You can use the getting married abroad tool on gov.uk to find out who you need to contact in order to confirm requirements.

Some countries will request a certificate of no impediment.  A certificate of no impediment can be provided for British citizens only.  In order to obtain a certificate of no impediment you must book a notice of marriage appointment at the Register Office in the district in which you live.  

Before you book your appointment, you should find out, from the authorities in the country in which you wish to marry, how long the certificate is valid for in that country, as it must be valid on the day of the wedding.  

You should also find out if they require you to contact the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for legalisation (an apostille) once the certificate has been collected from the Register Office in the district where you live.

Once you have this information you should contact your local Register Office to arrange an appointment.  You should plan ahead as there can be a wait for appointments.

You will need to know at least the town and country where the marriage is taking place along with any unusual spellings.

If you are a British citizen and live within the Milton Keynes registration district, you can book your notice appointment by either using the link below or by calling 01908 372101.  A fee is chargeable for a certificate of no impediment and this fee is taken at the time of booking the appointment. 

Book an appointment to obtain a certificate of no impediment

At the appointment you will need to provide evidence of: 

Your nationality:

Please bring ONE of the following:

• Valid British passport; or
• Citizenship certificate confirming British Citizenship; or
• British birth certificates 
  • If you were born prior to 1 January 1983 we will need to see either your full or short birth certificate.
  • If you were born after 1 January 1983 we will need to see your full birth certificate, which includes your parents' details, PLUS either your mother or father's birth certificate if your parents were married when you were born.  If your parents were unmarried when you were born then only your mother's birth certificate can be accepted.  If your parents were born outside the UK, then you must provide evidence of British nationality at the time of your birth.
  • If your parents were born on or after 1 January 1983 we will also need to see evidence of their parents' nationality.  Further information can be found in the document below.  As this can be quite complex please contact us on 01908 372101 for further clarification.  

Your address:

Please bring ONE of the following:

• Utility bill dated no more than three months prior to the date of the appointment; or
• Bank or building society statement or passbook dated no more than one month prior to the date of the appointment; or
• Council tax bill dated no more than one year prior to the date of the appointment; or 
• Mortgage statement from the last 12 months; or
• Current residential tenancy agreement; or
• Valid driving licence in the name of the person giving notice; or
• Letter from the owner or proprietor of the address which is the person's place of residence.  This letter must include:
  • the name, address, date and signature of the owner / proprietor;
  • confirmation that this person is the owner / proprietor; and
  • confirmation of the name of the person giving Notice and that they have been resident at the address for at least the eight days immediately prior to the Notice appointment.

Evidence of your age:

We will need to see proof that you are over the age of 18 - your valid passport is sufficient evidence for your proof of age. 

Your name:

Evidence of any name change (marriage certificate; deed poll etc)

If you are widowed or divorced:

If you have been married or in a civil partnership before, we will need to see:

• Decree absolute*
  • if your divorce was granted in England or Wales and you have been issued with a paper version of your decree absolute from the court we will need to see this and the cover sheet which accompanied it.  
  • if your divorce was granted in England or Wales and you have been issued with an electronic version of the decree absolute, we will need to see this and the covering email
  • if your divorce was granted outside England and Wales, we will need to see the final divorce documents issued along with a full translation into English if the document was written in any other language. 
    • A fee is chargeable for clearance of any divorces granted in countries outside England and Wales.  Please note that these may have to be referred to the General Register Office for the Registrar General to confirm the document is acceptable under British law and it is not possible to specify how long it may take for approval to come through.  Authorities to marry cannot be issued until this approval is received, so please do take this into account when considering a marriage date as there may be a significant delay before a ceremony can take place. 
• The death certificate of the spouse – if the surviving partner is not mentioned on the death certificate then you must also provide a certified copy of the marriage or civil partnership certificate.
• The presumed death certificate of the spouse

* if the name you are now using differs from the name on your decree absolute, for example you have reverted back to your maiden name, then we would need to see a link between the names, for example a name change deed or a marriage certificate. 

Some of my documents are not in English, what should I bring?

If any of your documents are in any language other than English, you will need to bring the original document plus a full translation into English, certified at the bottom of the document by the translator stating "I certify this to be a true translation of the document".  The name, address, telephone number and signature of the person who translated the document(s) must be included.

Only original documents can be provided.  Photocopies will not be accepted.

There is a fee for booking and using this service.  If you do not bring all the required original, valid documentation we will not be able to complete your notice and a further appointment will have to be booked and paid for.

Once notice is taken it is then displayed for a legal waiting period of 28 clear days before the certificate of no impediment can be issued.

Please note that as long as you follow the law for the country you marry in, and it is legally recognised by that government, then there is no reason why your marriage would not be recognised in this country.  A marriage can only be registered in one place and there is no provision in English law to register your marriage in this country if the marriage takes place abroad.