LEGAL REQUIREMENTS FOR WEDDINGS IN ISCHIA
Latest update: 22 January 2024
Civil Ceremony
Civil Ceremonies are legally binding and will normally be performed in the local Town Hall and last approximately 20 minutes. The ceremony will be conducted in Italian and you are legally obliged to have an interpreter present throughout the ceremony, even if you or your partner can speak Italian. The interpreter must be a professional signing and making oath to translate accordingly.
Religious Ceremony
A Roman Catholic wedding is legally binding and recognised by the Italian authorities, because they contain a civil element within the service, therefore it will not be necessary to perform a separate civil ceremony. The ceremony will be performed in the local Roman Catholic Church, but first you will have had to contact your local parish priest in the UK to help you prepare. It would be very unlikely that any catholic church in Ischia would permit the marriage of non-catholics. As long as one or both are catholic that is OK. Please allow at least 9 months to organize this and be prepared to contact your local catholic priest to prepare yourselves to the sacrament properly. If you are not an authentic faithful, we suggest you perform either a civil or symbolic wedding as many restrictions apply to a catholic wedding and you should be prepared to fulfil them.
Other Religious Ceremonies
If you wish to have any other type of religious ceremony you will be required to have a civil ceremony first, otherwise the marriage will not be legally binding under any law. In such cases couples may wish to have a civil ceremony in the UK and have a blessing in Ischia.
Residency Stay
Where both parties to the marriage are British nationals and living in Italy you will require residence in the Consular district for the 21 days immediately prior to giving the notice of marriage, and the posting of this notice of marriage in the Consulate for a further 21 clear days.
Where both parties are British nationals and both are resident in the United Kingdom there is no requirement for a residency stay in Italy for getting married there. As long as they are there to do the necessary pre-wedding declaration (compulsory) for civil marriages. You should contact your Registrar, in the town where you wish to marry, in advance of your wedding day, for further information.
British nationals should first give notice of their Marriage, to the Superintending Registrar, in their local district, where they live in the UK. The couple will need to wait between 17 to 23 days whilst the banns are publicised. After which time provided there are no complications, the couple will be issued with a certificate of No Impediment.
This document along with your Basic Documents and the first five pages of your passport must be sent to the British Consulate in Naples. Once the paperwork is with the Consulate it may only take 5 -7 days to process. A Nulla Osta is then issued which must be taken to the Anagrafe (Registry office) in order to book a date for the wedding. Some rural areas may allow a wedding date to be reserved and then finalised on presentation of the Nulla Osta.
Consular Fees
You should allow plenty of time for your paperwork to be processed in Italy, in case there are any complications. Please be aware that the processing of your documents is subject to consular fees.
Visit the British Embassy, Italy website for a list of the consular fees.
Please consider to be in the city where you will get married to swear a declaration in front of the authorities with a simultaneous translator a couple of days before the wedding
Marriage Certificate
Once the ceremony has been performed you will be issued with a Marriage Certificate. You must then provide the Consular Officer in the town where the marriage was performed with a certified copy of the marriage certificate in multilingual format.
The document can then be forwarded on your request to the General Registrar Office in the UK. Your marriage will not be registered in the UK, your marriage certificate will merely be deposited for their records, and consequently your original marriage certificate will not be returned to you. This in no way makes your marriage invalid. Should you both need your marriage certificate in the future the General Register Office can issue you with a certificate, should the need arise.
Basic Documentation
If you intend to marry in Italy you will need the following documentation (there are several scenarios depending on how the couple is formed and residency and nationality of both, so please read about your specific case for your wedding in Italy):
Embassy of Italy
14, Three Kings Yard
London
W1K 4EH
Tel: +44 0207 3122200
Foreign and Commonwealth Office, London
Tel:+44 0207 270 1500
Civil Ceremonies are legally binding and will normally be performed in the local Town Hall and last approximately 20 minutes. The ceremony will be conducted in Italian and you are legally obliged to have an interpreter present throughout the ceremony, even if you or your partner can speak Italian. The interpreter must be a professional signing and making oath to translate accordingly.
