The Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths (Regulations etc) Act successfully completed its passage through Parliament on 15 March 2019 and attained Royal Assent on 26 March 2019.
The Act provides for the modernisation of marriage registration for the first time since 1837. It removes the need for paper based registers and introduces a marriage schedule system and electronic register.
The electronic register will also allow for the names of parents of the couple (mother / father / parent) to be included in the marriage entry and on marriage certificates, instead of only their fathers' names, as is currently the case.
The main changes couples will see:
- Anyone getting married in England or Wales will now need a marriage schedule instead of authorities to marry. These are printed by the Register Office in the district where the marriage is taking place, or, for certain weddings, be provided by the Church of England.
- The Register Office or Clergy will ask the couple to check the schedule carefully before performing the ceremony.
- The schedule will allow for mothers' or other parents' details to be included on the day.
- The signed marriage schedule must be returned, as soon as possible after the wedding, to the Register Office in the district where the marriage took place for the details to be entered into the electronic register.
- No certificates will be issued on the day.
- All certificates will need to be ordered and issued by the Register Office in the district where the marriage took place.
Regulations to confirm this were laid in Parliament on 22 February 2021 and came into force on 4 May 2021.
Certificates
If your ceremony took place within the Milton Keynes registration district, you can place your certificate order via our website, using the link below, or by calling 01908 372101.
Certificates will be posted as soon as possible after the details of the Marriage Schedule or Marriage Document have been entered onto the electronic register.