Here are some guidelines if you are planning to get married abroad.

Many couples choose to get married abroad every year.  It is possible to get married in a Catholic church, but both the civil and ecclesiastical procedures are a little more

complicated as a result so please allow at least 6 months to complete the formalities.

First of all you will need to establish that the church abroad  is willing to host your wedding ceremony and to book the date.  Please obtain the postal address of the church in which you intend to marry and the contact there.

You will also need to establish what is required for marriage, according to the civil law of the country in which you intend to marry, and to ensure that you can meet these requirements.

Once you have booked a date for your wedding, you will need to contact your local parish priest here in the UK to inform

him of your intention to get married abroad, so that he can compile the necessary documentation required by Church law.

At least one of you must be Catholic.

Documentation

You will need to complete a prenuptial enquiry form in your local parish and to provide certain other documents.

If you are Catholic you will need to provide a copy of your baptismal certificate dated no more than 6 months prior to the

wedding.

If you were baptised in another Christian tradition, you will also need to provide a copy of your baptismal certificate, but this does not need to be recently dated.

Catholics may additionally be asked to obtain letters from parishes where they have lived since the age of 16 attesting to their freedom to marry.

Freedom to Marry

If you belong to another religious denomination, or have no particular religious adherence, you will need to have statements signed by two people who have known you for a long time, such as your parents, who can testify to your freedom to marry.

If your wedding involves a Catholic and someone who is not Catholic, then the Catholic will need permission or a dispensation to marry. This is normally granted readily if there is no problem about the Catholic upbringing of any children the couple may have.

Couples are normally required to complete a marriage preparation course, either in their local parish or given by organisations such as Marriage Care.

Please check with your parish priest what course is available in your area.

Curia

Once the documentation is complete, the marriage papers will be sent by your parish priest to the Chancellor of the Diocese of Leeds to check that everything is in order and to issue any permission or dispensation that may be necessary. He in turn will forward the documents to the curia of the diocese where your wedding is to take place. If the receiving diocese finds everything in order, the documents will then be sent to the church where the wedding is to take place

Due to the time involved providing all the necessary paperwork, the parish does request a fee which can be discussed when you approach the priest for the process to begin.