New Zealand Beach Weddings - Gordon Barnaby - Marriage Celebrant Whitianga, Coromandel Peninsula

A marriage is the formalisation of a relationship between a man and a woman, in accordance with the Marriage Act 1955.

The Marriage Act and the Births, Deaths, and Marriages Registration Act 1995 set out the criteria, rules and processes for a couple to have their marriage solemnised and registered in New Zealand.

All forms are available from Births, Deaths and Marriages offices and agencies, and through our website: www.bdm.govt.nz

Copies of the Acts and associated regulations may be available at your local library, can be purchased from Bennett’s Government Bookshops, and can be accessed on the Internet at www.legislation.govt.nz

• A ceremony held by an authorised Marriage Celebrant at a place other than a Registry Office.
Registry Office ceremonies take place during normal office hours, but you can have a celebrant solemnise your marriage ceremony at any time, on any day of the week.

When a couple intend to get married, they are required to complete the appropriate type of ‘Notice of Intended Marriage’ form, which includes a statutory declaration that both parties are free to marry each other and that all the details supplied on the form are correct.

One of the parties must appear in person before a Registrar of Marriages to sign the statutory declaration.

The required fee must be paid.

The Registrar will (no sooner than three days after receiving the Notice of Intended Marriage) issue your Marriage Licence, together with two copies of a document known as a ‘Copy of Particulars of Marriage’.

You will need to deliver these three documents to your Marriage Celebrant before the ceremony.

If you ordinarily live overseas and want to get married in New Zealand, refer to the instructions found on the website: www.bdm.govt.nz

WHERE IS OUR NEAREST REGISTRAR OF MARRIAGES?

The contact details for your nearest Registrar of Marriages can be obtained by contacting www.bdm.govt.nz A Registrar of Marriages is located in most cities and towns throughout New Zealand. Outside of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch they are often located at the local District Court. Please note that not all District Courts have a Registrar of Marriages, please contact either the courts directly or www.bdm.govt.nz to confirm that a Registrar of Marriages is located there.

WHAT HAPPENS AT A MARRIAGE CEREMONY?

The Marriage Act 1955 does not prescribe any set form for the ceremony, but the following elements are essential:

You must marry at one of the places stated on the Marriage Licence, and before the licence expires.

The marriage must be solemnised in the presence of either a Marriage Celebrant or a Registrar of Marriages.

The marriage must be performed in the presence of at least two other witnesses.

Each party must say the words, “I AB, take you CD, to be my legal wife/husband” – or words to similar effect.

The full names of the bride and bridegroom – as they appear on the Marriage Licence – must be used at some point in the ceremony to clearly identify the bride and bridegroom. Abbreviations and nicknames may then be used in other parts of the ceremony.

The couple, the celebrant and the two witnesses must all sign both copies of the Copy of Particulars of Marriage.

Witnesses must be able to understand what occurs at the ceremony (i.e. they should be of sound mind, and should not be intoxicated).

Children can be witnesses, but they must be old enough to understand the nature of the ceremony, and must be able to demonstrate that understanding in court if later required to do so.

. The Marriage Celebrant sends one Copy of Particulars of Marriage to the Registrar of Marriages so the marriage can be registered with Births, Deaths and Marriages.

. The Marriage Celebrant gives the other Copy of Particulars of Marriage to the couple.

On payment of the required fee, a Marriage Certificate may be obtained from Births, Deaths and Marriages.

A person who has undergone gender reassignment surgery may marry in their new gender. To do so, the person must either register their new gender identity, or show a Registrar of Marriages two statements regarding the surgery, signed by their doctors and/or surgeons. Contact your local Registrar of Marriages for further information.

