How to give notice

You will need to book a notice of intention to marry (notice) appointment with your local registry office. This may be in Camden if you are a resident or in another borough if you live elsewhere.

Before this appointment you must know the venue and have an idea of when you would like to get married. You cannot give notice more than one year in advance of your ceremony.

A notice of marriage or civil partnership is a legal statement which you must sign. Once completed, it will be available on our public notice boards for 28 days.

This is a legal requirement and once notice has been given you must wait at least 29 days before the marriage or civil partnership can take place. This could be extended to 71 days depending on your immigration status.

We would advise you give notice at least 3 months before your ceremony if possible. Notices are valid for one year.

Give notice of marriage

Give notice of a civil partnership

Please note: Camden Registration Service will be cashless from 17th February 2020. All major Debit and Credit cards are accepted apart from American Express.   

Fees

Fees per person for notice or no impediment appointments prior to marriage or civil partnership: £35.

Fees per person for notice or no impediment appointments prior to marriage or civil partnership which are subject to immigration control: £47.

Please note, these are booking fees which become notice fees upon attendance of a notice appointment and are non-refundable if notice cannot be taken for incorrect documentation or if you have to re-book for any other reason.

Give notice of a marriage

Give notice of a civil partnership

If you or your partner are foreign nationals from outside the UK, EEA or Switzerland, you must both attend a designated registry office together to give notice. Camden is a designated office.

However, if you are both exempt from immigration controls in the UK (for example, you have indefinite leave to remain, right of abode, diplomatic status or are serving in HM Forces), notice must instead be given at your local register office.

If either of you has a limited visa (for example, a work, student or tourist visa), you will automatically be referred to the Home Office for further investigation which may result in your notice period being extended to 71 days.

Further details can be found at www.gov.uk

Proof of Identity
 

• Valid Passport / EEA Identity card (issued in Europe)
• Passport size photos of both parties if one or both of you are subject to immigration control

If you are British and do not have a valid passport and:

• Were born before 1st  January 1983 then you will need your original birth certificate.
• Were born after 1st January 1983, you will need to bring your original full birth certificate and your mother’s birth certificate. 

Proof of Address for each of you

• Original (received by post) utility bill dated within the last 3 months
• Original bank statement (received by post) dated within the last month
• Most recent council tax bill (original received by post) for the current financial year
• Current UK driving license
• A letter from the property owner confirming residency

Other documents

If you have been married or in a civil partnership before whether in the UK or abroad, you will also need to bring:

• Original Decree Absolute/Final Divorce document
• Original Death certificate of former spouse
• Certified translation of any foreign certificates/documents

Further information can be found on www.gov.uk

You must show evidence of:

• Who you are e.g. name, age and nationality
• Evidence of where you live
• Evidence of any former marriage that has ended, if applicable
• Documents to show change of name, if applicable
• If you are not a British Citizen please look at the additional guidance on www.gov.uk

Do you need your divorce papers to get married again?

When you give notice of intention to marry or enter into a civil partnership, you will need to present your divorce decree (marriage) or certificate of dissolution (civil partnership). 

How to get a copy of a certificate?

If you have been married or in a civil partnership before, you can get copies of these certificates from the register office where the marriage or civil partnership took place.

If you are getting married or having a civil partnership overseas, you should contact the country's embassy or consulate who will advise you about their requirements.

Information required at the appointment

• You must be able to state the town, locality and country where your ceremony will take place
• You must also know the full names, date of birth, address, occupation, marital condition and nationality of your partner.
• You should check all of the above with the local authorities in the country where you wish to have your ceremony.

Book a notice appointment for a certificate of non impediment (CNI)

The appointments, requirements and what to bring are essentially the same as giving notice. The key difference is that we only need to see, and can only generate, certificates of non-impediment (CNIs) for British or Commonwealth nationals. If a British person is marrying a foreign (non-Commonwealth) national abroad, then we only see the British person. This is therefore opposite to the provision of notices for marriage in England or Wales involving one European Economic Area (EEA) national and one foreign national where it is essential that both come together. From 2 March 2022, you must give at least 28 days notice – so (based on that date) the earliest you could get the document would be 31 March 2022.

Proof of identification and nationality

• a valid passport, or
• a valid British driving licence (both parts) plus a full British birth certificate if you were born in the UK before 01/01/1983. If born in the UK after 01/01/1983, you can bring driving licence plus your full UK birth certificate and your mother’s UK birth certificate

Proof of address

• a British driving licence (both parts), or
• an original (not self-printed) utility bill dated in the last three months or bank statement dated in the last month, or
• a council tax bill or mortgage statement (not self-printed) dated in the last 12 months

Proof that any former marriage or civil partnership has ended

• a court-stamped copy of the decree absolute or final order of divorce or dissolution. If your divorce document records your previous married surname but you wish to re-marry using your maiden or other surname, please also bring a linking document such as the previous marriage certificate
• a death certificate of your former partner. Any widows, widowers or surviving civil partners that are not mentioned on the death certificate as the partner of their previous spouse must also bring their former marriage or civil partnership certificate
• if any document was issued in a foreign language we will need a translated document as well as the original

Information required at the appointment

• you must be able to state the town, locality and country where your ceremony will take place
• you must also know the full names, date of birth, address, occupation, marital condition and nationality of your partner

Points to consider about Certificates of non impediment (CNIs)

• CNIs are not accepted in all countries, especially not in Commonwealth countries
• you may have to translate the certificate into the language of the country of the marriage or civil partnership
• you may have to have the certificate legalised (stamped with the Hague Apostille) by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office or the country concerned
• you may have to have exchange your CNI for one that's valid in the country at the nearest embassy or consulate to where your ceremony takes place
• the CNI will have an issue date and no stated expiry date on the document. However, the country where your ceremony takes place may stipulate that the marriage or civil partnership must be within, for example, three, six or twelve months of the issue date

You should check all of these factors with the local authorities in the country where you wish to have the ceremony.

Before booking your ‘notice’ and ‘ceremony’ please ensure that you read our terms and conditions in full. They are designed to act as a guide to assist you with your ceremony planning. 

Ceremony terms and conditions (PDF)