Marriages and civil partnerships in England and Wales
Documents you'll need to give notice
You must bring originals of the following documents to your appointment:
- details of the final venue for your ceremony
- a valid passport (or UK birth certificate if you were born before 1 January 1983)
- proof of your home address
- proof of any name changes (for example, a copy of a deed poll)
To prove your address, bring one of the following:
- valid UK or Irish driving licence
- gas, water or electricity bill from the last 3 months
- bank or building society statement from the last month
- Council Tax bill from the last 12 months
- mortgage statement from the last 12 months
- current tenancy agreement
- letter from your landlord (dated within the last 7 days) confirming you live there and including your landlord鈥檚 name, address and their signature
If your normal address is outside the UK, you鈥檒l need to give details of a UK contact address. For example, this could be your partner, friend or family member鈥檚 address.
If you鈥檝e been married or in a civil partnership before
You鈥檒l also need to bring one of the following documents:
- a decree absolute or final order
- your former partner鈥檚 death certificate
You need to bring proof of your divorce, annulment or dissolution if it was granted outside of the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man. You鈥檒l have to pay a fee of 拢55 for the local register office to check your documents or 拢83 if the General Register Office needs to check them.
If you or your partner are from outside the UK
You鈥檒l also need to bring:
- a passport sized photo for each of you (even if only one of you is from outside the UK)
- proof of your current immigration status (for example, your visa)
- a translation of any documents that are not in English
If you鈥檙e from the EU, EEA or have settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme
You鈥檒l need to bring confirmation of either:
- your settled or pre-settled status - you鈥檒l need to bring a 鈥榮hare code鈥� which you can get from the 鈥榲iew and prove your immigration status鈥� service (the code will be valid for 30 days)
- an application to the EU Settlement Scheme you made on or before 30 June 2021, which you鈥檙e waiting for a decision on - you鈥檒l need to bring your certificate of application