• If you are 16 or 17 years of age, you will need parental consent: – You must generally obtain consent from each of your parents – exceptions apply where they are living apart, cannot be located or are, as a result of mental incapacity, unable to give consent; – In certain circumstances, consent must be obtained from legal guardians other than your parents, from a relative acting in place of a guardian, or from a Family Court Judge; – If your parents or guardians refuse consent, you can apply to a Family Court Judge for consent to get married.
Consent forms are available from Births, Deaths and Marriages offices and agencies, and through the website: www.bdm.govt.nz.

NOTE
Under the Civil Union Act 2004, a civil union may be entered into by same-sex couples or by couples of different sexes.

There are three types of marriage notice; each designed to deal with the particular circumstances under which each type of notice is applicable:

• ‘Notice of Intended Marriage’ (for general use);
• ‘Notice of Intended Marriage, where both parties are ordinarily resident outside New Zealand’; and

• ‘Notice of Intended Marriage, change Same-sex couples are not of relationship from civil union’, permitted to marry each other. With the advent of civil union, there is now in New Zealand, also a ‘Notice of Intended Civil Union, change of relationship from marriage’ – as outlined in the BDM brochure Civil Union : A guide for couples preparing to enter into a civil union in New Zealand.

CAN A COUPLE CHANGE THEIR CIVIL UNION TO A MARRIAGE …
OR THEIR MARRIAGE TO A CIVIL UNION?

Where a couple are in a civil union and are otherwise eligible to marry, they may change the form of their relationship to a marriage without having to formally dissolve their civil union.
For them, the process begins with a ‘Notice of Intended Marriage, change of relationship from
Civil Union’ form.

Similarly, a married couple who wish to continue in a relationship with each other may change the form of that relationship to a civil union without being required to formally dissolve their marriage.

In this case they would begin by completing a ‘Notice of Intended Civil Union, change of relationship from marriage’ form.

In either case, the couple will be required to produce evidence of their current relationship.

If you wish to change the form of your current relationship from civil union to marriage, and you currently live overseas, you may complete the form – without signing the statutory declaration – and send it to the Registry Office nearest to the place where your marriage is to be solemnised. On arrival in New Zealand, you will need to sign the statutory declaration in the presence of a Registrar of Marriages, before a licence can be issued.

WHAT ABOUT THOSE WHO HAVE PREVIOUSLY MARRIED OR BEEN IN A CIVIL UNION WITH A DIFFERENT PARTNER?

When completing the Notice of Intended Marriage you will be asked to provide evidence of the dissolution of your previous marriage or civil union relationship (eg Divorce/ Dissolution Order).

If your previous partner has died you will be required to give the date of their death, but you will not need to produce evidence of the death if the death has been registered in New Zealand.

Any person who believes that there are legal grounds why a Marriage Licence should not be issued for a couple intending to marry may lodge a caveat with any Registrar of Marriages.

A caveat is a formal notice giving the grounds as to why a Marriage Licence should not be issued.

When any Registrar receives a Notice of Intended Marriage and is aware a relevant caveat has been lodged, the Registrar will submit the objection to the Family Court, and the court will determine whether the objection should be discharged (cancelled).

A caveat to a marriage would also be treated as a Notice of Objection to a civil union, and vice versa.

If the Family Court considers that the grounds on which a particular caveat was lodged were unreasonable and were intended to annoy or cause distress, the person who lodged the caveat will be liable to pay compensation to the couple.

If you intend to marry in a church or other place of worship, the administration office of that place of worship will be able to advice whether a Marriage Celebrant is appointed to solemnise weddings there, and to provide contact details, etc.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A CELEBRANT

It is important that you feel comfortable with the person conducting your ceremony, for every wedding it is the only time in your life that one expects to marry. Your wedding should be personal to you and include any special wishes you have for the occasion. Personal bits give meaning and depth to your ceremony. It is up to the Bride & Groom to decide what feels right for them.

Applying for a Marriage Licence; (Currently $120.00)
Lodging a caveat;
Having a marriage ceremony in a Registry Office; and
Purchasing a Marriage Certificate. Marriage Celebrants may charge a fee for solemnising a marriage. BDM does not set the level of such a fee.

