Register Office Wedding questions

We'll be getting married in the next month or so, but confused about where we can do it.....

Do we need to get married in the Register Office nearest us or can we do it anywhere?  We're in London, so if we could do it anywhere, we have plenty of choices. 

We both have to prove we've been here for a week or so, right?  If I'm on a utility bill for that week and we get a print out of it, is that enough?  Or is my passport stamp enough?

After that, there's 15 days before having the ceremony or more depending on available times, I think.....

So much to figure out.....

Help? 

If you are getting married in London in the next month or so, you need to start taking care of things now. You can get married in any that you want, pick which registry office you want to get married in. Call them and make a booking for your ceremony.

Then, call the council in which you and your DF live, and make a booking to give notice of your intent to marry. You have to do this since you are subject to immigration control. Do this NOW. I called my council two months in advance of my wedding, and the first available appointment was a week AFTER my wedding. Needless to say, I freaked out and ended up begging a lady in the Registry Office for an earlier appointment. Luckily the woman in charge was a sweetheart and took sympathy on me and the fact that my family from the States had already purchased flights and all...

You are right that you have to have lived in the borough for more than 7 days before giving notice. You can prove this using council tax bills, utility bills, etc. The passport stamp is not sufficient proof because it doesn't state in which borough you live.

Once you give notice, 15 days must pass before your ceremony can take place. You have to go and pick up the certificates for marriage in person. You then take these with you on the day of your ceremony.

Please note that once you have given notice, you cannot change the venue, unless you go through the entire process again.

Hope that this helps. It took me a while to figure it out! Congrats on getting married!  

Great!  I'm sure I'll be asking more questions later, but just so I understand correctly, I don't need to get married in the borough where we live?

So we give notice to the council we live in but we can get married in any Register Office we like? 

I'm being put on the bills today... a utility bill should be enough, right?  Do we need something other than the bill to prove how long I've been here?

Thanks for the help, nharpold!    It'd be sooooo confusing without the help of UK Yankee!

No problem, TravelingFrog! Glad that I can help!

That is correct, you can choose any venue to marry, but you have to give notice with your local council. DH and I live in London, but we got married in the registry office in a village in Derbyshire.

A utility bill should be sufficient, just make sure that it is dated at least seven days prior to your appointment. We brought a utility bill and our council tax bill (because this definitely proves that you live in the borough, and both our names are on it). You also have to bring your passport/visa with you and (if applicable) "evidence of the termination of your previous marriage if you have been married before".

Also, be sure to bring proof that you have booked the date/venue of your ceremony. When we booked, we sent a cheque to the registry office, and they sent us a receipt confirming the date/time/place. This was helpful when we brought it to the appointment.

Feel free to post more questions and I (and other UK-Ys) will try to help!

So- first, book the ceremony at any register office, then give notice at our local borough?

Whew!  I'm getting stressed trying to figure this out and look for a flat at the same time.... I should focus on this first......

We both have to prove we've been here for a week or so, right?  If I'm on a utility bill for that week and we get a print out of it, is that enough?  Or is my passport stamp enough?

When I gave notice, they asked for the boarding pass I used for my flight to the UK. Also, the town we live in and were married in was not the place we gave notice. We had to give notice at the Shropshire register office in Shrewsbury even though we don't live there because I'm a foreign national.

They asked for your boarding pass?  I'd think the passport stamp would cover that....

Where did you give notice and how did you know you had to do it elsewhere?

They asked for your boarding pass?  I'd think the passport stamp would cover that....

Where did you give notice and how did you know you had to do it elsewhere?

I called my local Register Office about giving notice and they told me that I couldn't give notice there because I was a foreign national and I had to do it via the Shropshire council (obviously this will be different for you because you don't live in Shropshire). So the woman gave me their phone number and I called them to schedule and appointment to give notice. During that conversation, I asked what I could use to prove I had been a resident and she said either a utility bill (which you said you might be able to use) or the boarding pass I used for my flight to the UK. I asked about the stamp in my passport and they said while they would look for the stamp, they needed the boarding pass to verify the stamp.

I would call your local council and see what they say. If you have to give notice elsewhere, they will know and direct you.

Ok.  Great!  Thanks!    There should be plenty of options in London if I have to give notice somewhere else.    But it's nice to know beforehand. 

Good luck! Happy wedding planning! Congrats. 

Do we have to go together to give book the ceremony or to give notice?

DF works and I have MUCH more free time during the day to take care of stuff.

I'm guessing he has to be there to give notice....

He probably has to be there to get married, too, I suppose.   

Do we have to go together to give book the ceremony or to give notice?

DF works and I have MUCH more free time during the day to take care of stuff.

I'm guessing he has to be there to give notice....

He probably has to be there to get married, too, I suppose.   

My local council's website says that they encourage you to go together, but it's not required. It is required that you both give notice in person, though.

Ok.  So I can make the provisional ceremony date without him, but we'll give notice together.    The less he has to do and the more I can do alone the better..... he's got work and I've got nothing to do. 

Thanks again! 

Yes you should be able to do some of the stuff by yourself. We applied in the islington city hall (for our post code) but actually had the ceremony at Old Marlybone Town Hall. We applied together, but I took care of the payments and other tiny appointments solo. I was in the same situation of being bored and him working all the time.

Best of luck to you both!

So I set our appointment to give notice yesterday and the lady said we would talk with the Superintendent Registrar when we give notice about setting a date for the ceremony..... maybe she/I was confused, but it seemed like the wedding date is set first, then the appointment to give notice (as long as that is 15 days before the ceremony....)

Maybe I'll have DF ring them today..... it's hard for me to understand accents and think quickly over the phone.