Deciding to get married is a very important step in your life and should therefore be very carefully thought out. Remember, marriage is a legal state. The Family Court, there to protect the institution of marriage, says that marriage is ‘the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others voluntarily entered into for life’.

Like most of the important things in your life, getting married and marriage itself have laws that apply to them and legal consequences.

Are you old enough?

If both partners are over 18, getting married is very straightforward. However if one partner is under 18 years of age, the legal road ahead is going to be a little rockier. No one under the age of 16 is permitted to marry in Australia. Neither are you permitted to marry if both partners are under the age of 18. However, if one partner is under 18 but older than 16, you have parental or guardian consent and a magistrate’s or judge’s order, you can be married.

Documentation... Official Requirements

You must lodge a Notice of Intended Marriage no later than a full calendar month and not earlier than 18 months before your wedding date.

This waiting period is to prevent ‘spur of the moment’ marriages, giving partners time to reconsider their decision. In exceptional cases, this waiting time may be waived, for a fee, by the ‘prescribed authority’ (usually the state Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages).

The Notice of Intended Marriage can be downloaded from the Attorney General’s website www.ag.gov.au.(insert link) Once you have lodged your Notice of Intended Marriage, you have started the legal marriage process. I have a copy for you as well.

I will need to site the following documents:
An original birth certificate or original extract of birth certificate as proof of your date and place of birth.
If your birth certificate is not in English, your documentation must be a certified translation.
For people born in Australia it is obligatory to produce a birth certificate. If you were born outside Australia, an overseas passport is acceptable.

A decree absolute or death certificate as proof that any previous marriage has been terminated. It is usual that the person with whom you lodge your Notice of Intended Marriage will conduct your ceremony. However, this document may be transferred to another celebrant should circumstances deem it necessary.

Celebrants Responsibilities
Choosing me as your celebrant is a very important decision, not only as a legal representative, but also as the one who will ensure your ceremony has meaning and beauty. You will come to know me well, so it is important that you both feel comfortable with and trust me to carry out my role professionally.

I am responsible for ensuring you have fulfilled all legal requirements prior to your celebration and after your ceremony, for lodging your completed Notice of Intended Marriage and Certificate of Marriage with the appropriate Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages.

Additional documentation to be prepared and signed includes your Wedding Certificate and the Marriage Register that both bride and groom, two witnesses over 18 years of age, the bride and bridegroom and the marriage celebrant must all sign after the ceremony.