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Marriage in the Czech Republic

The application to enter into a marriage as well as specific details about the procedure shall be obtained from the respective City Hall of the District Council (Mestsky urad, Obvodni urad, Obecni urad) or the local church.

The application should be then submitted to this City Hall, which is authorized to keep vital statistics records or to a local church a period of time before the planned marriage (approximately 14 days before). The applicant is required to present the following documents to the local Czech local authorities:

  • Birth Certificate identifying the applicant's birth date and place of birth, the name and the surname as well as the statements concerning his/her parents, e.g. an abstract of the register of births.
  • Passport or another document certifying the citizenship of the applicant.
  • If widowed, the Death Certificate of the deceased spouse.
  • If divorced, the (court granted) Decree Absolute.
  • Marriage license for use in the Czech Republic (the permitted territory of wedding ceremony must include the Czech Republic) or another document, a testimonial or certificate (legal document) certifying the applicant's capacity to marry and certifying that no legal impediment exists and proving he/she is free to marry. These documents are required in order to guarantee that the marriage entered into, in the Czech Republic, will be recognized by law even in the foreign applicant's native country.

Confirmation that your stay in the Czech Republic is legal must be obtained from Czech Foreigner Police and submitted before the wedding ceremony starts.

All documents issued outside the Czech Republic must be certified by with the Apostille and translated into the Czech language. The Consulate General in New York does not provide translations but can verify it.

Note that the translation may be performed and verified in the Czech Republic by a certified translator as well. Each of the City Halls in the Czech Republic might have some specific requirement for foreign citizens wishing to enter into marriage in the Czech Republic. Consulate General of the Czech Republic in New York therefore strongly recommends the couple to contact the local City Hall and find out if anything else is required.

For more information you can see the web site of the Ministry of Interior of the Czech Republic.