The contracting of civil marriages in Cyprus is valid since 1923. It is a very simple procedure which many couples choose to combine along with their holidays in Cyprus. For the conduct of their marriage, the interested persons, may only apply in person to the Marriage Officer of the Municipality of their choice and go through a number of formalities necessary prior to the ceremony.
Procedure
In order for a civil marriage to take place, the below steps must be followed:
- The interested parties must choose the Municipality they wish to conduct their marriage;
- An appointment is booked with the designated Municipality in order to arrange for the date of the marriage, the wedding venue as well as other details of the marriage;
- The interested persons must fill in and submit a joint application called “Notice of Marriage” to the Marriage Officer of the designated Municipality and also all the above-mentioned documents are deposited for approval by the Municipality;
- Upon approval of the submitted documents, the date of the civil marriage is set and the corresponding fee is paid by the interested parties.
Documents supporting the application for a Civil Marriage
The documents required by both interested parties are listed as follows:
- Passports;
- Certificates of Single Status certified by the Ministry of Interior of the country of origin (if not available then a declaration of single status before the Registrar of a District Court of the country of origin will be sufficient);
- Divorce Certificates (if applicable);
- Death Certificate of spouse (if applicable);
- Birth Certificates.
Foreigners living in Cyprus for more than a year must declare over an affidavit before the Registrar of the District Court in Cyprus, that during the period they have lived in Cyprus and they have not conducted a marriage. Such affidavit must be presented in original and also be certified by the Ministry of Interior.
Please note that all certificates mentioned above must be:
- In original form or certified as true copies by the relevant authority or corresponding Embassy in Cyprus;
- Legalised with Apostille by the relevant authority, whereas the interested parties come from countries that are members of the of The Hague (Apostille) Convention and;
- All certificates must be translated either in Greek or English by the official Government department (Press and Information Office in Nicosia).
Timeframe
A normal civil marriage will take place within 15 days from the submission of the application, and the latest within 3 months from submission of the said application. In case the couple wishes to speed up the marriage procedure, should the Marriage Officer find this appropriate and upon payment of the corresponding fee, the date of the civil marriage can be agreed and be set before the elapse of the 15 days period.
Fees
The applicable fees payable for the execution of the civil marriage are as follows:
- On a normal route, the fee payable is € 128.15
- On an urgent route, the fee payable is € 281.90
The civil marriage in question must also be registered at the corresponding Embassy or Consulate in Cyprus of the country of origin of the couple. Each Embassy or Consulate has its own registration procedure of civil marriages which must be followed in order for the civil marriage to be recognised in the country of origin. Therefore, a certified copy of the marriage certificate is submitted to the said Embassy or Consulate along with other required documentation.
