Wedding Paperwork Legal Jargon Explained
Paperwork and the documentation needed for legally bonding weddings differs from country to country. Check with your wedding planner or the Embassy of the country you wish to marry in to see what paperwork you need exactly. Here are some of the common terms used for wedding documentation explained.
Affidavit
This document is a signed statement made by you in the presence of a solicitor in which you swear that something is true. The solicitor must also sign the document as a witness. Lastly the document must be drawn up on headed paper which states that the witness is a solicitor, or it must be stamped with the solicitor’s stamp which again must state that he is a solicitor.
Third Person Affidavit
This is a signed statement that you are not married and that you are free to remarry. This statement must be made and witnessed in the same way as an affidavit but must be made either by a member of your family or by a person who knows you well enough to do so for example a family doctor, vicar, parish priest or your employer.
Certificates of Freedom to Marry
(also known as ‘Civil Letters of Freedom’, “Certificates de Coutume” or “Certificates of Nulla Osta”)
This is a certificate/letter which states that a person is not married. Irish citizens living in Ireland needing to obtain such a Certificate should apply to the Consular Section of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Dublin. Apply at least 3 months in advance of your departure date.
Certified Copy
This is a photocopy of an original document made by a solicitor. The photocopy should be stamped and signed by the solicitor and the stamp must include the words “solicitor” or “Notary Public” and must state that the photocopy is a true copy of the original. The solicitor must sign their own name and not that of their firm.
Deed Poll proof of Name Change
This is the common term for a legally binding document stating that you have changed your name to something other than that on your birth certificate and stating what your new name is. This document must say that it is a deed, you must have signed it intending to stand by your name change and your signature must have been witnessed by another who must also sign the document.
Legalised
This is the process of certifying the signature or stamp on a document to prove that it is authentic so that overseas authorities can accept it. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does this by attaching a legalisation certificate to the document, known as an apostile.
Certificate of No Impediment
This is a declaration made by the registrar at your local registry office that there is no reason known to him why your proposed marriage should not go ahead. Generally they are only regarded as being valid for 6 months from the date of issue.
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