Subsequent certification of a marriage contracted abroad

Please contact the registry office for information on the documents required for the application for subsequent certification of a marriage concluded abroad. The following are usually required

• Marriage certificate (marriage certificate) of the marriage concluded abroad, if necessary with certification by the competent foreign authority (apostille) or legalization by the German diplomatic mission abroad,
• Valid identity card, passport or travel document,
• naturalization certificate, citizenship certificate, if applicable,
• Translations of all documents in foreign languages by sworn translators in Germany.

Other additional documents required:

if the spouses were born in Germany:

• the birth certificates.

If the spouses were born abroad:

• the birth certificates, if necessary with certification by the competent foreign authority (apostille) or legalization by the German diplomatic mission abroad.

If one spouse has already been married:

• Certified copy from the marriage register of the last previous marriage with a note of dissolution,
• alternatively or in the case of previous marriages abroad: proof of the conclusion and dissolution of all previous marriages - for example marriage certificates, death certificates, all divorce decrees (complete and with a note from the court stating when the judgment became legally binding / "final judgment"),
• If applicable, recognition of the foreign divorce by the President of the Higher Regional Court.

If one spouse has already entered into a registered civil partnership:

• Proof of the establishment and dissolution of all civil partnerships.

• § 34 Personenstandsgesetz (PStG)

Informal application - each of the two spouses is entitled to apply; if both are deceased, their parents and children are also entitled to apply.

The advantage of subsequent certification is that the German registry office can issue a German marriage certificate if required.

• Marriage Registration of marriages concluded abroad by Germans without domestic residence
• Properly issued marriage certificates (marriage certificates) from abroad are generally recognized in Germany. There is no obligation for subsequent certification.
• However, subsequent entry in the marriage register can be advantageous because the local registry office can then issue you with a German marriage certificate. Any translations and notarizations of the foreign certificate will therefore no longer be necessary.
• The subsequent certification of a marriage concluded abroad costs between 64.00 and 127.00 euros; the amount of the fee depends on the administrative effort involved in the individual case.
• Responsible: Registry office of the place of residence

The text was automatically translated based on the German content.