Getting Married or Forming a Civil Partnership in the UK

This guide is for internationals who have recently moved to the United Kingdom and are thinking about getting married or forming a civil partnership here. After reading it, you will know the basic eligibility rules in England and Wales, why the nation you marry in matters, what the official guidance says about partners from outside the UK or Ireland, and which details you still need to confirm with the authorities.

• Who can marry or form a civil partnership in England and Wales
• Where you can marry: the nation matters
• Partners from outside the UK or Ireland
• Giving notice: what the official page covers
• Converting a civil partnership into a marriage
• FAQ

Who can marry or form a civil partnership in England and Wales

Start with the GOV.UK page on marriages and civil partnerships in England and Wales. It sets three conditions. You can get married or form a civil partnership in England or Wales if you are 18 or over, if you are not already married or in a civil partnership, and if you are not closely related to the person you plan to marry.

The same three conditions apply to marriage and to civil partnership. The page does not set a lower age in special circumstances, and it does not set any extra conditions for either type of union. For a newcomer, that makes the first check simple: age, current relationship status and family relationship.

What the page leaves out matters just as much. It does not define “closely related” or list the relationships that count. It does not explain how a previous marriage or civil partnership formed abroad is treated, or what proof of a divorce or dissolution the authorities might ask for. If your history involves a relationship that ended in another country, the summary page will not answer that question. The fuller official guidance or a solicitor regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) can.

Where you can marry: the nation matters

The United Kingdom does not have a single system for marriage. The GOV.UK page covers England and Wales only, and it says plainly that different rules apply if you want to get married or form a civil partnership in Scotland, in Northern Ireland or outside the UK. Newcomers often miss this. Someone who has settled in Edinburgh or Belfast cannot assume that the England and Wales rules set out here will apply to their ceremony.

The page links to separate guidance for each of these situations but does not summarise how the rules differ. This guide does not guess at those differences either. The wording is about where the marriage or civil partnership takes place, so the ceremony’s location decides which set of rules you need to read.

The page also says nothing about venues. It does not say which kinds of building can host a ceremony in England or Wales, how bookings work, or what a venue costs. Local arrangements such as availability and booking are for the council in the area where you plan to marry.

Partners from outside the UK or Ireland

This is the section that affects most international readers. The official page has one line on it: if you or your partner are from outside the UK or Ireland, you might need to apply for a visa to get married in the UK. That line puts Irish citizens in the same group as UK citizens, and it uses the word “might”. A visa is not required in every case.

Beyond that line, the summary page does not go into detail. It does not name the visa, say who needs one and who does not, give a fee or a processing time, or say whether the visa must be in place before any other step. It also does not cover how existing permission to stay in the UK affects the position. The sentence refers to getting married and does not mention civil partnerships separately, so anyone forming a civil partnership will need to check the linked guidance for their own route.

This guide’s angle includes people subject to immigration control, but the page itself does not use that term or set out separate rules for that group. Immigration status is personal, and the answer depends on facts this guide cannot assess. For a specific immigration question, the right people to ask are an adviser regulated by the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) or a solicitor regulated by the SRA. Both are regulated, which gives you some protection that informal advice from friends or online forums does not.

Giving notice: what the official page covers

Many people who move to England or Wales hear that couples must “give notice” before a ceremony. The summary page linked above does not describe that step. It gives no notice period, no fee, no list of documents and no place where notice is given. It also does not say whether both partners must attend, or whether the process differs when one partner is from outside the UK or Ireland.

This guide does not fill those gaps with figures from other sources. In order, the steps the official material supports are these. Check the three eligibility conditions. Confirm which nation the ceremony will take place in and read the guidance for that nation. Check whether the visa line applies to either partner. Then contact the council for the area where you plan to marry, because the council decides its own local arrangements. Any fee or deadline you are given at that stage comes from the authority, not from this guide.

The order matters for internationals in particular. If a visa turns out to be needed, it may affect when the later steps can happen. The summary page does not say how, which is one more reason to get regulated advice on immigration status early.

Converting a civil partnership into a marriage

The official page confirms that same-sex couples can convert a civil partnership into a marriage in England or Wales. For couples who formed a civil partnership before moving, or who form one here and later want to marry, this option is open in those two nations.

The page gives no further detail. It does not explain the process, list a fee or say whether a civil partnership formed outside the UK can be converted. It also does not say whether conversion is available in Scotland or Northern Ireland. Couples living there will need the guidance for their own nation.

FAQ

What is the minimum age to marry or form a civil partnership in England and Wales?

The official GOV.UK page sets the minimum age at 18 for both marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales. The other two conditions are that you are not already married or in a civil partnership and that you are not closely related to your partner. The page does not list any exception to the age rule.

Do the England and Wales rules apply in Scotland and Northern Ireland?

No. The GOV.UK page covers England and Wales only and states that different rules apply in Scotland, in Northern Ireland and outside the UK. It links to separate guidance for each but does not summarise the differences, so couples marrying elsewhere in the UK will need the guidance for that nation.

Does a partner from outside the UK need a visa to marry here?

The official page says that if you or your partner are from outside the UK or Ireland, you might need to apply for a visa to get married in the UK. It does not say who needs one, which visa applies or what it costs. Questions about an individual immigration situation are best taken to an OISC-regulated adviser or an SRA-regulated solicitor.

How much notice is needed, and what does it cost?

The summary page does not state a notice period, a fee or the documents required. Those details sit outside the page. The council for the area where the ceremony will take place decides local arrangements, and the official guidance for the relevant nation sets out the formal requirements.

Official sources: gov.uk

Last verified: 29 October 2026 against the official pages linked above. Rules and fees change; the official page always wins.

This is general information, not legal or immigration advice. Immigration advice in the UK may only be given by advisers regulated by the OISC or by solicitors regulated by the SRA.