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

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

Here’s a quick checklist to give you an idea of whether you’re ready for your notice appointment.

Do you want a civil partnership or a marriage ceremony?

What’s the difference? (PDF)

Are you getting married in the UK or abroad?

If you're getting married abroad the process is different.

You must know the name of the Venue that you intend to get married / form your civil partnership in.

If you arrive at your appointment without having chosen a venue, you will need to rebook and pay the fee for the appointment again. You do have to have a booking with your chosen venue prior to the appointment, but you should check that it has availability.

Please note that if your ceremony is at an approved venue you will have to make 2 separate bookings, one to hire the venue itself, one to book the registrars to attend your ceremony. 

Is your marriage/civil partnership date within one year of your notice appointment?

You cannot give notice more than one year in advance of your ceremony

If you are a Non- British or Irish national without the relevant marriage / spouse / civil partnership visa/ EUSS status you must read guidance at gov.uk.

If you are missing any documents, you will not be seen and you will need to rebook and pay again. Click on the Non-British or Irish nationals tab for more information, but you must do your own investigations and read the guidance at gov.uk as well. 

Proof of identity & nationality (one for each of you)

• Valid passport

Passport size photos

If you are attending a notice with a non-British/Irish/Non-Relevant national, without EUSS status you must both bring passport photos. See the below tab Non-British/Irish nationals without EU Settled Status.

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

• Were born in the UK before 1^st January 1983 then you will need your original birth certificate
• Were born in the UK After 1^st January 1983 then you will need to bring your original full birth certificate and your mother’s full UK birth certificate.

Proof of Address (two separate documents, one for each of you)

If you do not live in the England and Wales, you must reside at an address in the England and Wales for 8 full days prior to Giving Notice and obtain proof of your residence there. This must be one of the following documents. 

• An original (received by post) utility bill dated within the last 3 months
• An original bank statement (received by post or printed directly in bank branch and date stamped) dated within the last month
• The most recent council tax bill (original received by post) for the current financial year
• Your current valid UK driving license. Both full and provisional are accepted. 
• Letter from the property owner confirming residency for at least seven clear days immediately prior to the date of your notice appointment.
  This letter must state that the person providing the letter is the owner or proprietor of the property, along with their name and address. It must be signed by them.

EU Nationals (Additional Documents)

• If you have appropriate EU Settlement Status (EUSS) you must bring evidence that this has been granted. You must get your Share Code from here and provide this at notice.
• If your EU Settlement Status (EUSS) application is in progress you need to provide a Certificate of Application; digitally, or physically, at your appointment. You may need to ask the Home Office for this. 
• Failure to show EU Settlement Status (EUSS) means you will have to provide documents under the header ‘Non- British or Irish nationals.’ 

If you fail to bring the correct documents you will need to rebook your appointment and pay the required fee.

If you are a Non-British or Irish National and do not have the relevant visa to marry or enter into a civil partnership in the UK, or don't have appropriate EU  SETTLEMENT STATUS (EUSS), in addition to the documents under the header "What you’ll need to bring" you must also bring:

• 1 passport size photo for each person (including British or Irish nationals if they are to marry or enter into a civil partnership with a non-British/Irish national.) 
• Any visas you do have to support your presence in the UK.
• A credit or debit card to make payment of an additional £24 for the InScope fee. This is for the home office Marriage and civil partnership referral and investigation scheme.
• If one or both of you cannot speak english, you will need to bring a third party to translate. One partner cannot translate for the other. If you do use interpreters, they must also act as witnesses at your ceremony.
• If you do not live in the England or Wales, you must reside at an address in the England or Wales for 8 full days prior to Giving Notice and obtain proof of your residence there. Documents we accept are listed in the "what you’ll need to bring" tab above.

If you fail to bring the correct documents you will need to rebook your appointment and pay the required fee.

Note: consideration of international divorces or dissolution documents will incur a fee.

If you have been married or been in a civil partnership before, in this or any other country, you will also need to bring:

• Original/Certified Copy decree absolute / final divorce / dissolution document.
• Translation of any foreign certificates/documents including the original foreign document.

If you have been married but your spouse has died, you will need. 

• Original/Certified Copy Death certificate of former spouse.

The rules on giving notice have changed, as a result of The UK's exit from the EU. 

A ‘relevant national’ is a British Citizen, an Irish Citizen or a person who has been granted EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) status (either settled or pre-settled or has a pending application for that status submitted before June 2021).

If either of you is a 'non-relevant national', one or both of the parties giving notice will have to reside in the district of Camden in order for us to take your notice.

If both parties to the notice don’t live in Camden you both must give notice in a district one or both of you lives in. Please check this before booking your notice appointment.

More information can be found on the link below: https://www.gov.uk/marriages-civil-partnerships/give-notice

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.

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.

Accessibility: Our office at Tavistock House has step-free access via a lift to the Mezzanine Floor on which we are situated. 

Terms and Conditions (PDF)

Give notice of a marriage

Give notice of a civil partnership

Give notice to get married abroad

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