Dianne Moran

The Notice of Intended Marriage must be given to the celebrant no later than one month before the wedding date and no sooner than 18 months before the wedding date.  There are specific conditions that can allow a shortened timeframe and if this situation arises contact your celebrant for further information.

In order for the Notice to Intended Marriage to be completed, the celebrant is required to sight documents to prove date and place of birth and also photo ID for proof of identification. An original birth certificate or passport is required for proof of date and place of birth.  A passport or drivers licence can be used for proof of identification. If one of the parties to the marriage has previously been married, the celebrant has to sight the original decree absolute, certificate of divorce or divorce order or overseas equivalent or the original death certificate.

Two people over 18 years of age are required as legal witnesses and ideally should know the parties to the marriage.  They can be family members such as mother, father, sister or friends.  A celebrant is not responsible for providing witnesses.

Yes you can.  I will provide examples to give you some ideas but your vows are very personal and I suggest that you write them yourselves.  I will review them for you and offer suggestions if necessary.  You can write them separately or jointly. It is a legal requirement that specific minimum words be inlcuded in your vows but once this requirement has been met, you can add your personal vows.

The easiest way to do this is to ask your celebrant to organise it for you.  By doing this it will save you a lot of time and paperwork.  I can order the certificate for you online when I register your marriage with Births, Deaths & Marriages.  The current price for a NSW Certified Copy is $68.

Some of my clients kind thoughts and wishes