Any couple proposing to marry should begin the process by contacting their local Registration Office to make an appointment to meet the Registrar to give him/her their marriage notification. Notification can be taken only by prior appointment with registrar. For more official info on the process and what is required from you, click here
You do not need to attend the Galway Office. You may attend any office in the country. To find the office closest to you click here.
While only three months’ notice is required by law, couples are advised to contact the Registrar as soon as they know their intended date of marriage to ensure they can get a timely appointment.
You will need the following information and documentation for your meeting with the Registrar:
- Photo Identity (preferably a passport or driving license)
- Names and dates of birth of witnesses
- Name of the Church where you wish to marry
- Date of Marriage
- Name of priest who will officiate at your marriage.
- If either of you has been previously married you must provide the Civil Registrar with an original divorce decree or death certificate if widowed.
The registrar will issue each party of the intended marriage, and their priest, with an acknowledgement confirming the date of the receipt of the notification.
When the registrar is satisfied that all required details have been provided and that the couple are free to marry, he or she will issue them with a Marriage Registration Form (MRF) based on the information they have provided. This is a critical document as it is effectively the civil authorisation for the marriage to proceed. All couples wishing to marry in Ireland must first be issued with an (MRF) which should be given to the priest celebrating the marriage prior to the ceremony. This is the responsibility of the couple getting married.
The law also requires that the couple make a verbal declaration of freedom to marry within 48 hours of the marriage taking place. This is done in the presence of the priest and the two witnesses to the marriage. For convenience it is suggested that this takes place at the rehearsal.
It is also the responsibility of the couple to ensure that the form is returned to any Registrars Office within one month of the date of Marriage. It recommended that this document be delivered by hand or failing this that it be sent by registered post. For couples who reside outside of the state, a postal application is available