Marriage arrangement and ceremonies

The Marriage Act 1994 permits civil marriages to take place at locations other than registration offices as long as they have been authorised by your local councils.

How do I get married?

To be legally able to marry you must attend the Register Office where you live to give notice of your marriage. If you live in Derby city, you will need to book an appointment with one of our registrars. This will cost £42. You need to make an appointment at Royal Oak House.

• You must have decided where your marriage ceremony will take place as this will be shown on the notice document and cannot be amended. It is also highly recommended that you provisionally book the Registrars to attend your ceremony before giving notice of marriage.
• You must both have lived in the local area for seven whole days prior to giving notice of your marriage.
• Following the expiry of the statutory 28 day notice period the Register Office will issue a certificate to confirm that there is no objection to your marriage. This lasts for one year, excluding the notice period.
• We require some evidence of list of required documents. A passport is ideal, however if this is not available a full birth certificate, or immigration documents if not born in the UK, may be accepted.
• If either person has been married before, they will be required to supply list of required documents.
• list of required documents, such as utility bill, bank statement or driving licence.
• Weddings can normally take place at the Register Office between Monday to Saturday excluding Saturday afternoons.
• To marry in a Church of England church or other registered building, please contact your local parish minister or church representative.

If one of you is from outside the UK and you’re giving notice from 1 July 2021

You and your partner must give notice together, unless you both have one of the following:

• British or Irish citizenship
• settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme
• an application to the EU Settlement Scheme that you made before 30 June 2021, which you’re waiting for a decision on.

You must give your notice together at a register office in the district where at least one of you lives.

Further information regarding this change can be found on GOV.UK - Marriages and civil partnerships in England and Wales

A limited number of notice of marriage appointments are now available.

Marriage venues within the Derby city boundaries where Derby Register Office staff can conduct marriage ceremonies can be found in the Venues table. 

Please note, when you attend your appointment you will need to pay by debit or credit card as we only accept cash in certain circumstances.

On the day of the wedding - Royal Oak House

Ceremony lengths depend but on average last around 30 minutes.

One bridal car is allowed to park outside the front door on the day. A permit will be issued when the car arrives.

Other guests will need to park using the public car parks - the nearest is in the Assembly Rooms which is only two minutes' walk away.

Venues

Approved venues at which Derby Register Office staff can conduct marriage and Civil Partnership ceremonies:

Wedding stationery design and print service

We have our own in-house service that can help design and print your wedding stationery, from save the date cards to seating plans, welcome boards and photos.

Further information can be found on our products and services page.

Register Office Fees

Please be advised all fees are subject to increase on 1 April each year.

Fees listed apply from 1 April 2024

Opening times

Any questions?

If you have a question or comment regarding Marriage arrangement and ceremonies, complete the Registrars Ceremony Enquiry form.