Legal Requirements
Last updated | 31/10/2011
You can be married either by:
A Religious Ceremony
A religious ceremony may be solemnised by a minister, clergyman,
priest or any other person entitled under the Marriage (Scotland)
Act 1977.
or
A Civil Ceremony
This may take place in either in a Registration Office or at an
approved venue and may be performed by an authorised Registrar or
Assistant Registrar (who may also have the title of Marriage
Officer) who has been specifically appointed by the Registrar
General.
Giving Notice of your Marriage
Both of you must complete and submit Marriage Notice forms,
along with the required documents and appropriate fees, to the
Registrar for the district in which the marriage is to take
place. The signing of the Marriage Notice is, in effect, a
declaration that the particulars and information given on the
Notice are correct.
Marriage Notice forms and information regarding fees may be
obtained form any Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages in
Scotland or you can download Marriage Notices from http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/
The Notices must be submitted early enough to enable the
Registrar to ensure that you are both free to marry each
other. Normally, Notices should be submitted to the Registrar
about six to eight weeks before the date of marriage. The
minimum period is 14 clear days before the date of your
marriage.
Only in exceptional circumstances will the Registrar General
authorise a marriage to take place if 14 clear days' notice has not
been given.
Marriage Notice forms are valid for 3 months from the date they
are received.
It is not necessary for both of you to attend personally at the
Registrar's office to submit Marriage Notices, but at least one of
you must contact the Registrar before the date of the marriage to
finalise arrangements and any further information required before
the marriage can proceed.
Documents to be Produced when Submitting Marriage Notices
- Birth Certificate of each party.
- If either of you are widowed - the death certificate of former
spouse.
- If either of you was previously married and the marriage was
terminated by divorce or annulment, a certified copy decree.
A decree of divorce granted outwith Scotland must be absolute and
final, a decree nisi is not acceptable.
- For divorces from some countries a foreign divorce
questionnaire may be required.
- A certificate of no impediment to marriage or some like
certificate issued by a competent authority in a foreign country,
if the person giving notice is domiciled outisde the United Kingdom
and has resided in the United Kingdom for less than two years.
- Any documents in a language other than English must be
accompanied by a certified translation in English.
- Passport (if available)
If you are subject to immigration controls
please visit
http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/regscot/getting-married-in-scotland/i-want-to-get-married-in-scotland-how-do-i-go-about-it.html for
further information.
The Marriage Schedule
The Marriage Schedule is a very important document. It is,
in effect, authority for the marriage to go ahead, and no marriage
can proceed without it. When the Registrar is satisfied that
there is no legal impediment to the marriage, a Marriage Schedule
will be prepared.
If the marriage is a civil ceremony, the Registrar will have the
Schedule at the marriage ceremony for signature.
If a religious marriage, one of the parties to the marriage must
call at the Registration Office within seven days of the marriage
to collect the Schedule, as it cannot be given to anyone other than
the bride and groom. The signed schedule must be returned to
the Registration Office within 3 days of the ceremony.
After the marriage ceremony, the Registrar will register the
marriage and produce a marriage certificate which will be sent to
you.
For further information please contact the Registration Service
in Perth on 01738 475121 or by email at perth-registrars@pkc.gov.uk
