Home Office will then make a decision whether the marriage or civil partnership schedule can be issued allowing a legal ceremony to take place. If the registration official is content to do so, and all paperwork has been cleared, for example any foreign divorce documents, then the relevant paperwork can be issued after the notice period has expired and the couple can proceed with their marriage or civil partnership.

If your notice period is extended to 70 days, you will be required to comply with a Home Office investigation. If you do not comply with the investigation, you will be unable to marry or enter into a civil partnership on the basis of that notice.