Today we're back with our destination wedding planning series, this week focusing on the rules and regulations of planning a destination wedding and how to make sure you *can* get married abroad. Freelance writer, blogger, and former destination wedding bride Rachael Kealy shares her hard-earned knowledge with us today!
Many people – Kim and Kanye included, it has been reported – only realise when they’re knee-deep in flights and flowers that getting legally married abroad isn’t easy. Most governments require you to be resident in their country before permitting you to be legally married there and it can be quite difficult to prove this. Keira Knightly got married legally in France, but she has a home in Provence and so ticked that box.
From the moment you get engaged, there is a world of information out there to help you choose your outfits, style your wedding and even write your speeches. But the administration - the actual nuts and bolts of the marriage process - is much more mysterious, and even more so for destination weddings. This month I try to cast a little light on the process of getting legally married abroad.
Restrictions
For those of us without estates in the French countryside at our disposal, the easiest option is usually to organise two separate marriage ceremonies – one civil ceremony at home in Ireland to take care of the legal bit, and another religious or spiritual ceremony in your destination of choice.
Two Parties or One?
A lot of couples, like Rosanna Davidson and Wesley Quirke, take the opportunity to have two parties. They celebrated their civil ceremony in Dublin with a low key dinner amongst family and friends, and jetted out to Ibiza for their religious vows and wedding party.
For us - and this is purely a personal choice - we preferred to downplay the civil part in order to concentrate on our wedding day itself. We simply popped out during our lunch break, signed the paperwork and were back at our desks within the hour. Whichever approach you choose, you’ll need to begin planning both ceremonies early, as there are strict rules regarding notice periods and permissions.
International church requirements
There is usually some administration involved in organising a religious ceremony, and as you can imagine, even more so for a destination wedding. For our Catholic wedding abroad, we had to get permission from both our local church and their French counterparts. We also had to get Letters of Freedom from our previous parishes and complete a detailed questionnaire. Ordinarily, a pre-marriage course would also be required.
We were blessed with enormously helpful priests who made the process easy, but I would advise any bride and groom who want a religious wedding abroad to make contact with their local church representatives early – there are a number of requirements, and you will need guidance to ensure your big day goes without a hitch.
Cost
Both civil and religious marriages entail fees and donations, and separating these into two separate locations doesn’t necessarily cost more unless you are going with a dedicated venue for the civil ceremony instead of the local registry office.
A destination wedding ceremony requires a little more work and requires a bit of organisation, but when you’re saying your vows in a beautiful sunny location, it’ll all be worth it, I promise! And thank goodness we get to learn from the mistakes of those high profile celebs!
