Getting Married Abroad FAQs

  • Do I need a Wedding Planner to have a Wedding Abroad?

    No you do not. You are absolutely able to do everything on your own and under your own steam if you want, and go direct to the Danish Agency of Family law Government office for the application (Familierethuset). But it can be very difficult, long winded and fraught with delays and hold ups, and who wants stress and administration with their wedding day? 
    We will do the official part for you with the Danish Agency of Family law Government office for the application (Familierethuset) and organise and book the wedding ceremony and registry office for you.
    Then you can simply add on whatever wedding services you would like (not everyone likes wedding cake or wants flowers!) but we can usually put you in touch with suppliers for a Wedding cake, Wedding Photography, Wedding flowers. But we are not affiliated with anyone, and they are not services that we sell, so you are not going to get pressured into “additional extras” from us - we really do want to keep it simple for you!

  • Do you work with Same Sex Gay marriages?

    Yes we do! read our blog - as Same Sex marriages, transgender, Gay, LGBT - all and everything are legal, common, recognised, and celebrated in all countries and venues we work with, we are all about the love! Denmark and Gibraltar are among the top 10 in the worlds best same sex and gay wedding destinations. And we only work with same sex and Gay friendly suppliers and town halls, we are strong LGBTQI supporter wedding planners in Denmark. 

  • Do you offer Wedding packages or wedding elopement packages?

    In order to keep the process and experience simple, we do not offer set specific packages, as people have different budgets, timeframes and requirements. But we do work with vendors and suppliers in each location and can offer you information and contact details for most things that you may require. We do like to keep it easy so you can Marry Abroad Simply and have exactly what you want - rather than what we think you want!

  • What is the cheapest way to get married?

    The cheapest way to marry abroad is to be happy to do part of the administration yourself and make the Government fee to Denmark directly - this would mean you are getting married in Denmark, and is the Handheld service in Denmark which is €295 plus the Government fee.

    We help and support you do everything, but it is a partnership between us and you, more than a full service and management of your wedding,  unlike the Everything service. 

    You can still get married anywhere in Denmark, including a wedding on the Danish Islands, Jutland, near the Danish border or getting married in Copenhagen City Hall.

  • How much does it cost to get married abroad?

    For a registry office/town hall wedding, the cheapest possible total cost is in Denmark, and is € 552 (handheld service of € 295 plus the Government application fee of € 252).

    This will include everything, there are no hidden extras, everything is included such as taxes, 2 copies of the International marriage certificate (In Danish, German, English, French & Spanish).

    The only other costs you need to factor are your personal costs of Hotel, Travel, wedding Flowers, wedding cake wedding Photographer - if you want them. So the cost can be as little as € 552 or as much as you want it to be!

  • Where is the best place to get married in Europe?

    We believe Gibraltar and Denmark are the best places to get married in the world! This is because they are accepting of all forms of love, low cost, easy - yet stylish, and are legally recognised worldwide with minimal paperwork and documents, and no lengthy residency requirements.

  • How quickly can I get married?

    If you are looking at getting married quickly we would advise you look at Getting Married in Denmark initially, as there are almost 100 town halls where you can marry.  

    In Gibraltar and Sweden the availability of appointments, venues and registrars is not as great. We can however, pre-book ceremonies in Denmark & Sweden allowing for a quicker approval to ceremony time. 

    For Denmark, from when the application is submitted, in some situations the Government can issue approval in 5 days, and once issued you can immediately book a ceremony. So we can proceed as quickly as you can get us the documents, as we are FAST.

    If you are flexible on location, you can marry just a few days ahead, and we have helped couples marry in under 10 days from application to ceremony! Please note this is situation dependant, and also dependant on the Government office processing time.

  • Getting Married in a Registry Office, what’s involved?

    A registry office wedding is a 10 minute verbal civil ceremony that goes with the paperwork part, and you need to have both of these to be legally married. You will be asked short questions and asked to confirm you would like to be married.

  • When do I get my marriage certificate?

    You will receive the marriage certificates straight after your ceremony. If you wish to have them Legalised this takes longer, but we usually have them back to you by courier within 7-10 days after we receive them.

  • How Long do I need to be in Denmark, Sweden or Gibraltar before my wedding?

    This varies from town hall to town hall in each country, however generally in Denmark and Gibraltar you will need to be there one working day before the ceremony and in Sweden it is same day presentation.  Please note that there are some Danish venues that will accept same day presentation, please contact us for more information.

  • Do I need an Apostille Stamp on my certificate?

    Your International marriage certificates issued in Denmark and Gibraltar are legally recognised worldwide, but for some government or immigration purposes you may need the further optional maximum level of Legalisation available on any document.

