Legal
Australian Legal Requirements for Marriage
According to the Marriage Act 1961, Marriage means – “the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others, voluntarily entered into for life”.
You may marry when you reach the age of 18 years. If one of you is between 16-18, you will require parental permission and also judicial dispensation, eg you must apply to a Judge or Magistrate for dispensation to marry. If both of you are under 18, you may not marry. If you are in what is termed a prohibited relationship you may not marry, eg you cannot marry anyone who is a direct ancestor or descendant. This applies also to adoptive parents/children.
Marriages can be solemnised on any day, at any time and at any place, provided the marriage takes place within Australia or Australian territorial waters.
Procedures
- The first requirement is that you both lodge a Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) no sooner than 18 months and no later than one calendar month before the date of your intended marriage. In exceptional circumstances this time can be shortened by application to a Judge/Magistrate. This form must be witnessed by those persons listed on the back of the form, eg
- An authorised marriage celebrant
- A Commissioner for Declarations under the Statutory Declarations Act 1959, or
- A Justice of the Peace, or
- A Barrister or Solicitor; or
- A legally qualified Medical Practitioner; or
- A member of the Australian Federal Police or the police force of a State or Territory
- A copy of the Notice of Intended Marriage Form (NOIM) can be downloaded from: www.ag.gov.au/celebrants
- Sometime prior to the date of the marriage, I will need to sight the following original documents:
Required documentation
Australian Nationals
- Both Original Birth Certificates
- Consents, parental or judicial – as appropriate
- Decrees of dissolution of previous marriages – as appropriate
- Death certificate of a previous spouse – as appropriate
Overseas Nationals
Foreign nationals may marry in Australia – provided they satisfy the normal criteria in the Notice of intended Marriage Form.
- Overseas passport – for foreign nationals
- Any documents not in English will require verified legal translations and you will need to bring originals of both with you.
- You will need to sign a Statutory Declaration that there are no reasons why you should not marry and that the information you have provided to me is true and correct.
- You will need to nominate two witnesses to your marriage – both must be over the age of 18.
NB: the Notice of Intended Marriage need only be witnessed by an Australian Embassy Staff member or a Notary Public in your country.
NB: Foreign nationals need to check with Authorities in their own countries, as some overseas countries do not recognise a marriage entered into in Australia as valid.
On the Day
You need to state in front of your witnesses (two at a minimum) that you take each other as your legal husband/wife.
When you are pronounced husband and wife, you both need sign three copies of the Marriage Certificate which are signed by your two witnesses and also signed by your Celebrant. One copy is registered with the local Authority – in Queensland this is the Register-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages for Queensland, one is retained by you as a permanent keepsake and one is retained by your Celebrant.