You can retain your current surname;
A man may take the woman’s surname;
A woman may take the man’s surname;
Both may adopt a combination of their surnames (eg as a hyphenated surname).
You can use your Copy of Particulars of Marriage or Marriage Certificates as evidence of the fact that you have adopted the new surname.

You will be given or sent a ‘Notification to Registrar of Electors of Intended Marriage/Civil
Union’ form, for updating your details on the electoral roll.

You will need to complete a ‘Notice of Intended Marriage, where both parties are ordinarily resident outside of New Zealand’.

Send this marriage notice (with the required fee) to the Registry Office closest to the place where you want to have the ceremony, ensuring that it reaches the Registrar at least a week before you intend to have the ceremony.

Collect the Marriage Licence and the two copies of the Copy of Particulars of Marriage.

If a Registrar is to solemnise the marriage the statutory declaration can be signed in the presence of the Registrar immediately prior to the ceremony; otherwise you must sign the statutory declaration when you pick up the licence from the Registrar.

Alternatively, the statutory declaration can be signed, while you are in your home country, in front of a Commonwealth representative (ie an authorised diplomatic or consular officer of a Commonwealth country.)

IF A COUPLE GET MARRIED OVERSEAS WILL THEIR MARRIAGE BE RECOGNISED
IN NEW ZEALAND?

Generally speaking, any marriage that takes place in another country in accordance with that country’s laws is recognised as legitimate in New Zealand.

If you arrange for a New Zealand representative to attend your marriage ceremony in another country, you can have the marriage registered in New Zealand. The representative completes a ‘Certificate of Marriage Outside New Zealand’ and sends it to BDM in New Zealand. The representative may charge a fee for attending your marriage.

One benefit of registering your marriage in New Zealand is that a New Zealand Marriage Certificate can be issued to you. This does not replace any marriage certificate issued to you in the country in which you were married.

If you wish to marry overseas, you will need to communicate with the authorities in the country in which you plan to marry, determine what their requirements are, and make all arrangements yourself.

BDM holds and uses the information you give us in accordance with the following legislation:

Marriage Act 1955;
Civil Union Act 2004;
Births, Deaths, and Marriages Registration Act 1995; and
Privacy Act 1993.

You have the right to access and, where appropriate, correct the information, in accordance with the relevant provisions of these Acts.
Under information-matching programmes approved by the Privacy Commissioner, other organisations may compare information with the Births, Deaths and Marriages Office.
For a current list of these programmes, visit our website: www.bdm.govt.nz.

NOTE
The marriage register is a public register; any person can obtain a Marriage Certificate, a printout of the marriage record or a copy of the Copy of Particulars of Marriage. Requests for such information must be made in the prescribed manner, and the required fee paid.

PROHIBITED DEGREES OF MARRIAGE

The Second Schedule of the Marriage Act 1955 lists the relationships that are forbidden from marriage. ( visit www.bdm.govt.nz)

The prohibition applies to these relationships whether the relationship is by the whole blood or by the half blood.

Further, the term “wife” includes a former wife, whether she is alive or deceased, and whether her marriage was terminated by death or divorce or otherwise; and the term “husband” has a corresponding meaning.

OFFENCES

The Marriage Act 1955 and the Births, Deaths, and Marriages Registration Act 1995 set out a number of offences relating to the solemnisation and registration of marriages. These include:

Solemnising a marriage when not authorised as a Marriage Celebrant, or contrary to the requirements of the Act;
Making, or causing to be made, a false declaration for the purposes of the Marriage Act; and
Making, or causing to be made, for registration purposes, a false statement in respect of any information required to be registered.

Anyone convicted for any of these offences is liable to imprisonment and/or a fine.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A CELEBRANT

PROHIBITED DEGREES OF MARRIAGE

OFFENCES

A CHECKLIST