Visiting Northern Ireland to marry or form a civil partnership

Giving notice of your marriage or civil partnership

You must give notice in the 12 months before the date of your marriage or civil partnership.

You must present your notice early enough to allow the registrar to make sure both parties are free to marry one another. 

The minimum period of notice is 28 days.

You can find out more about submitting your notice form at the following links:

• How and when to give notice for marriage
• How and when to give notice for civil partnership

If you are visiting Northern Ireland to marry or form a civil partnership you will also need to include the following with your marriage / civil partnership notice application:

• passport with relevant visa
• immigration status statement (if applicable)

Visa requirements

If you plan to travel to marry or register a civil partnership in Northern Ireland you must have the right visa. You will also need this before you give notice to the District Registrar.

You can check if you need to apply for a UK visa at the link below.

• Check if you need a UK visa

Marriage visitor visa

You can apply for a Marriage Visitor visa if:

• you want to get married or register a civil partnership in the UK
• you want to give notice of a marriage or civil partnership in UK
• you are not planning to stay in the UK after your marriage or civil partnership

You can find out more about the marriage visitor visa, including other eligibility requirements and how to apply at the link below.

• Marriage Visitor visa

Immigration Status Statement

If you are not a UK, EEA (European Economic Area) or Swiss national wishing to marry or form a civil partnership in Northern Ireland you will need to fill in an immigration status statement.

You can download the statement form and find out more, including what supporting evidence you need at the link below.

• Marriage/civil partnership and immigration control

You should present this and any supporting evidence along with your marriage/civil partnership notice application.

You should note that if you do not have the right visa or evidence in support of your application, you will be referred to the Home Office for investigation and the period of notice may be extended to 70 days.

Making arrangements

It is important to make early arrangements for the date and time of your marriage or civil partnership.

You can find more about arranging a marriage or a civil partnership at the following below.

• Marriage and registration
• Civil partnership and registration

More useful links

• Getting married abroad