What documents do we need to be able to give notice?

You will need to provide evidence of: 

Your nationality:

You need to bring ONE of the following:

• Valid passport; or
• Citizenship certificate confirming British citizenship; or
• British birth certificates 
  • If you were born prior to 1 January 1983 we will need to see either your full or short birth certificate.
  • If you were born on or after 1 January 1983 we will need to see your full birth certificate, which includes your parents' details, PLUS either your mother or father's British birth certificate if your parents were married when you were born.  If your parents were unmarried when you were born then only your mother's birth certificate can be accepted.  If your parents were born outside the UK, then you must provide evidence of British nationality at the time of your birth.
  • If your parents were born on or after 1 January 1983 we will also need to see evidence of their parent's nationality.  As this can be quite complex please contact us on 01908 372101 if you require clarification on what is required.

EUSS scheme status (if applicable)

In addition to the above, if one or both of you are EEA nationals with EUSS status granted or applied for before 30 June 2021 you must obtain a unique code, prior to your appointment, to allow the Registrar to view and prove your immigration status.  The code is valid for a period of 30 days so please ensure that it is valid on the day of your appointment.  When generating the code, select the "for another reason" option as this will generate the correct code for the purpose of giving notice.  

If an application has been submitted for EUSS, but this is still under consideration, or showing as pre-settled, the certificate of application letter from the Home Office will also be required to prove that the application was made prior to 30 June 2021.  

If one or both parties to the marriage or civil partnership are EEA nationals without EUSS status then please refer to the documents listed under the heading of “If one or both of you are EEA without EU Settlement Scheme EUSS status or non-EEA nationals” as the required documents are slightly different.

Your address:

Please bring ONE of the following:

• Utility bill dated no more than three months prior to the date of the appointment; or
• Bank or building society statement or passbook dated no more than one month prior to the date of the appointment; or
• Council tax bill dated no more than one year prior to the date of the appointment; or 
• Mortgage statement from the last 12 months; or
• Current residential tenancy agreement; or
• Valid driving licence in the name of the person giving Notice of Marriage; or
• Letter from the owner or proprietor of the address which is the person's place of residence, proof will be required that the person is the tenant or householder e.g. current tenancy agreement/mortgage statement.  This letter must include:
  • the name, address, date and signature of the owner / proprietor;
  • confirmation that this person is the owner / proprietor; and
  • confirmation of the name of the person giving notice and that they have been resident at the address for at least the eight days immediately prior to the notice appointment.

Evidence of your age:

We will need to see proof that you are over the age of 18 - your valid passport is sufficient evidence for your proof of age.    

Evidence of any name changes:

Evidence of any name change (marriage certificate; deed poll etc).

If you are divorced or widowed:

If you have been married or in a civil partnership before, we will need to see:

• Decree absolute or final order
  • if your divorce was granted in England or Wales and you have been issued with a paper version of your decree absolute or final order from the court, we will need to see this and the cover sheet which accompanied it
  • if your divorce was granted in England or Wales and you have been issued with an electronic version of the decree absolute or final order, we will need to see this and the covering email
  • if your divorce was granted outside England and Wales, we will need to see the final divorce documents issued along with a full translation into English if the document was written in any other language. 
    • A fee is chargeable for clearance of any divorces granted in countries outside England and Wales.  Please note, these may have to be referred to the General Register Office for the Registrar General to confirm whether the document is acceptable under British law.  It is not possible to specify how long it may take for approval to come and authorities to marry or form a civil partnership cannot be issued until this approval is received.  Please do take this into account when considering a marriage or formation date as there may be a significant delay before a ceremony can take place. 
• The death certificate of the spouse / civil partner – if the surviving partner is not mentioned on the death certificate then you must also provide a certified copy of the marriage or civil partnership certificate.

* if the name you are now using differs from the name on your decree absolute, for example you have reverted back to your maiden name, then we would need to see a link between the names, for example a name change deed or a marriage certificate. 

The presumed death certificate of the spouse.

If you do not bring all the required, original, valid, documentation we will not be able to complete your notice and a further appointment will have to be booked and paid for.

If none of the above are available, please contact the General Register Office on 0300 123 1837 for guidance.

Some of my documents are not in English, what should I bring?

If any of your documents are in any language other than English, you will need to bring the original document plus a full translation, into English.  These documents must be certified at the bottom by the translator stating “I certify this to be a true translation of the document”.  The name, address, telephone number and signature of the person who translated the document(s) must be included.

Some of my documents are electronic, do I need paper copies for the appointment?

Yes, all documents must be original and valid at the time of your appointment, we are unable to accept documents brought on mobile devices.

What will happen during the appointment?

The registrar will need to see each of you individually and will ask prescribed questions, in English.  If one, or both, of you does not have, or only has limited, English language skills then they will need to bring a translator along with them.  A translator can be a family member, friend or community leader but cannot be the partner in the marriage or civil partnership.

If you or the registrar are not able to understand one another then the appointment will have to be cancelled and rebooked incurring another booking fee.

Please note:  We are unable to take bookings for clients where a divorce has not, as yet, been made final and absolute as we will need to see documentary evidence of the legal ending of any previous marriage or civil partnership.