    The Apostille stamp is a verification of authenticity by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, some countries outside of the EU, USA, Canada, Australia may require this, we always recommend that you check with the offices where you are using the certificate to be certain. In all cases we can help with this. It is likely to be required if you live in Germany, or if you are NON EU. 

  • Can I change my name on my wedding day?

    In Denmark and Gibraltar you can’t change your name on the day (unless you are Danish), but once you register the marriage in your place of nationality and/or residence you can change it then with your certificate. You can only change your name on your wedding day if you are Danish in Denmark. But it is really easy to change your name and register the wedding when you return home, just check with the office of "Births Deaths and Marriages" or with your Embassy if you are living somewhere other than your home country.

  • Can anyone marry in Denmark and Gibraltar?

    Anyone can marry in all countries and venues we work with - as long as you have the relevant visas to be in either Gibraltar or the Schengen area for Denmark & Sweden and you have the right documents.

    All situations are accepted and celebrated, and same sex marriages, transgender, all are legal - not only legal but encouraged and welcome!

    In fact Denmark and Gibraltar are two of the top Same Sex wedding destinations in the world. And both locations are number 1 choice for International couples, there is minimal residency (1 night only), no marital status documents,  and International Marriage certificates are issued that are legally recognised worldwide.

  • What are the ceremonies like, how do they work?

     

    The ceremonies are short, registry office ceremonies that are conducted by a registrar, they will last about 10 minutes. Usually there are some words spoken by the registrar maybe a poem, then the legal vows are exchanged (you can write your own vows too) and then the signing of the registrar. All locations have beautiful ceremony rooms where the wedding will take place. Couples are marrying for varying reasons, some couples will marry in jeans and t-shirts, some in traditional clothes and others in tuxedos and wedding dresses, it is completely up to you.

  • How do I register my marriage after my wedding?

     

    After your marriage you will have 2 marriage certificates that are internationally recognised worldwide, you can have this Legalised with an Apostille if needed and then once you return to your place of residence or your place of birth, you can register it at the registry of births deaths and marriages office, or check with your Embassy if not residing in your home country.

  • When should we start planning our wedding abroad?

    We advise all our couples to start the process as soon as they have a date in mind. In Gibraltar we can book at any point, and can book up to 1 year in advance.

     Denmark and Sweden your ‘permission to marry’ or "Certificate of Marital Status" issued from the Familieretshuset office (which is the Danish office of Family Law) will be valid for 4 months (visa depending) from the date of approval and you will have to marry in that time.

    We can start the process and get your file together before hand and then submit the application 4 months before - to give you greater chance of getting a specific date if you have one in mind, especially Copenhagen City Hall on a Saturday.

    In Sweden we can pre-book the ceremonies, however they are not confirmed until we receive the approvals.

  • Do I need witnesses for my wedding ceremony?

    It is a legal requirement that 2 witnesses are required  in attendance for every wedding ceremony in Denmark & Gibraltar, these can be family or friends, or they can be arranged with the town hall. In Denmark witnesses are always organised for you if you need them in any Town Hall  for a weekday ceremony - there is no extra charge for witnesses on a weekday.

    There are certain Town Halls that will require you to bring 1 or 2 witnesses for a Saturday (Not places like Copenhagen City Hall or Aerø though, these are always provided for you at no extra charge). You will always need to provide 2 witnesses for your marriage in Gibraltar, so if you are travelling just the 2 of you Denmark may be a better option.

  • Can we have a ceremony outside of the town hall?

    You can certainly have a ceremony outside of the town hall in a venue of your choice, there are a variety of choices whether it be beach, garden or a venue of your choice. This is not included in the Everything service though, and there are extra fees involved with this - that are paid directly to the registrar and Town Hall for attendance and travel expenses and you would need to have your own witnesses, please ask for more details if you are interested in this.

  • What is an International Wedding Certificate?

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    Danish Marriage certificate

    Once married in any of the town halls in Denmark you will be issued with 2 multi-lingual International wedding certificates; They will come in 5 languages Danish, English, German, French and Spanish; On the day, yourselves and the 2 witnesses will sign the document that is kept by the Danish Authorities for 50 years and you will be given the 2 copies of the certificate.  For use in foreign countries you may possibly need to have an Apostille stamp on the certificate (which we can help you with obtaining through our Legalisation service), and we do advise you contacting whichever Government or Immigration office you will be using and registering the Marriage in after you return home to ask if this is required. To find out more about the Apostille convention have a look here

  • What documents do you need for a wedding in Denmark?

