Marriage

MARRIAGE

Banns
Common Licence
Special Licence
Superintendent Registrar’s Certificate
The Church of England Marriage Measure 2008
Marriage After Divorce
Marriage of Unbaptised Persons
Frequently Asked Questions
Recommended Reading for Clergy

The principal law relating to marriage in Church of England parish churches is contained in the Marriage Act 1949. The Act provides that before a marriage can take place in a church, one of the following legal requirements must be fulfilled:

The calling of Banns; or
The issue of a Common Licence by the Bishop of the Diocese; or
The issue of a Special Licence by the Archbishop; or
The issue of a Superintendent Registrar’s Certificate.

Banns

Where a marriage is to take place in the parish church of the parish where one of the parties resides, the banns must be called in that church and in the parish church of the parish where the other party to the marriage resides. If the marriage is to take place in the church of a parish where neither party resides, but in a church which is the “usual place of worship” of one of the parties (i.e. one of the parties is on the church electoral roll of that church), or in a church with which one of the parties can show a qualifying connection under the Church of England Marriage Measure 2008, banns must be called in that church, as well as in each of the parishes where the parties reside.

Where there is a parish with no parish church, or where there is a parish church which does not have a service every Sunday, or the parish church is temporarily closed for repairs, the parish can be treated as part of any adjoining parish, so that banns may be called in the church of any adjoining parish and the marriage solemnised there.

If a couple wish to be married in the church of a parish where neither resides or is on the church electoral roll, and where neither can claim a qualifying connection under the Church of England Marriage Measure 2008, they will need to apply instead for a Special Licence. (But see the question below which deals with multi-parish benefices.)

An application for the calling of banns must be made to the minister of each parish where banns are to be called. Banns must be called on three Sundays (not necessarily consecutive Sundays) prior to the wedding and a certificate of publication must be obtained.

A marriage after the calling of banns must be solemnized within three months of the last occasion on which banns were called.

Common Licence

A Common Licence is a Bishop’s permission for a marriage to take place in a particular church. In order to qualify for the issue of a Common Licence, either (1) one of the parties to the proposed marriage must have lived in the parish where the marriage is to take place for at least 15 days immediately preceding the date when the application for the Common Licence is made, or else must be on the church electoral roll (Marriage Act 1949) or (2) one of the parties must be able to show a qualifying connection with the church (Church of England Marriage Measure 2008).

An application for a Common Licence may be made by prior appointment at the office of the Diocesan Registrar in Peterborough. However, for those living at some distance from the Diocesan Registry, an application may be made instead to one of a number of clergy around the diocese who have been appointed Surrogates for receiving marriage licence applications.

The Legal Advisory Commission recommends that, where one of the parties to a proposed marriage is a foreigner, the marriage ought to be by licence (which involves the making of a sworn statement as to status), rather than by banns. The foreign party should provide the Surrogate with:

(1) A letter from the appropriate embassy, confirming that the foreign party is free to marry under the law of his or her own country, and that if the marriage takes place in England, it will be recognised in the foreign country (or else indicating what steps need to be taken for the marriage to be recognised in the foreign country).
(2) An original document (not a fax or photocopy) showing the full name and date of birth of the party, such as a passport or birth certificate.
(3) An original recent document showing the name of the party and current address, such as a utility bill, bank statement, etc. (A tenancy agreement is not acceptable.)
(4) Where relevant, the original decree absolute of divorce, and a completed Form and Explanatory Statement. (See Marriage After Divorce.)

Where a document which is produced is in a foreign language, the party concerned may be required to produce a certified translation.

The fees payable for a Common Licence comprise a fee payable to the Surrogate (the person to whom the application is made) and fees payable to the Diocesan Registrar and to the Chancellor. The fees due to the Surrogate should be paid as directed by the Surrogate, and the fees due to the Registrar and the Chancellor should be paid in cash or by one cheque payable to Peterborough Diocesan Board of Finance.

Special Licence

The Archbishop of Canterbury has the right to grant a Special Licence for a marriage to take place at any convenient time or place in England or Wales. The issue of a Special Licence is discretionary. The most common need for a Special Licence is if the parties wish to be married in a church or chapel of a parish where neither resides or is on the church electoral roll, and where neither can show a qualifying connection under the Church of England Marriage Measure 2008. Another common reason is if the parties wish to be married elsewhere than in a building which is authorised for marriage according to the rites and ceremonies of the Church of England, for example, a school or college chapel.

Enquiries about a Special Licence should be made to:

The Faculty Office ,
1 The Sanctuary,
Westminster,
London SW1P 3JT

Tel: 0207 222 5381

Email: faculty.office@1Thesanctuary.com).

