Marriage

How do I obtain a copy of somebody else's marriage certificate?

He/She was married in the Westminster, Paddington or Marylebone Register Offices

The certificate can be obtained from the Westminster Register Office, you can apply for the certificate either in person or by post.

If you apply in person you simply attend the office between 9:00am and 4:00pm Monday to Friday. You complete an application form at our reception desk and submit the appropriate fee. If you have provided the correct information you will normally get the certificate within 4 hours of completing the application form. Please note that applications received after 12:00pm will be ready for collection the following day or, if you wish, we can post the certificate to you.

If you apply by post you simply send a brief letter setting out the full names of the parties married, the date of marriage and the name of the building in which the marriage took place. You will need to enclose a cheque or postal order made payable to “City of Westminster” for the statutory fee of £7.00. The certificate will be sent out on the same day that we receive your application. Please enclose a stamped self-addressed envelope with your application.

If you are writing from abroad payment has to be made in the form of an international money order expressed in Pounds Sterling.

Alternatively, payment can be made by Credit or Debit Card for marriages registered more than eighteen months ago. In this instance you may obtain the certificate directly from the Registrar General’s Office. A credit or debit card number must accompany a phone or email message, quote card type; expiry date and card number. Telephone: 0845 603 7788 or email: certificates.services@ons.gov.uk

He/She was married in a religious building (Church, Synagogue, Temple)

If they were married in a Church of England Church the vicar would have acted in the capacity of registrar and would have registered the wedding. You can always obtain a certificate from the church in which they were married as they always keep one copy of the two marriage registers signed on the day. The other copy is sent to the Register Office of the district in which the church is located once it is full. If the church is located in Westminster and the register has been completed you can obtain a copy from Westminster Register Office, Marylebone Road, London, NW1 5PT. If the registers have not been completed, you can only obtain certificates from the church. You should phone the Westminster Register Office on (020) 7641 1161, before applying to check where the register is held.

Other places of worship may also have a person appointed who acts in the capacity of civil registrar at the time of marriage. This person is known as an Authorised Person. A copy of the marriage certificate can be obtained as described in the paragraph above.

In cases where a church has not appointed an Authorised Person a registrar from the Register Office in which the church is located must attend and register any marriage taking place there. In these circumstances a marriage certificate can always be obtained from the Register Office in which the church is located.

If the marriage took place in a Synagogue, or any other location according to the Jewish religion, the Secretary of the man's Synagogue would have responsibility for the registration. A copy of the marriage certificate can be obtained from the Synagogue, which may not necessarily be in the district in which the marriage took place. If the registers relating to the year of the marriage have been completed the certificate can also be obtained from the Register Office of the district in which the Synagogue is located.

I know where and when the person was married but this was not in Westminster, Paddington or Marylebone.

If you are able to state the parties full names, the date of and address of the marriage you can apply to the local Register Office for that district. Please visit the Directgov site to locate the appropriate local authority Web site

I don’t know where he/she was married

You will need to apply to the General Register Office Family Records Centre 1 Myddelton Street, London, EC1R 1UW. The records held by the General Register Office cover the whole of England and Wales. If you visit the Family Records Centre and make your application in person you can collect your certificate on the fourth working day after the application was made or you can have it posted to any address you have supplied to them. If you want to apply by post you should address your application to: General Register Office, PO Box 2, Southport, Merseyside PR8 2JD. If you want the latest information on the costs of certificates obtained from the General Register Office for England and Wales telephone 0151 471 4816.