How does a legal wedding in Italy work?
Photo: Colin Ross
When deciding whether to get legally married in Italy, you can get swept up in a world of myths and lengthy internet articles making it sounds more complicated than it is. I know, I’ve been there. And now, as a planner that fully understands the process it really upsets me to hear couples dissuaded from legally marrying in Italy due to complications they’ve read about.
For the record, it’s not that complicated! And in this article we’ll explain why.
In Italy it’s possible for foreign nationals to celebrate a fully legal wedding, recognised as a legal marriage around the world. This is called a civil ceremony. It's arranged through a 'town hall' in the town or city you're getting married in. Once you’ve had your civil ceremony, you will receive a bilingual certificate which is recognised as a legally binding document.
There is a cost. The town hall can cost from 100 euro – 2000 euro, the average cost is 500 euro. The paperwork in your home country and Italy can cost around 600 euro in total.
If you want to host your civil ceremony at your venue it needs to have a legal agreement to perform civil weddings. This agreement is relatively rare. The alternative is to get married at the town hall itself and there are many stunning locations across Italy such as San Galgano Abbey, Certaldo’s Palazzo Pretorio and Ostuni municipal.
Each town hall approaches things differently and these rules can affect the process, the timing of your wedding, how public it is and how easy the process is.
There are steps that you will have to take in the UK and Italy. The paperwork side doesn’t take any more time than a wedding at home but when you get to Italy you need to attend an appointment 2-3 days before your wedding.
The civil ceremony follows a set order of service. It contains a set of declarations that you make to each other and this is fixed. It can be personalised with vows, ring exchanges, music and readings but these take place at set points during the ceremony at each town halls discretion.
MAKE SURE YOU GET SOME SUPPORT
Hiring some help is integral to making sure your legal ceremony goes smoothly. This process is extremely precise and there is no room for error. Employing a professional is key. Some planners include this as part of their service. Others don’t, and you will need to hire someone specifically for this job.
The role should include: booking the town hall ceremony, checking the town hall bookings multiple times a year, supporting you in advising on the paperwork process in your country, checking your paperwork, translating and legalising your paperwork in Italy. And liaising with the town hall throughout to ensure they have all of the information and payments required to secure your ceremony. This is not a job for the inexperienced!
Written by Lucy White, Founder of La Lista & Wiskow & White, with over 5 years and 150 weddings worth of experience.