Religious Ceremony
A Roman Catholic wedding is legally binding and recognised by the Italian authorities, because they contain a civil element within the service, therefore it will not be necessary to perform a separate civil ceremony. The ceremony will be performed in the local Roman Catholic Church, but first you will have had to contact your local parish priest in the UK to help you prepare. It would be very unlikely that any catholic church in Ischia would permit the marriage of non-catholics. As long as one or both are catholic that is OK. Please allow at least 9 months to organize this and be prepared to contact your local catholic priest to prepare yourselves to the sacrament properly. If you are not an authentic faithful, we suggest you perform either a civil or symbolic wedding as many restrictions apply to a catholic wedding and you should be prepared to fulfil them.
Other Religious Ceremonies
If you wish to have any other type of religious ceremony you will be required to have a civil ceremony first, otherwise the marriage will not be legally binding under any law. In such cases couples may wish to have a civil ceremony in the UK and have a blessing in Ischia.
Residency Stay
Where both parties to the marriage are British nationals and living in Italy you will require residence in the Consular district for the 21 days immediately prior to giving the notice of marriage, and the posting of this notice of marriage in the Consulate for a further 21 clear days.
Where both parties are British nationals and both are resident in the United Kingdom there is no requirement for a residency stay in Italy for getting married there. As long as they are there to do the necessary pre-wedding declaration (compulsory) for civil marriages. You should contact your Registrar, in the town where you wish to marry, in advance of your wedding day, for further information.
British nationals should first give notice of their Marriage, to the Superintending Registrar, in their local district, where they live in the UK. The couple will need to wait between 17 to 23 days whilst the banns are publicised. After which time provided there are no complications, the couple will be issued with a certificate of No Impediment.
This document along with your Basic Documents and the first five pages of your passport must be sent to the British Consulate in Naples. Once the paperwork is with the Consulate it may only take 5 -7 days to process. A Nulla Osta is then issued which must be taken to the Anagrafe (Registry office) in order to book a date for the wedding. Some rural areas may allow a wedding date to be reserved and then finalised on presentation of the Nulla Osta.
Consular Fees
You should allow plenty of time for your paperwork to be processed in Italy, in case there are any complications. Please be aware that the processing of your documents is subject to consular fees.
Visit the British Embassy, Italy website for a list of the consular fees.
Please consider to be in the city where you will get married to swear a declaration in front of the authorities with a simultaneous translator a couple of days before the wedding
Marriage Certificate
Once the ceremony has been performed you will be issued with a Marriage Certificate. You must then provide the Consular Officer in the town where the marriage was performed with a certified copy of the marriage certificate in multilingual format.
The document can then be forwarded on your request to the General Registrar Office in the UK. Your marriage will not be registered in the UK, your marriage certificate will merely be deposited for their records, and consequently your original marriage certificate will not be returned to you. This in no way makes your marriage invalid. Should you both need your marriage certificate in the future the General Register Office can issue you with a certificate, should the need arise.
Basic Documentation
If you intend to marry in Italy you will need the following documentation (there are several scenarios depending on how the couple is formed and residency and nationality of both, so please read about your specific case for your wedding in Italy):
- Your original CNIs issued by the British Registrar
- Your original full birth / adoption certificates (showing parents’ names); if you do not have this version you will need to obtain it. If you were born in the UK you will need to contact the General Register Office
- Couple Information Form
- Photocopies of the data page of your British Passports
- Evidence of termination of any previous marriage of both parties, if applicable, (i.e. original death certificate or divorce decree absolute) together with the previous marriage certificate for a divorced woman if maiden name is not shown on the divorce certificate.
Embassy of Italy
14, Three Kings Yard
London
W1K 4EH
Tel: +44 0207 3122200
Foreign and Commonwealth Office, London
Tel:+44 0207 270 1500
- British Embassy, Italy
- General Register Office