See also Fees

Superintendent Registrar’s Certificate

A Superintendent Registrar of a civil Register Office may issue a Certificate to permit a marriage to take place in an Anglican church. One of the parties must have the required seven days’ residence within the registration district and within the parish where the marriage is to take place before applying for the Certificate, or the church must be the usual place of worship of one or both of the parties. The Registrar enters the details of the parties in a book which is open to public inspection and also displays a notice at the Register Office for 15 days. If no impediments are shown within the period of 15 days, a Superintendent Registrar’s Certificate can be issued. However, a clergyman is under no obligation to marry people who have chosen this preliminary, and in practice clergy will recommend banns or a Common Licence.

The Church of England Marriage Measure 2008

Under the Marriage Act 1949, a person may only be married by banns or Common Licence in the church of a parish where he or she resides or is on the church electoral roll. The aim of the Church of England Marriage Measure 2008 is to allow couples to be married by banns or Common Licence, rather than by Special Licence, in a parish where one of the parties can show that he or she has a "qualifying connection".

A person has a qualifying connection with a parish if:

that person:

was baptised in the parish. (This does not apply where the baptism formed part of a combined service of baptism or confirmation); or
had his or her confirmation entered in a church register book of a church or chapel in the parish; or
has at any time had his or her usual place of residence in the parish for at least 6 months; or
has at any time habitually attended public worship in the parish for at least 6 months; or

a parent of that person has at any time during that person’s lifetime:

had his or her usual place of residence in the parish for at least 6 months; or
habitually attended public worship in the parish for at least 6 months; or

a parent or grandparent of that person was married in the parish.

The references to baptism, confirmation and marriage, and to attending public worship, are all confined to services according to the rites of the Church of England.

The Measure came into force on 1st October 2008. The House of Bishops has issued some Guidance on the new Measure, which includes a marriage information form, for use by clergy. See also, the Church of England web site.

Marriage After Divorce

In July 2002, General Synod decided to rescind the marriage resolutions of the Convocations of Canterbury and York, which had urged clergy not to use the marriage service in the case of anyone who had a former partner still living. In November 2002, the House of Bishops issued Advice to Clergy concerning the procedure to be followed when one of the applicants for a marriage licence is a divorced person with a former spouse still living. The Archbishop of Canterbury decided in 2003 to review the policy concerning the issue of Special Licences, and invited the House of Bishops to consider and comment on his proposals. In January 2004, the House of Bishops discussed the issue of both Special and Common Licences in respect of those being married in church after divorce and also where neither party to the marriage has been baptised. The House voted to support the Archbishop’s proposals regarding the issue of Special Licences and agreed that the same policy should apply to the issue of Common Licences by Diocesan Bishops.

The General Synod Office has produced for enquiring couples a Form and Explanatory Statement concerning marriage in church after divorce. In future, when a couple wish to apply for a Common Licence, if one of them is a divorced person with a former spouse still living, the clergyman concerned should interview the couple, in accordance with the Advice to Clergy, and ask the couple to complete the Form and Explanatory Statement. The completed form should be submitted with the application for a Common Licence to the Diocesan Registrar, who will seek the advice of the Bishop.

Whilst parishioners normally have the right to be married in the parish church of the parish where they live, a clergyman is entitled by law to refuse to remarry a divorced person in church whilst the former spouse is still living. (See Section 8 of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1965.)

