Marriage in Scotland
By law, both parties to a proposed civil or religious marriage,
which includes other belief systems, are required to submit
marriage notice forms to the registrar of the district in which the
marriage is to take place informing him of their intention to
marry.
Forms for giving notice can be obtained from any registration
office in Scotland or from the General Registrars Office for
Scotland (GROS) website.
Notice must be given in the three month period prior to the date
of the marriage and not later than 15 days before that date.
Who can be married in Scotland?
Any two people, regardless of where they live,
can marry in Scotland, provided that both parties:are at least 16
years of age on the day of marriage are not related to one
another in a way which would prevent their marrying
- are unmarried and not in a civil partnership (any person who
has already been married or registered as a civil partner must
produce documentary evidence that the previous marriage or civil
partnership registration has been ended by death, divorce,
annulment or dissolution)
- are not of the same sex
- are capable of understanding the nature of a marriage ceremony
and of consenting to marrying
and that the marriage would be regarded as valid in any foreign
country to which either person belongs.
Types of marriage?
You can be married in either of two
ways in Scotland - by a religious ceremony or by a civil
ceremony.
A religious marriage, which
includes other belief systems, may take place anywhere and may be
solemnised only by a minister, clergyman, pastor, priest or other
person entitled to do so under the Marriage (Scotland) Act
1977.
A civil marriage may be solemnised
only by a registrar or an assistant registrar who has been
authorised by the Registrar General and may take place in a
registration office or at a venue/place approved by the local
authority for that purpose.
Marriage
venues
East Dunbartonshire has marriage
suites at Bearsden (Antonine Suite) and Kirkintilloch (Lennox
Suite) and has approved the following venues:
- Glazert Country House Hotel,
Lennoxtown (01360 310790)
- Kincaid House Hotel, Milton of
Campsie (0141 776 2226)
- Smiths Hotel,Kirkintilloch (0141
775 0398)
- Kirkintilloch Miners Welfare,
Kirkintilloch (0141 578 0024)
- Kirkintilloch Rangers Club,
Kirkintilloch (0141 775 2907)
- Esporta Health Club, Milngavie
(0141 955 2411)
- Cadder Freestone Social Club,
Bishopbriggs (0141 772 1584)
- The Eagle Lodge, Oregano,
Bishopbriggs (0141 772 5951)
Notice of
marriage
You can obtain marriage notice forms and information
about fees from any Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages in
Scotland. Directory
of Registrars in Scotland (pdf) (172 Kb). In most cases you can
get the address of the relevant local registrar from the telephone
directory or the operator.
Each of you must complete and
submit a marriage notice, along with the required documents and
appropriate fee, to the registrar for the district in which the
marriage is to take place. This means that both parties must be
aware of the marriage and independently complete and sign the
declaration on the marriage notice form. Failing to give proper
notice can result in a marriage being postponed or prevented from
proceeding.
The notices must be submitted early
enough to enable the registrar to satisfy himself that you are free
to marry one another. Normally notices should be submitted about
four weeks before the marriage, but if either
party has been married before, the notices should ideally be with
the Registrar six weeks beforehand. The
minimum period is 15 days before the date
of the proposed marriage, but if you leave things as late
as this, you could be faced with the need to postpone your
marriage.
Only in exceptional circumstances will the Registrar General
authorise a marriage to take place if 15 days' notice has not been
given.
Documents required
When giving and sending marriage notice forms to
the registrar, both parties must supply the following:
- birth certificate
- If you have been previously married or in a registered civil
partnership and the marriage or civil partnership has been
dissolved or annulled, a decree of divorce or dissolution or
annulment or a certified copy decree is required. A decree of
divorce or dissolution granted outside Scotland must be absolute or
final - a decree nisi is not acceptable
- if your spouse or civil partner is deceased, the death
certificate of your former spouse or civil partner
- if your domicile is abroad, a certificate of no impediment
issued by the competent authority to the effect you are free to
marry
- if any of the above documents are in a foreign language, a
certified translation in English must also be provided.
Do not delay giving notice simply because you are
waiting for any of the above documents.
All documents must be produced to the registrar prior to
the date of marriage.
If you are subject to immigration controls you may have to
provide additional documentation to that outlined above. If you
require further clarification you should consult your local
registrar.
East Dunbartonshire Council has three registration offices in
Kirkintilloch, Bishopbriggs and Bearsden.
Bearsden Registration
Office,
38 Roman Road,
Bearsden,
G61 2SH |
Bishopbriggs Registration
Office,
The Triangle,
Kirkintilloch Road,
Bishopbriggs,
G64 2TR |
Kirkintilloch Registration
Office,
21 Southbank Road,
Kirkintilloch,
G66 1NH |
| Telephone: 0141 578 8669 |
Telephone: 0141 578 8557 |
Telephone: 0141 578 8020 |
| Opening times for all offices |
Monday 9am - 12.30pm, 1.30pm - 5pm
Tuesday - Friday 9am - 12.30pm, 1.30pm - 4pm |