Getting married in Australia - Frequently Asked Questions

After deciding where you want to be married you will need to lodge a Notice of Intended Marriage (PDF 884KB) with your chosen authorised celebrant at least one calendar month prior to your desired ceremony date.

The Notice of Intended Marriage can be obtained from your celebrant or downloaded from below:

When lodging your Notice you will need to present the following items to your authorised celebrant:

• Passport or birth certificate
• If applicable, evidence of termination of your previous marriage such as a divorce certificate or the death certificate of your previous spouse.

To be legally married in Australia you must engage a marriage celebrant (civil or religious) who is authorised to perform marriages in Australia.

 By law, in accordance with the Commonwealth Marriage Act 1961, on the day of the wedding the authorised marriage celebrant must be present to conduct the marriage ceremony where vows are exchanged in the presence of two witnesses over the age of 18 years and other guests. 

The Certificate of Marriage must also be signed by the authorised marriage celebrant, yourselves and your witnesses at the marriage ceremony.

Marriages in Australia cannot be solemnised by video link or by proxy.

Where you decide to be married will determine the type of authorised celebrant you need:

Civil Celebrant

Can solemnise marriages at all venues other than a church, temple or the Perth Registry Office at the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages.

Minister of Religion

Can solemnise marriages at any venue other than the Perth Registry Office but the ceremony must be conducted in the form or manner approved by their religious organisation.

A full list of authorised celebrants operating in Western Australia can be found at - www.ag.gov.au/families-and-marriage/marriage/find-marriage-celebrant

Marriage ceremony

To be considered valid, a marriage must be solemnised by an authorised celebrant in accordance with the Marriage Act 1961 and the event registered with the State or Territory’s registering authority. Authorised celebrants are required to explain the nature and obligations of marriage and undertake the necessary identity checks and complete required paperwork to ensure couples are eligible to be married.

Commitment / vow renewal ceremony

Couples who are already married cannot be married again.  However, a commitment ceremony, vow renewal or religious service may be suitable in these instances.  These types of ceremonies are quite often offered as an additional service by authorised celebrants. These events are not registered with the registering authority and paperwork is not required to be completed for these ceremonies.

Couples can marry overseas, however, they are encouraged to research the marriage laws of that country to ensure their ceremony will be a legal marriage.  Many couples choose to undertake a commitment ceremony or a religious ceremony overseas and then complete a legal registry style marriage in Australia upon their return.

Where couples choose to marry overseas, they are encouraged to obtain their marriage certificate from the country’s registering authority before their return to Australia as this may be difficult to do from an overseas location.  The certificate may need to be translated to English and/or authenticated/apostilled by the issuing country’s governing authority.

Note: where a couple are legally married overseas, the marriage cannot be registered in Australia nor can the couple re-marry in Australia.

If you are planning to marry overseas, you need to be aware that laws regarding marriage vary from country to country.  After you have decided where you will be getting married you will need to find out the marriage laws of that country.

Overseas marriage authorities often require evidence that the party is free to marry.  Such evidence may be a Result of Marriage Search Certificate which is available from the Registry and confirms that you have never been married in Western Australia, or if previously married, no subsequent marriage has been registered in Western Australia.    

Alternatively, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Consular Services offers a Certificate of No Impediment to Marriage – further information can be obtained from the Smartraveller website.

There is no provision to register an overseas marriage in Australia.
  
The overseas marriage would be generally recognised as a legal marriage if it is similar in nature to a marriage conducted in Australia, ie the couple were both over the age of 18 years, not already married and not in a prohibited relationship (ie too closely related). 

Once your marriage is registered in the country where the marriage occurred you will need to obtain a marriage certificate from that country’s registering authority. This document should be sufficient proof of your changed conjugal status, however, the certificate may need to be translated into English and authenticated or apostilled before being accepted by relevant Australian organisations.

Where you are applying for a Prospective Marriage Visa, you may be required to produce a Fiancé Visa Letter with your application.

