Marriages and Civil Partnerships - Print version

Marriages and Civil partnerships can only take place in a building that has been licensed to hold these ceremonies. As well as the historic Cheylesmore Manor House, [/cheylesmoremanor] Coventry has a wonderful range of venues [https://www.ceremoniesinsidecoventry.co.uk/approvedvenues] to suit every ceremony style.

If you wish to marry in England and Wales you have the choice of religious or civil marriage. Civil Marriages can take place at Register Offices and at other buildings approved by the Council. If you wish to marry at one of these, you need to check with them if they are available and they will then contact the Register Office to make sure a registrar can attend at your chosen time.  The Register Office staff will then tell you of the next legal procedures.

About the notice of intention

Before anyone can marry or enter a civil partnership in England or Wales, each person has to give their own legal notice of intention.  If both people are either British or an EU National then this notice is given to the Superintendent Registrar in the district where you live. 

Both of you must have lived in a district in England or Wales for at least seven days immediately before giving a Notice of Marriage or Civil Partnership.

• If one of you is from outside the UK 
  • You and your partner must give notice together at a register office [https://www.gov.uk/register-offices] in the district where at least one of you lives, unless you both have one of the following:
    • British or Irish citizenship
    • settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme
    • an application to the EU Settlement Scheme that you made before 30 June 2021, which you’re waiting for a decision on.

This notice can be given up to six months before the date of your ceremony.

Once given, the notice will be displayed within the register office where it was given for 28 days. After that, as long as we have received and cleared all documents needed and there has been no legal objection, we will give permission for your ceremony to go ahead. 

In instances where one or both of the parties is a non-EEA national with limited or no immigration status the notice period may be extended to 70 days by the Home Office. You will not be able to get married until the 28 or 70 days have elapsed. Read the Home Office guidance [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-marriages-and-civil-partnerships].

You will be able to marry or enter a civil partnership in any register office or approved premises in England or Wales, no matter where you live, but if you plan to marry in a religious building that is not in your area, you must be able to show that this is your usual place of worship.

Same sex marriages may only take place in a religious building that has applied for and has been granted a licence to perform same sex marriages.

Registering your notice of intention

Coventry Register Office operates an appointment system for giving of notice of marriage/civil partnership.

Booking an appointment

Please make sure you contact us well in advance of your ceremony date to arrange an appointment and give time for all the legal work to be completed.

There is a charge of £42 per person to give a Notice of Marriage/Civil Partnership. This fee must be paid when you make your appointment.

A refund will be given if you have to cancel or change your appointment as long as you give at least two working days' notice - unless exceptional circumstances can be proved. 

Online

Book an appointment for giving of Notice of Marriage [/booknoticeofmarriage]

By telephone

You will need to have a payment card ready when phoning to book your appointment on 024 7683 3141.

What you need to bring to your appointment

When you give your Notice you will each need to bring the following documents:

• Current, valid, full passport

or

• If born before 1 January 1983 a birth certificate (short or full)

or

• If born on or after 1 January 1983 your own full birth certificate showing your parents' names and one of your parents' (if married to each other at time of your birth) or your mother's (if not married at the time of your birth) passport or birth certificate.

you must also provide

• Identification showing your current names and addresses, such as a utility bill (less than three months old), bank statement (less than one month old), driving licence, current mortgage statement or council tax bill
• If you were born outside of the United Kingdom and do not hold UK Citizenship please ensure you bring evidence of your immigration status or visit the Immigration and Nationality Department [http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/] for further information.

The following documents may also be needed:

• If you have been married before and are divorced, your Decree Absolute with the court stamp on it (if the document is in a foreign language then a translation is needed)
• If you have been in a previous Civil Partnership and have since had this partnership dissolved, an original court order will be needed
• If you are widowed then your late wife's/husband's death certificate.
• Change of Name Deed or Statutory Declaration
• Completed Consent Form (if one of you is aged under 18). Forms are available from the Register Office

Fees relating to the dissolution of a previous Marriage/Civil Partnership obtained outside the British Isles

• £55.00 to your local register office for consideration
• £83.00 if the documents need to be sent to the Registrar General for consideration

This fee will be taken at the notice of marriage/Civil partnership appointment and can be paid by debit/credit card.

All of the above documents must be originals - photocopies are not acceptable.

You have to make sure that all the above legal work is completed and you must produce all of the documents needed - failure to produce them may mean that the Notice cannot be taken and further paperwork cannot be issued. If the notice cannot be taken at your appointment, we will not give a refund and may charge a further £42 each for any other appointment.

If you have any questions or need any further information please contact us by telephone or in person before your appointment.

A marriage in a church, or other religious building

If you are getting married in a Church of England church you should make all of the arrangements with the minister. Banns will usually be called, but if they are not, you must give notice of marriage by Certificate without Licence in the district(s) where you both live.

If you and/or your fiancé(e) are a non-EEA national and you wish to marry in the Anglican Church (the Church of England or the Church in Wales), you will be required to complete civil preliminaries as described above and give notice at a register office before your marriage. Other couples wishing to marry in the Anglican Church will need to provide specified evidence of British Citizenship or EEA nationality before completing Church preliminaries, e.g. the banns or common licence process. All marriages following civil preliminaries in England and Wales are subject to a minimum notice period of 28 days. If you and/or your partner are non-EEA nationals, the notice period may be extended to 70 days and you should allow sufficient time before the date of your planned marriage.

If you are getting married at any other religious building which is registered for marriages (such as Methodist, Baptist, Sikh, Muslim, Roman Catholic) you must give your notice of marriage. Please note that for single sex marriages, the religious building must be specifically licensed. Information on registering a religious building for single sex marriage is available from the register office.

It is normally only possible to be married in a religious building in the district where one or both of you live. You may, however, marry in a religious building in another district if you can show that it is your usual place of worship.

The religious building will usually have a person able to register your marriage. If this is not the case you must confirm with the Register Office for that district that they have a Registrar available.

Registrar attending a religious building

A Registrar from the Register Office attending a marriage in a religious building that does not have its own registrar costs £104 a couple, plus £12.50 for the Marriage Certificate.

Book a marriage or civil partnership ceremony

If the date of your ceremony is more than 12 months ahead you will have the option to use our save the date service. If your ceremony is less than 12 months or more than 4 months before the ceremony date you can pay a deposit or the full balance.

Your booking cannot be confirmed until notice of intention to marry or civil partnership [/noticeofmarriage] has taken place.

Ceremony location

You can book a ceremony at Cheylesmore Manor House [https://www.ceremoniesinsidecoventry.co.uk/cheylesmoremanorceremonysuite] or a Council approved venue [https://www.ceremoniesinsidecoventry.co.uk/approvedvenues].

Ceremony charges

View the current charges for the types of ceremony [/cheylesmoremanorfees].

Paying for your ceremony

You will need a debit or credit card to make your booking request, to either pay the full amount or a 'save the date' fee.