Marrying overseas

If I marry abroad will my marriage be legal in the UK?

You should consult a lawyer to check as sometimes marriages conducted in other countries aren’t recognised in the UK.

Can I register my marriage overseas with the UK authorities?

There is no facility in the UK to record or register any marriage that occurs overseas.
There is a safekeeping service called a Deposit of Marriage.  However this does not constitute any recognition or validity of the marriage under UK law.  The procedure for deposit of a marriage certificate is as follows:

Deposit of foreign (not Commonwealth) marriage certificate

The best way to do this is right after your marriage at the consulate nearest your place of marriage.  This is because the different district/country in which you marry may have different requirements that only the consulate in that country can advise on.  You can bring the application to us if you are back in Singapore however you need to first read the pages on depositing marriage certificates on the website of the British consulate nearest to your place of marriage.  Bring the information required by them to us and we will forward it to that consulate for authentication before it is sent through to the GRO.

What does depositing a foreign marriage certificate mean?

• The deposit of a foreign marriage certificate does not make the marriage legal in the UK, nor does it ‘recognise’ the marriage as a valid marriage
• The marriage is not registered in the UK; the original marriage certificate is simply deposited for record purposes only.  This means that the original certificate is not returned to the applicant; the applicant is issued with a certified copy if they make a request to the relevant Registrar-General
• There is no legal obligation to have a marriage recorded in this country.  The parties may take advantage of these facilities if they consider that it would serve some useful purpose to have their marriage recorded here but the validity in UK law of a marriage contracted in a foreign country is in no way affected by its having been, or not having been, thus recorded.

Do I need to deposit my foreign marriage certificate?

This isn’t compulsory, but it means your marriage certificate is kept by the GRO (and never returned to you) as an official record and you will be able to easily get copies of it in the future. 
Please note: you’ll need to get your documents translated if they’re not in English.

If you are coming to do the deposit through the British High Commission Singapore, please also ensure you bring the following:

• certified copy of the entry in the marriage register, duly authenticated by the appropriate local authority (you can usually ask for this at the registrar where the marriage took place i.e. obtain an extract) or bring the original marriage certificate, together with an translation into English and one photocopy of each
• original long form birth certificate and a photocopy (This will determine the appropriate Registrar-General with which the certificate will be deposited, usually the one for that part of the UK in which you were born or from which your citizenship is derived).
• completed form to deposit marriage certificate
• the fee 

Marrying in a Commonwealth country

British nationals intending to marry in a Commonwealth country, whether to a citizen of that country, to a foreigner, or to another British national, are required to comply with the formalities of the Commonwealth country concerned.

Certificates of marriages celebrated in Singapore and in other Commonwealth countries cannot be deposited with the Registrars-General in England, Scotland or Northern Ireland.

Marrying in Singapore

Singapore is a member of the Commonwealth.  Marriages conducted in the Republic of Singapore are recognised by the United Kingdom.

To marry in Singapore please contact the Singapore Registry of Marriages (ROM).  No other information is required from the British High Commission if you are marrying in Singapore.

If you are marrying at the Registry of Muslim Marriages (ROMM), they may require a certificate to be issued from the district in which you last lived in the UK stating that you have not been married.  If you have been outside of the the UK for more than 18 months, this will not be available to you.  The British High Commission cannot issue such a document.
The last resort is to swear an affidavit that you are free to marry in front of a local notary public or commissioner of oaths.  There is a list of them in the directory of the Singapore Academy of Law website.  You may not swear an affidavit at the High Commission as consular officers in Commonwealth countries have no notarial powers.

Civil partnership

It is currently not possible to enter a civil partnership in Singapore.

Living in Singapore and marrying in a foreign (not Commonwealth) country that requires a certificate of no impediment (CNI)

Please refer to the guidance "How to get a CNI" in the right hand column.

If you are marrying in a country where the local marriage authorities require a Certificate of Custom Law (Certificate de Coutume), you only need to fill out the application form which will be available on the website of the British Consulate in that country and send the documents they specify.  You may send the documents personally or through the High Commission.  However documents sent through us to another British consulate can take up to one month.  If they require a CNI, please read the PDF document in the link in the right hand column "How to get a CNI".

Please note that consular officers in Commonwealth countries are unable to issue Certificates of No Impediment, either on their own account, or on the basis of a notice which has been posted at a consular post in a foreign country and endorsed by a consular officer to show that no impediment has been shown to exist.

What documents do I need to marry abroad?

To find out exactly what you need to get married overseas, you will need to contact the authorities of the relevant country and/or the British Consulate in that country.

You might also have to exchange the UK issued CNI for a Consular CNI . The CNI and other documents may also need to be legalised by the UK Legalisation Office.

• if you’re marrying an Irish national you must obtain a CNI from the FCO office in London or the local consulate
• if you’re marrying in Italy you need to obtain a specific form, a Nulla Osta (an Italian CNI) from the nearest British consulate
• if you’re marrying in France you may need a Certificate of Custom Law - consult the local Mairie for more info

Can I get a British marriage certificate if I marry abroad?
No, you will get a certificate of marriage from the country you marry in.

Can my foreign partner get a British passport once we’re married?
If you and your partner settle in the UK after marriage your partner can apply for naturalisation after three years. The Nationality Directorate of the UK Border Agency can provide more information on this.