Marriage of Unbaptised Persons

It was formerly the practice that, where neither party was baptised, an application for a common licence should be referred to the Bishop. At a meeting in January 2004, the House of Bishops agreed that the unbaptised status of one or both parties should no longer be a bar to the grant of a Common Licence. Accordingly there is no longer a need to refer an application to the Bishop where neither party is baptised.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is a clergyman obliged to marry a parishioner?: A: Yes, unless either (a) one of the parties is divorced and the former spouse is still living, or (b) the marriage is prohibited by law owing to the relationship of the parties, or (c) one of the parties is a minor and the appropriate consent or consents have not been given.
Q: Is it possible to be married in my school or college chapel?: A: Yes, if the Faculty Office is prepared to grant a Special Licence.
Q: Can I be married in the church of the parish where my parents live?: A: The Church of England Marriage Measure 2008 allows a couple to be married by banns or by common licence in the church of a parish where a parent of a party to the proposed marriage has resided at any time for a period of not less than six months during the lifetime of the party concerned.
Q: Can I be married at any time of day?: A: A Special Licence can authorise a marriage at any time of day or night, but in the case of the other alternative preliminaries, the marriage must take place between 8.00am and 6.00pm. See the Opinion of the Legal Advisory Commission concerning the timing of marriage services.
Q: What is the cost of a Special Licence?: The fee payable for a Special Licence (issued by the Faculty Office in Westminster on behalf of the Archbishop of Canterbury) is £140.00. Once the application has been approved, one of the parties will have to swear an affidavit (a formal statement) to confirm the information given. This can be done in front of an Anglican minister (to whom a fee of £5.00 will be payable) near to where the parties to the proposed marriage reside, or at the Faculty Office (when no extra fee is charged).
Q: Can I have a Roman Catholic (or other non-Anglican) wedding in an Anglican church?: A: No. A Roman Catholic wedding in England must be preceded by civil preliminaries, and must take place in a registered building. An Anglican church is a not a “registered building” for this purpose.
Q: Can a Roman Catholic (or other non-Anglican) be married in an Anglican church, even if it is not possible to have a Roman Catholic (or other) wedding service?: A: Yes. People of any faith can be married in an Anglican church, provided that the Anglican form of marriage service is used. An Anglican priest must conduct the service. For the marriage to be legally valid, there are certain parts of the Anglican marriage service which an Anglican priest must say, including the final blessing, but a clergyman of another denomination may assist with other parts of the service, for example, an address or prayers. There is a detailed discussion of this question in Legal Opinions Concerning the Church of England, 8th Ed. 2007 on pages 365-366.
Q: I live in a parish which is part of a benefice which has five parish churches. Can I be married in any parish church within the benefice?: A: If you have a "qualifying connection" with another parish in the same benefice (see The Church of England Marriage Measure 2008) the answer is yes. But normally, the answer is no, unless you are on the church electoral roll of the parish where you wish to be married, or unless you obtain a Special Licence. The Marriage Act allows people to have banns called in the church of any parish where they reside or are on the electoral roll, and then to be married in the church, or in one of the churches, where banns have been called. Likewise, a person can apply for a Common Licence to be married in the church of the parish where he or she resides or is on the electoral roll. The key word is "parish". However, it is possible for the Bishop to make an order under Paragraph 14(4) of Schedule 3 of the Pastoral Measure 1983, specifying where banns may be called and marriages solemnised in a multi-parish benefice. Effectively, this means that the Bishop can make an order saying that any person living within the benefice can have banns called in, and be married in, any church within the benefice. To summarise: you can be married in a church in a different parish in the same benefice if either:

(a) you can show a qualifying connection with the other parish (Church of England Marriage Measure 2008); or
(b) you are on the electoral roll of the parish where you wish to be married (Marriage Act 1949); or
(c) the Bishop has made an order allowing banns to be called in any parish in the benefice (Pastoral Measure 1983).
If none of the above apply, you will need to apply for a Special Licence.
Q: What is the correct terminology for describing the parties to a marriage in marriage certificates?: A: The Registrar General has amended the regulations on registration, following the coming into effect of the Civil Partnerships Act 2004. The terms "bachelor" and "spinster" are no longer to be used in marriage registers and certificates. The alternative terms to be used are as follows:
Single
Widow
Widower
Previous marriage dissolved
Previous marriage annulled
Surviving civil partner
Previous civil partnership dissolved
Previous civil partnership annulled
The same terms will be used in applications for Common Licences.
Q: What wording should be used by a clergyman calling banns in a case where one of the parties to a proposed marriage has a qualifying connection under the Church of England Marriage Measure 2008?: A: The normal wording should be used for the banns, except that at the point where the banns refer to the person with the qualifying connection, the words “N … of this parish” should be changed to “N … of the parish of X who wishes to be married in this church by virtue of his/her connection with this parish”.
Q: Does my natural father's name have to appear in the marriage register?: A: Normally, the natural father's name should appear in the register. Where a person has been legally adopted, his or her adoptive father's name may be entered without qualification. But if the party to the marriage is known by a surname different from that of his or her adoptive father, and the name and surname of the adoptive father are entered in column 7 of the register, then the words "adoptive parent" may be entered in brackets after the surname, if this is desired by the party. But occasionally one of the parties to a marriage may not wish his or her father's name to appear, for example, if he or she has never known his or her natural father, or has been brought up by a step-father. In such case the minister should not insist on the natural parent's name being entered, but should draw a line through the columns relating to the father's names and profession, to show that the information was not supplied. However, since the coming into force of the Registration of Marriages (Amendment) Regulations 2007, it has been permissible to record a step-father's name, instead of the natural father's name, provided that the step-father is, or has been, married to the mother. Where a step-father's name is entered, the word "step-father" should be entered after the surname.

Peterborough Diocesan Registry
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