Explainer: What you need to do if you are planning on getting married 

Getting married is one of the most significant events in someone’s life. Anyone planning to get married in Ireland must give a minimum of three months’ notice to the Registrar at a Civil Registration Service.

This is the law in Ireland and it applies to all civil, religious and secular marriages. This is sometimes referred to as notification of your intention to marry.

If everything is in order, the Registrar will give you a Marriage Registration Form (MRF). This is like a marriage licence. It gives you authorisation or permission to get married.

How do you give your notice of your intention to marry?

You must give notification of your intention to marry to a Registrar at least three months before the intended date of the marriage. Both of you must attend the marriage notification appointment. You will need to:

Contact your local Civil Registration Service to get a postal marriage notification form. Once you have completed the form, you can return it by post or by email.

Contact the Civil Registration Service to make a marriage notification appointment with the Registrar. You can also book a marriage notification appointment online for certain areas of the country.

When you make the appointment with the Registrar, you will be told what information and documents to bring with you.

The requirement to give three months’ notice does not apply to civil partners whose civil partnership was registered in Ireland.

How much is the notification fee?

The non-refundable notification fee is €200. There is a reduced notification fee of €50 for same-sex couples who are already in a civil partnership that is registered in Ireland and now wish to marry.

What happens at a marriage notification appointment?

When you and your intended spouse meet the Registrar at the Civil Registration Service office, you will be required to sign, in the Registrar’s presence, a declaration that you are free to marry and know of no lawful impediment to your proposed marriage.

The Registrar will issue an acknowledgement to both of you and the proposed solemniser of the marriage confirming the date of receipt of notification. This does not give you permission to marry. You will also have to pay the notification fee of €200.

If all information required has been supplied and there is no impediment to the marriage, the Registrar will issue you with a Marriage Registration Form. This is an important document. You will need this to get married and to be able to register it.

If you, your intended spouse, the witnesses or the solemniser has a limited knowledge of English, you must provide an interpreter. This must be from an independent, verifiable translation company and be present for both the notification of intention to marry and the marriage itself.

What is a Marriage Registration Form?

Couples require an MRF to get married in Ireland. It is like a marriage licence as it gives authorisation for a couple to marry. As long as there is no impediment (barrier) to the marriage, the Registrar will give you an MRF. You must then give this to the person who will be solemnising your marriage. The MRF is also needed to register your marriage after you get married.

If you bring all the required documentation to your marriage notification appointment with the Registrar, they may be able to issue the MRF immediately. You can contact your local Citizens Information Centre to check what documents you need to bring.

If the marriage does not take place within six months of the date of marriage given on the MRF, a new MRF will be required if you still intend to marry. You will need to repeat the notification process.

Is it possible to do a postal notification if you are not able to attend in person?

If either of you are living abroad or are unable to attend a civil registration office due to serious illness, you should contact a Registrar to get permission to make your three-month notification by post. If this is granted, the Registrar will send you a form which you must complete and return.

You will still have to make arrangements to meet the Registrar at least five days before you get married in order to sign the declaration form. This is required before a Marriage Registration Form can be issued.

What happens if the wedding is postponed?

If you have already started your three-month notice period but have had to postpone your wedding, your MRF is valid for six months after your original wedding date.

If your rescheduled wedding date is within this six-month period, your MRF can be amended. To do this, you should contact the local civil registration service where you originally served notice of your intention to wed.

If your rescheduled wedding date is after this six-month period, you will need to contact the office where you originally served notice and give them your new date of marriage. You must do this at least three months before your new marriage date. You will need to meet with the Registrar again to get a new MRF. There is no charge for this.

Where to apply

There is a list of Civil Registration Offices on the HSE website. You can book a notification appointment with a Registrar in a Civil Registration Service over the phone, or online. Contact details for your local Registrar are also available from your Local Health Office.

• Further information on this and other topics is available from Cork City Centre CIC in Cornmarket Street, open to the public on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9.45am to 12.30pm and Wednesdays from 2pm to 4pm, Tel 0818 07 6950 (Lines open Mon-Fri 10am-4.30pm). Blackpool CIC is also open to the public on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 4pm, Tel 0818 07 6890 while Hollyhill CIC is open Mondays and Fridays from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 4pm, Tel: 0818 07 6850.