civil wedding documents: All you need to know

Civil-wedding-documents-DW-Events

Santorini is considered to be on the list of the most romantic travel destinations. Getting married on such an island will give you the chance to live one of the most exciting and romantic experiences of your lifetime. The idyllic sunsets and the little white houses in Chora will make your wedding day special for you and your guests. You will have the chance to choose among a plethora of wedding venues, where you can gaze at the emerald-blue waters of the Aegean Sea. Despite of the romantic aspect og your wedding, there is also the legal one that needs to be taken care of, including quite a few civil wedding documents, that are necessary to tie the knot in this majestic destination!

Planning to get married in a different country is a wonderful experience. However, some legal technicalities may arise if you are not well-informed. At that point, a wedding planner will be extremely helpful. They will assist you planning and organizing the wedding procedure. That way, you will be free to worry only for your wedding dress rather than being stressed out due to the foreign legal procedures. Try to enjoy the moments until your special day and choose your wedding planning team wisely. Our team is ready and always happy to assist you, guiding you through the procedure and informing you about all the legal technicalities that may arise. We have prepared a detailed list of procedures and all civil wedding documents that may be needed for your marriage. According to your citizenship, the documents may differ

documents for UK citizens

Info for the BRIDE and the GROOM

The bride and the groom will have to issue a certified copy of a FULL birth certificate from the Registry in their place of residence. Moreover, the bride and the groom will have to issue a certificate of no impediment to marriage from the Registry in their place of residence.

IMPORTANT NOTES

  • You should have in mind that these certificates usually have an expiration date; 180-day expiration for the UK, 90-day expiration for Ireland, 30-day expiration for the US etc. Do not try to issue these documents too early and always check with your local Registry about further information. During the process of issuing your documents, please state the following address when requested; GR-84700 SANTORINI, GREECE.
  • Depending on your country of origin, these documents may be valid for a specific period of time; for example, 1 month, 2 months, etc.
  • In case the place of residence of the bride or the groom are not the same with the place of birth, they need to contact the respective embassy to order their birth certificates.

These 4 certificates (2 certificates from the bride and 2 certificates from the groom) are enough in case the BRIDE or the GROOM have not been previously married, adopted or have changed their name for any other reason.

In such cases, the bride and the groom have to issue the below mentioned documents:

  • a certified copy of decree absolute (in case the bride or the groom have been previously married)
  • a certified copy of death certificate (in case the bride or the groom have been widowed)
  • a certified copy of adoption paper (in case the bride or the groom have been adopted)
  • a name change certificate/deed poll (in case the bride or the groom have changed names)

About the Apostille stamp

All your certificates issued in the country of your residence should have an Apostille stamp. The Apostille stamp authenticates that the documents are genuine.  This means getting an Apostille stamp on each document from the appropriate governmental Office (for the UK: FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE.) In case your certificates are issued by the embassy they don’t need to be apostilled stamped.

After getting the Apostille stamp

  • Once you have your documents with the Apostille stamps (one stamp for each document), please send them to us via e-mail. Each document comes with an Apostille stamp. Please do not send us all documents and stamps in a single file.
  • After your e-mail, our team is ready to assist you having your documents officially translated into Greek. We will run all the necessary procedure in the Town hall of Santorini paying the associated fees.
  • Do not forget to bring your certificates (all 4 of them) with their stamps in our pre-wedding meeting. Have in mind that you will not have the chance to take these certificates back, as the certificates and their Apostille stamps will remain archived in Greece for life.
  • After your wedding (on a bank day), you will meet the wedding coordinator at the town hall in order to register your wedding and to get your marriage certificates. If you don’t want to waste your day, you can authorize a member of our team to register the wedding for you (power of attorney).
  • After getting your marriage certificates, have in mind that you should provide us with 2 copies. Our team will get these copies authenticated with Apostille stamp. After the authentication, we will have your copies officially translated into English.
  • When the translation process is completed, we will send you the translated certificates with the Apostille stamps via post (approx. 2 months after the wedding).
  • Have in mind that all your documents, including the copy of your certificates and their translations into Greek, will be archived in the Santorini Town Hall and they are not to be returned

documents for USA citizens

Info for the BRIDE and the GROOM

The bride and the groom will have to issue a full birth certificate, a certificate of no impediment to marriage and an affidavit of single status (one for the bride and one for the groom) from the Registry in their place of residence. Furthermore, one more certificate is needed; a certificate of search of vital records (one for the bride and one for the groom). Depending on the State and the County of the couple’s residence, this certificate may be issued by a different authority, for example, in some cases by the circuit courts, in others by the Department of Health etc. A vital record is a government document containing information about a person’s important life events.

IMPORTANT NOTES
  • Please have in mind that these documents may differ slightly from state to state. For example, the CNI (Certificate of Impediment to Marriage) and the Affidavit may be the same certificate under the term “Affidavit of Single Status and No Impediment to Marriage”.
  • Moreover, check that your affidavit of single status is issued by a public notary.
  • Your documents should be issued within 3 months from the wedding date.

About the Apostille stamp

The couple need to legalize for use abroad all certificates mentioned above. The legalisation of a document can be made after getting an Apostille stamp on each document from the appropriate governmental Office.

INFOS applicable for all civil weddings

Registration of the wedding and marriage collection

The couple will need to visit together with our wedding planner the Town Hall (Registrar’s Office) the day after their wedding. The visit should take place Monday-Friday only before 12:00 in order to register the wedding. In case, the couple is not able to be present at the Town Hall due to their early departure, or due to other reasons, they will need to find a representative who will register their wedding and collect their certificate. In order this to be done, a power of attorney is to be signed authorizing our wedding planner to register and collect your marriage certificate on your behalf. After the registration and collection, we will send the documents to you at your address.

Apostille stamp

The Apostille stamp authenticates simply that a document is genuine. The couple has to authenticate their copies in order to be used by the Greek authorities. That means getting the seal of the State/Country/Commonwealth Office in accordance with the Hague Convention.

In case you have any queries, do not hesitate to contact DW Events. We will guide you through the procedure. Let us make your wedding day, your special day!