Congratulations on deciding to get married. You are in good company. Weddings have been an enduring source of inspiration for everyone from Shakespeare to Sandler.
The Formal Legal Arrangements
The next question of course is: "Where can I get more information on the rules for getting married".
There are different ways you can get legally married in most countries. The most common choice to make first is between a religious ceremony or a secular or registry office wedding.
The best starting point for a secular wedding is to contact your local registration offices. The contact numbers for these can be found in the phone book under registration of births, deaths and marriages.
If you want to do this through the internet you can find web sites with addresses of district registrars, in most large towns and cities, often including lists of approved celebrants, marriage notices and information on all aspects of getting married. For example, you might be surprised that in most countries getting married does not result in a legal change of name or automatic change to your identification or records. There are several legal requirements relating to getting married, and the most important point to remember is that the marriage can only be fulfilled by an authorised marriage celebrant before, during and after the ceremony.
It is important to understand what steps to take in the lead up to getting married, wherever you plan to hold the ceremony. If you are getting married overseas it is particularly important that you contact the marriage authorities in the country where you plan to marry at the start of your preparations, and check their marriage laws and requirements. Again understand about celebrants, how you complete any intended marriage forms, obtain the marriage certificate,
If you are using the services of a company abroad check their credentials and make absolutely sure, in writing, who who's responsible for what. Don't leave anything to chance and all will go well, but, a disorganized wedding is such a big let-down for everyone involved that it is so important to get everything formalized, in advance, so that you can relax on the day.
There is no legal requirement to show a passport before getting married in most countries and instead, you can usually produce a birth certificate (accompanied by a certified translation if necessary), an affidavit and/or other personal identity document - but do check first. Staff at the General Register Office (or similar) of the country can give addresses of district registrars and provide further information about all aspects of getting married in their locality.
Arrangements for a wedding in a Catholic Church are always made through the priest in the parish in which you are living. It is also, again, advisable to confirm your wedding arrangements in writing in plenty of time before the day, as your priest will need to spend time with you beforehand, no matter how simple a ceremony you plan to make it.
Getting married is a big step and will significantly impact on lots of areas in your life. Organising your wedding doesn't have to be as complicated as it might sound. However, even if it is low key, a wedding often requires a lot more time and organisation than you ever imagined, so don't rush it more than you have to, and put the energy in early to get the basics of the formal legal arrangements sorted out first - not at the last minute.
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