Whether a legal ceremony abroad is even open to you depends on that country's rules, not on the venue's brochure. This is the shared paperwork. The country guides have the local law and the local costs: France, Italy, Spain and Portugal.
A legal ceremony or a symbolic one
GOV.UK says whether you can marry in a country depends on its law. You might not be able to if you are not a national or do not meet a residency rule, if you want a same-sex marriage and that country does not recognise one, or if you do not meet a religious requirement. Check with the authority that registers marriages there, and with the person conducting the ceremony, before you pay a venue deposit.
A marriage that was lawful where it took place, and that would be allowed under UK law, is recognised in the UK. A symbolic ceremony is a celebration. It does not marry you. Couples who want the party abroad and the paperwork simple give notice and marry at a UK register office first. The statutory ceremony in the registrar's own room is £62, on top of the notice fee below.
In some countries you can marry at a British embassy, consulate or high commission. That is a consular marriage, and it is the exception that does get a UK certificate. GOV.UK lists which countries offer it on the same getting married abroad pages.
Where a UK couple can legally marry
The four countries we have written up in full do not work the same way. Each sentence below is the fork. The guide has the documents, the fees and the timeline.
- France. A civil marriage happens at the mairie and nowhere else. service-public.fr requires one of you, or a parent, to have lived in the commune. Most UK couples marry at home and hold a symbolic ceremony in France. British nationals use a self-declaration form rather than a certificate of no impediment.
- Italy. Two people who live in the UK can marry at a comune. The file is a certificate of no impediment and a sworn declaration, apostilled. Many couples still marry at a UK register office and keep Italy symbolic.
- Spain. A civil ceremony needs residence in Spain. A Catholic wedding can be legal for non-residents who qualify. Most UK couples marry at home.
- Portugal. Two UK residents can marry at a conservatória, or have the registrar come to the venue. The paperwork is still a certificate of no impediment and an apostille, and the documents expire, which is why plenty of couples marry at home anyway.
Documents, and the certificate of no impediment
Not every country wants the same proof that you are free to marry. If you hold a British passport, start with the FCDO service that checks whether you need a certificate of no impediment, a marital status affirmation, or something else, and shows the fee before you pay. You cannot save an application and come back to it.
Where the country sends you to your register office in England or Wales, a certificate of no impediment is giving notice of marriage for a wedding abroad. The rules are the same ones as a wedding at home: at least 29 days, you must have lived in the district for the past 7 days, and the fee is £46.50 each since 6 April 2026. The notice names the country and the person. It is not a general single-status letter.
Scotland and Northern Ireland issue their own proof. A couple living in Scotland deals with the Scottish registrar, not an English register office. A couple living in Northern Ireland applies for a certificate of legal capacity to marry; nidirect says it is sent after at least 28 days. If you are not a British national, ask your own embassy. An English register office cannot give you a certificate of no impediment for every nationality.
Alongside that, countries commonly ask for a birth certificate and your passport, and for a decree absolute or death certificate if either of you has been married before. Ask the authority there for the list in writing. The country guides quote the lists we have checked.
The apostille
An apostille is the UK Legalisation Office's stamp that a signature or seal on a UK document is genuine. It does not make the marriage legal. You need one only when the country, or the notary in front of you, asks for the document to be legalised. Apply online at get your document legalised.
| Service | Fee per document | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Standard paper apostille | £45, plus post or courier | Usually up to 25 working days, plus delivery |
| e-Apostille | £35 | Up to 2 working days |
| Courier back to a UK address | £6 per 1.5kg | On top of the paper service |
| Courier to a European address | £32 per 1.5kg | On top of the paper service |
| Courier to the rest of the world | £42 per 1.5kg | On top of the paper service |
How long getting married abroad takes
Two clocks are the same wherever you go. Giving notice in England and Wales takes 29 days before a certificate of no impediment can be issued. A standard paper apostille then takes up to 25 working days, plus the post. Anything that needs both cannot be started the week you fly.
The third clock is the country's, and it is why the guides exist. Italy's documents expire, so you cannot give notice a year ahead and sit on the file. France's mairie, where you qualify at all, has its own notice period. Portugal has a window you have to marry inside. The number is in the country guide. Read it before you book the notice appointment, then put the legal steps on the wedding checklist next to the venue.
Venues abroad are a separate booking from the paperwork, and they do not wait for it. Enquire while the legal route is still a question, and do not pay a non-refundable deposit until you know you can marry there, or you have decided the ceremony will be symbolic.
Registering the marriage at home
You do not register a foreign marriage in the UK, because you cannot. GOV.UK: the authorities in the country register it in their records, and only UK marriages are registered here. You cannot order a UK marriage certificate for a ceremony that happened abroad. The foreign certificate is the one you keep. A translation helps a bank or the passport office read it. Order extra copies before you fly home.
A consular marriage is the exception. It is registered in the UK civil records, and you get a UK certificate. A symbolic ceremony is not a marriage, so there is nothing to register anywhere except the UK ceremony you had first, if you had one.
Changing your name on a passport still needs the marriage evidence. GOV.UK's name-change guidance is the page to read, and the admin after the wedding is on the wedding checklist.
What getting married abroad costs
The UK-side legal costs are small and published. The wedding itself is not, and it is different in every region, so this page does not invent an average destination wedding. The country guides have the venue and catering figures.
| UK-side legal step | Cost |
|---|---|
| Giving notice in England and Wales, per person, including for a certificate of no impediment | £46.50 |
| Statutory register office ceremony, if you marry legally at home | £62 |
| Paper apostille, per document | £45, plus post or courier |
| e-Apostille, where the document and the country allow it | £35 |
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Quick answers
A foreign marriage is recognised in the UK if it was lawful in the country where it took place and it would be allowed under UK law. That is GOV.UK's test. A symbolic ceremony is not a marriage. You cannot turn it into one by registering it when you get home.
Only if the country asks for one. British passport holders can check on GOV.UK, which also covers a marital status affirmation. France does not ask a British national for a certificate of no impediment. Italy and Portugal do. In England and Wales the certificate, when you need it, comes from giving notice at your register office: £46.50 each and at least 29 days.
No. Only UK marriages are registered in the UK, so a ceremony abroad does not produce a UK marriage certificate. Keep the foreign certificate, and a translation if you will show it to a bank or the passport office. A consular marriage at a British embassy is the case that is registered here.
Allow 29 days for notice in England and Wales, then up to 25 working days for a standard paper apostille, plus post. The country's own deadline sits on top of that, and it is in the relevant country guide. Do not book the notice appointment until you have read that deadline, because some documents expire.