Civil marriages can be solemnized at Municipalities according to the relevant legislation (Marriage Law 104(i) of 2003).
Interested parties must apply personally to the Civil Marriage Office in order to be informed about the documents they need to produce in order to solemnize a civil marriage in Cyprus.
Civil marriages can be solemnized between Cypriot citizens, Cypriots with foreigners and between foreigners.
When the interested parties present all the necessary documents, the marriage can be solemnized either by Notice of Marriage or by Special Procedure:
Special Procedure
If the couple has special reason for marrying early it will follow the Special procedure whereby they can get married the same day of their application or less than fifteen days.
Notice of Marriage
In this case the couple will sign the notice of Marriage and can get married after 15 days from the day of their application but not later than 3 months.
The ceremony is very simple and takes about 10-15 minutes. After the celebration of marriage the couple, the two witnesses and the Marriage Officer signs the certificates and the couple obtains 1 original certificate of marriage.
Civil wedding between foreigners – Required documents
Foreigners need to present the following documents, which must be recent, original and officially translated into English, so as for the Municipality to be able to proceed with the Civil Marriage:
1. Recent Certificate of Marital Status from Government Authority (i.e. Town Hall, Ministry of Interior, Registry Office, Embassy etc).
2. Divorce Certificate (if applicable)
3. Death Certificate of Spouse (if applicable)
4. Passport with a minimum validity of six months
Non-marriage certificate (single/divorced/widowed), for foreigners, is issued by the competent authority of the country of origin of the applicant. This certificate is valid for 6 months from the date of issue. In case this certificate is not issued in English it must be translated in English or Greek language. The original Non-marriage Certificate and the translated document must be presented together.
Furthermore, the non-marriage certificate must be duly certified as follows in case the country of origin of the applicant has signed the Hague Convention of 1961, it has to be certified with the Apostille stamp. In case the country of origin of the applicant has not signed the Hague Convention of 1961, it has to be certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country of origin of the applicant and then by the Embassy/Consulate of Cyprus in his/her country. Or it can be certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country of origin of the applicant and then by the Embassy/Consulate of that country in Cyprus and by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Cyprus.
In relation to European and Third country nationals, original certificates are needed, translated in English or Greek language, by a formal authority in the country of origin of the applicant or by the Press and Information Office in Cyprus.
Civil wedding between Cypriots – Required documents
For Cypriots and/or residents of Cyprus:
1. Affidavit at a Registrar of the District Court
2. Statement from the Ministry of Interior (MIGRATION)
3. Divorce Certificate (if applicable)
4. Death Certificate of Spouse (if applicable)
5. Copy of Birth Certificate
6. Passport with a minimum validity of six months
7. ID Card
In relation to the affidavit, which is needed for Cypriots, Europeans or third country nationals it has to describe the applicant’s marital status (single/ divorced/widowed) and the name of the person that the applicant intends to get married to. In case of divorce or widowhood it must be stated that the applicant has not been married since the divorce/death of his/her spouse. The affidavit is valid only for 1 month from the date made. The original document should be submitted to the Civil Weddings Registry with the application form in order to get the relevant non-marriage certificate.
In order to receive the certificate of non-marriage it is necessary that both applicants appear personally at the Civil Registry and Migration Department and submit the relevant application and original affidavit. In case of divorced or widowed persons the relevant documents (finalized divorce papers or death certificate of spouse) should be presented. The Non-marriage certificate is valid for 2 months from the date of issue.
Fees
For a routine marriage in Cyprus, you should expect to pay:
€128 for the civil ceremony
€281 for the urgency application
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