How long is a ceremony?
The honest answer: as long - or as short - as you want it to be.
Your ceremony can be five minutes of heartfelt vows or a full celebration of your story, traditions, and everything that matters most to you. Whether you want something simple and sweet, deeply personal, or somewhere in between, we’ll craft a ceremony that feels like you.
There are no rules here, just possibilities. It's your day, your love, your ceremony. Let's make it exactly what you want it to be.
What Paperwork is required?
Before the ceremony:
Notice of Intended Marriage – must be lodged with a celebrant one month before the ceremony. We can fill this in together when we meet or you can get it done and send to me! I will need to see your ID at this stage too. You can download the form here: Attorney-General's Department Website.
Declaration of No Legal Impediment to Marriage – this must be signed as close to the ceremony date as possible. I tend to visit anyone getting ready near the ceremony on my way and if you're at the ceremony site I'll come and find you pre-ceremony. Don't worry, I won't be waiting for you as you step out of the car before you walk the aisle!
At the ceremony:
Two Official Certificates of Marriage – I send one copy to the Registry of Births Deaths & Marriages and keep one for my records for a minimum of 7 years.
Certificate of Marriage - this is your pretty copy to take a photo with! This is not an official marriage certificate, more of a memento. Once I have registered your marriage certificate, you can request an Official Certificate of Marriage - this is what you can use to change your name.
At the ceremony, all documents need to be signed by two witnesses who are both over the age of 18.
Are there legal requirements to get married in Australia?
You must not be in a prohibited relationship ~ You must not be married already ~ You must both be consenting ~ You must be over 18 (one of you may be 16 with court consent) ~ You must give at least one month's notice with a Notice of Intended Marriage form, a celebrant handles this for you ~ You need two people, over 18, to witness your marriage ~ You need ID that proves your identity and date and place of birth ~
When should I book a celebrant?
As soon as you can! All you need to book a celebrant is your date.
Get in touch as soon as you have the date. I would hate for you to miss out because I am booked up.
If I am already booked, I can recommend other wonderful celebrants!
We don't even know where to start....?!
Don't stress. I will come full of questions, ideas, suggestions and examples - we can brainstorm and build the perfect ceremony that represents you and your partner!
Do you travel?
Yep! I'm based in Adelaide and will travel in and around the CBD - Botanic Gardens, Adelaide Hills, McLaren Vale, Barossa.
I may charge an additional travel fee for locations over 50km from the Adelaide CBD.
Are there legal requirements to get married in Australia?
Once your ceremony has taken place, your marriage is officially registered with the relevant State Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages. As your celebrant, I will take care of lodging all required legal documents on your behalf shortly after your wedding.
If you’d like to apply for your official marriage certificate (used for name changes, passports and other legal purposes), you can do this directly through the Australian Government.
Simply visit the Attorney-General’s Department website, which will guide you to the correct state or territory registry to complete your application.
If you have any questions about the process, I’m always here to help, making the legal side of things as simple and stress-free as possible.
What are the legal requirements in the ceremony?
There are only a few legal requirements in a ceremony that must be included.
Other than the below, you're free to do exactly what you'd like!
They are:
1. The celebrant must say the Monitum
a legal statement - "I'm duly authorised by law...."
2. You must say a line each
mandatory vows "I [person] take you [person]....
3. We all sign three marriage certificates with two witnesses over the age of 18 also needing to sign
