Getting Married in New Zealand
1. Applying for your marriage license:
Once you have chosen your celebrant and where you would like to get married you will need to complete a Notice of Intended Marriage application form to apply for your marriage license. We will send this form to the registry office on your behalf so your marriage license will be ready for you to collect when you visit the registry office to sign the Statutory Declaration. If either or both of you have been divorced you must bring the original copies of your divorce papers (proof of the dissolution of your marriage) with you to the registry office. The marriage license application fee is included in your Boutique Weddings NZ package.
2. Before the wedding:
Either the bride and/or groom must appear at the registry office in person to sign the Statutory Declaration and collect your marriage license and paperwork which will then need to be given to your marriage celebrant before the wedding. When planning your trip, whether you are from overseas or from within New Zealand, it is vital that you allow enough time to visit the registry office before your wedding. The registry office opening hours are from 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday.
Alternatively, the statutory declaration can be signed, while you are in your home country, in front of a Commonwealth representative (i.e. an authorised diplomatic or consular officer of a Commonwealth country.)
This information is applicable for civil unions as well, only a different form is required “Notice of Intended Civil Union“.
3. On your wedding day:
Your celebrant will ask you and two witnesses to sign the Copy of Particulars of Marriage as part of your wedding ceremony. One copy will be given to you at the end of your ceremony as a signed, legal document of your marriage and the other copy will be sent by your celebrant to the national Registrar office to officially register your marriage.
4. Will our marriage be recognised back home?
Your signed copy of the Copy of Particulars of Marriage is a valid legal documentation of your marriage however many countries will require official documentation as proof of your marriage in the form of a New Zealand Marriage Certificate. As part of your wedding package with Boutique Weddings NZ, we will request your New Zealand Marriage Certificate on your behalf and have this sent to your home address. The Marriage Certificate fee is included in your package price.
You will be able to update your passport, drivers licence and bank details by using your New Zealand Marriage Certificate as it will bear the official stamp of the Registrar of Marriages in New Zealand.