    It depends on your individual situation, but you do not need many. You no longer need a Marital Status document nor your birth certificate
    You will need - Passports or EU ID. Residency permit if you are living in a country that is not your home country. VISA for entry into Denmark. Decree or Death certificate if you are previously married.

    It is advised that you contact us for a free no obligation documents list on [email protected], as dependant on your situation you may need to write a relationship document (which we guide and support you through writing). 
    We help you with the application form (and do it all for you if you take the Everything service!).

  • How quickly can I get married in Denmark?

    We work very quickly and are expert wedding planners in Denmark for every situation and circumstance. You can marry in as little as 2 days after your file is approved! And in certain circumstances we are able to marry you in under 2 weeks from when you have instructed us and sent your documents and your file is complete! We also work with venues that you can turn up, marry and leave the same day.

  • Do you do all the Danish Government office (Familieretshuset) contact for us?

     

    Yes we do!

    As part of our service we issue you with a Power of Attorney to complete, sign and date, and this means we can speak to the Danish office of Family Law - or "Familieretshuset" on your behalf. As an agency we have different routes of contact via phone and email. It is notoriously difficult to get through if you are not an Agency and can be on hold for hours, so an Agency really is worth its value just for that!

    With the Everything service we also make the €220 payment to the Familieretshuset on your behalf, so there is absolutely nothing to pay over and above the €745 service charge. With the €295 handheld service you would need to make the payment to the Government office yourself as this is not included. 
     

  • Do I need a Single Status certificate?

     

    No you do not need a single status certificates for Denmark, Sweden or Gibraltar. 

  • Can I get married in Denmark near the German Border?

    Yes you most certainly can! Unlike any other Agency we work with all the Town Halls in Denmark, which includes the ones near the German Danish border at Flensburg. So we can find you a venue and a date to suit no matter what you want or where. And you also have the option of external weddings in places like beaches, lighthouses, gardens (there is an extra cost for this and you will need to provide your own witnesses).

    Places like Aabenraa are only a 35 minute drive from the German Border, and you also have other places like Tønder, Sønderborg, Ribe, Ejsberg, Haderlev - which are all really close to the German border and under 1 hours drive. So you can get married in Denmark whilst being a short convenient distance to Germany. And some venues offer same day document presentation and marriage - so you can have breakfast in Germany, lunch in Denmark and then back home in Germany for a wedding night celebration! As expert wedding planners in Denmark we can help you with whatever you want and need.

  • How to contact the Danish Wedding Office Familieretshuset

    It is very difficult to contact the  Agency of Family Law as an individual, and during COVID they have closed all of their phone lines and communication is purely through email. So if you have made an application yourself direct you are likely in the dark at the moment or at best have received an automated email.

    And the only way to contact via email the Agency of Family Law Familierethuset office is via an Agency  as we have a different contact route that we have exclusively for Agencies. We can help reschedule your wedding in Denmark that has been affected by the Coronavirus lockdown, extend a file, or if not during COVID if you want anything discussed about your file, venue changed or problems sorting out. This is the SOS service.

  • How do I change my Danish Wedding date?

    Town halls are closed until the 10th of May at time of writing due to the Coronavirus lockdown, please see our update page for further information.

    All ceremonies up to that date are cancelled.

    We can contact the town halls on the date that they re-open to re-book the cancelled ceremonies.

    If you are already approved  and have had the Marriage license or "Prøvelsesattestendens" issued, and you cannot marry because of Denmark still being on Lockdown - once lockdown is lifted we can have your file reopened and extended. If you have a VISA or permit or passport expiring you will need to obtain a new one and send this scan in for it to be added to your file.

    If your file is already in but not approved you can request the file be put on hold, to give you time to exit the Schengen area, or add a newly longer residency permit or VISA to the file and get married at a later date.

    When the lockdown is over, if required we can have your file moved to a Town Hall with better availability, and can do this by contacting the Agency of Family Law Familierethuset  Government office on your behalf and having the electronic file moved.

  • What is your cancellation policy?

    If you have made payment, the application and process is underway and work on your file has started cancellation and then refund  for anything other than the Legalisation service (if you have paid for it and not initiated the service yet) is not possible.

    If your application is in with us already and you wish to postpone - you must let us know and we will do this at no extra charge, for as long as the Familieretshuset will allow you to be postponed.

    With Covid 19 and Coronavirus, we will help at no additional cost for you to rebook your ceremony to a date within your license date range, or move Town Halls. But if you are unable to marry within the license date range for whatever reason we are unable to reimburse you and you will need to speak to your Travel Insurers for recompense.

    If you wish to rebook your ceremony in the event of an expired license and move forward with another ceremony, we will not charge you another full fee, but there will be a non profit cost €295 fee to cover the new fee we have to pay to the Danish Agency of Family law and the new file and application work we need to do.