These letters are provided by your authorised celebrant once you have lodged your Notice of Intended Marriage with them.
 
These letters should include the following information:

• names of the parties to the marriage
• birth dates of the parties to the marriage
• date of lodgement of the Notice
• date of prospective marriage ceremony
• date the notice expires
• name and registration number of the authorised celebrant.

Please refer to your authorised celebrant to obtain a Fiancé Visa Letter.

Documents issued by Australian government agencies may need to be apostilled or authenticated before being used overseas.  You should consult with the overseas authority who requested your document to ascertain their requirements.  Apostilling/authentication of documents is a service provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s notarial services.  More information regarding these services can be found on the Smartraveller website - https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/consular-services/notarial-services

Overseas documents needing to be apostilled/authenticated before being accepted by Australian organisations can be done through the consulate or embassy of the country which issued the document. A full list of consulate or embassy locations can be found on the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website - https://protocol.dfat.gov.au/Public/ConsulatesInAustralia

After the marriage ceremony the authorised celebrant has up to 14 days to submit your marriage documentation to the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages to have the event registered.

Once registered, couples can then apply for their legal certified marriage certificate through our online certificate application portal. This certificate is required to update your changed conjugal status with various government agencies and other organisations and as evidence of your entitlement to assume your married surname.

Visit the certificates online application portal.

Your marriage certificate will be needed to update your conjugal status and change of surname with the following organisations:

• Australian Taxation Office
• Banking Institutions
• Centrelink
• Department of Transport
• Doctor/Dentist
• Electoral Commission
• Employer
• Employment Unions
• Fines Enforcement Registry
• Insurance companies
• Landgate
• Lawyer/Solicitor
• Medicare and other health funds
• Passports Office
• Schools and day care centres
• Stockbrokers
• Superannuation
• Utilities – gas, electricity
• Wills and estate planners

Unless you are married at the Perth Registry Office the marriage certificate you receive on your wedding day is ceremonial and cannot be used for any legal purpose.

Ceremonial marriage certificate	Certified legal marriage certificate

You will need to apply for your legal certified marriage certificate from the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages in the state or territory you are married in. This marriage certificate will be accepted as proof of your changed conjugal status and your entitlement to assume your married surname.

In Australia, a person who marries may choose to assume their spouse’s surname or a combination of both surnames, in either order, with or without a hyphen.  This is done as a matter of custom and is not required by law.  A certified copy of a marriage certificate issued by an Australian Registry Office is usually sufficient evidence to have personal documentation changed to the married surname and formal registration of the change of name is not required.

However, if the policy of another agency or business is that you must provide them with a formal change of name document you may need to register a change of name at the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages.

Information related to registering a change of name in Western Australia, including the downloadable application form, refer to How to register a change of name after marriage.

There is no legal requirement for you to change your surname officially if you wish to return to your maiden surname.  Your birth certificate can be used as evidence of your entitlement to use your maiden name.  This can be done at any time before or after your divorce.
 
However, if the policy of another agency or business is that you must provide them with a formal change of name document you may need to register a change of name at the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages. 

Information related to registering a change of name in Western Australia, including the downloadable application form, refer to How to register an adult's change of name.

Although the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages maintains a register of Western Australian Authorised Marriage Celebrants, all requests for appointment must be referred to the Commonwealth Attorney General’s Department. This also includes celebrants from independent religious organisations.

Ministers from recognised denominations should contact their Nominating Authority for further information about becoming an authorised marriage celebrant.

Additional information about becoming an authorised celebrant can be found on the Commonwealth Attorney General’s Department website at www.ag.gov.au/families-and-marriage/marriage/become-marriage-celebrant

For information on getting divorced or obtaining a divorce certificate, refer your enquiries to Family Court of Western Australia.

Level 1, 150 Terrace Road
Perth WA 6000
Ph: (08) 9224 8222
Email: family.court@justice.gov.au
Website: familycourt.wa.gov.au