Legal Wedding Process

In preparation for your wedding you must purchase a marriage license from your local municipality. This license may be purchased anywhere in Ontario for a wedding anywhere in Ontario.

Once purchased the license is immediately valid for three months. One option is Bring this license, along with the large postage-paid envelope addressed to the Registrar General, can be given to your officiant prior to your wedding so that he/she may enter the information it contains into a Register book that he/she is required to keep.

The officiant brings the license and Register with him/her to the ceremony.

The second option is the couple bring the marriage license with them to the wedding then the officiate fills it out.

The license and Register are signed by the couple and their two witnesses following the ceremony. The officiant tears the ” Record of Solemnization of Marriage” off the license and gives it to the couple following the signing 

(Usually it is actually given to the Best Man for safe keeping for the couple until after the reception.)

 This ” Record of Solemnization of Marriage”, bearing the signature of the two witnesses and the officiant verifies the marriage for travel purposes and is usually adequate for name changes to accounts and the like, but not for crucial identify documents such as a passport, drivers license or health card.

 Following the ceremony, the officiant mails the completed marriage license to the Registrar General of Ontario for registration. Your Marriage Certificate will be available some weeks after your ceremony. You may track its status on the internet and order and pay for it on the internet as well.