  • Can we get married by Skype in Denmark or Gibraltar?

    No it is not possible to get married in a legally binding ceremony on Skype in Denmark or Gibraltar. If you are wanting to get married in Denmark or Gibraltar you both need to be present in person.

    It is usually possible with advance agreement of the registrar (via your wedding planner in Denmark or Gibraltar) for you to have Skype on during the wedding.  So that guests who are unable to attend in person can at least see you on your wedding day and attend via a Skype call - so they can be present in some form. As long as this does not negatively impact the Registrar and the service in time, duration or ability for the Registrar to deliver the service they need to they are more than happy!
     

  • Is getting married in Denmark with a Tourist VISA possible?

    Yes, getting married in Denmark with a tourist visa is possible, as long as you have legal entry into Denmark you can get married in Denmark. We see many types of Tourist Visas, Work Visas, Student Visas, residency permits for Eu countries that give you entry into Denmark.

    Anyone can get married in Denmark even if you are not a resident or Citizen of Denmark - as long as you can enter the country you can have your wedding in Denmark.

  • Can foreigners get married in Denmark?

     

    Yes! Absolutely!  

    International couples, non Danish residents &citizens, foreigners, people from all over the world come to Denmark to get married as it is easier to do this and travel to Denmark  and thus avoid bureaucracy and long administrational processes in countries of residence. And as the marriage certificates are International, Legally recognised and issued in 5 different languages and the weddings are fast, it makes Denmark one of the best countries for a fast and easy wedding in the world after Las Vegas. Around 15,000 couples come to marry every year.

  • Are you the best option for Foreign and International couples?

     

    Yes!

    We consider ourselves to be the best option for Foreign and International couples who are looking at Getting Married in Denmark, and have helped over 4000 Foreign and International couples get married in Denmark in legally recognised civil ceremonies that are recognised worldwide. 

    Many couples are worried that their situation is complicated, difficult, unusual, unique, complex and are quite stressed about it. But there is no situation that we have not had, and we help all manner of NON EU and EU citizens marry that are residents and citizens all over the world. Different Decrees from all over the world, different permits, visas and situations. We are experts in this field and the document requirements for Getting Married in Denmark, Getting Married in Sweden and Getting Married in Denmark. And to date there has been no situation or couple that we have not been able to help, with a fast turn around, so we can help you marry in less than a month as we have complete faith in our expertise, knowledge, efficiency and experience.  So we can confidently say that we believe we are the best agency if you are looking at Getting Married in Denmark, Getting Married in Sweden or Getting Married in Gibraltar.

    We also ensure we work with truly International wedding photographers, Florists, hair and make up artists - who between them and us speak English, Danish, French, German, Romanian, Polish, Spanish, Ukrainian & Russian.

    Contact us on HERE for a free no obligation documents list and chat about what you need to get get married quickly in Denmark as a Foreign, International or Same sex couple.

  • Can you help couples with complicated or difficult situations get married?

     

    Yes we absolutely can!

    There is no situation for Getting Married in Denmark, Getting Married in Sweden or Getting married in Gibraltar that we consider to be a complicated or difficult situation. To date we have helped over 3000 International and Foreign couples get married in Denmark, and we have processed documents from all over the world for the wedding paperwork and applications.

    We see documents, decrees, residency, citizenship, death certificates, permits, VISAs and situations from all over the world, there is no situation that is too complex, individual, different, complicated or problematic - we have not had a couple, situation or citizenship to date that we have not been able to help get married.

    We are so confident that we can help all complicated and international couples get married quickly that we do not charge any extra for fast weddings in under a month. So if you want to get married quickly in Denmark that is all part of the service. We have helped some couples in as little as 4 days, from start of the process to the actual wedding day!

  • What does a Danish Legalisation look like?

    The Legalisation in Denmark is an Apostille which is attached to the original document. The Apostille is always in Danish and English and is recognised worldwide.
    See blog on Apostilles HERE for more information.

  • Is it easy for foreigners to get married in Denmark?

    Because of the straightforward document requirements, Denmark has earned its reputation for being one of the best countries in the world for foreigners to get married, no matter what their personal circumstances are, or where they live.

  • What is the Legalisation option?

    If you want to have an Apostille on your marriage certificates select this option. It is 1 Apostille per certificate, and the price of the service includes couriered return of the document/s to you.
    The Legalisation is an Apostille, which is the full, further optional level of verification available on any document. It is  confirmation from the Ministry of Foreign affairs that your marriage certificate is authentic, from a recognised licensed venue, with a licensed registrar.