Giving notice of marriage or civil partnership
Before you can get married or register your civil partnership, you and your partner must give notice by attending an appointment.
Giving notice means signing a legal statement at your local register office. You must sign the legal statement before you can get married or register your civil partnership so you will need to book an appointment to be seen at your local register office to do the signing.
Please note there is a cost for giving notice explained below. Make sure you have read and understood all the information on these pages before you continue to book your appointment.
To give a notice of marriage or civil partnership in Havering you or your partner must be living in Havering and intend to get married or form a civil partnership in England or Wales.
To give notice of non-impediment in Havering you must be a British National living in Havering and intend to get married abroad. You may require a Certificate of Non-Impediment for a local authority overseas.
Your ceremony must be held within 12 months of giving notice.
You are required to give notice at least 29 days before your ceremony. We recommend booking an appointment online to give notice 3 months before your planned ceremony date.
If you are subject to immigration control, we may be required to refer your details to the Home Office who may extend your notice period to 70 days.
Please visit GOV.UK before booking your appointment to make sure that you are eligible to book your notice appointment here in Havering.
Find out below how to book an appointment online to give notice.
Where to give notice
The register office you can attend will depend on whether you are subject to immigration control.
If you live in Havering and are not subject to immigration control, you will need to give notice in Havering.
You are not subject to immigration control if you are:
- a British citizen
- an Irish citizen
- a person who has been granted EU Settlement Status (EUSS), either settled or pre-settled, or has a pending application submitted before 30 June 2021
If you or your partner live in Havering and either or both of you are subject to immigration control you must both attend the appointment together. As a couple, you will need to give notice at a local register office where either or both of you live and you must both have lived in the registration district for at least 8 days.
You are subject to immigration control if you:
- have a valid UK visa or entry clearance including a visa to marry or form a civil partnership
- have Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR)
- have no status in the UK, including people who are overstayers
- are an asylum seeker
- (from 1 July 2021) are a European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) national or a partner of an EU/EEA national without settled status/pre-settled status under the EU Settled Status Scheme
- have a pending application for EU settled status/pre-settled status filed on or after 1 July 2021
If you and your partner do not live in Havering, you will need to give notice at the register office for the registration district where you live. Find your local register office on GOV.UK and enter your postcode.
Cost of giving notice
When you book an appointment to give notice, a booking fee is payable which will be used to cover the statutory fee for entering your notice.
Notice of marriage, civil partnership or non-impediment - £35 per person.
Notice of marriage or civil partnership if either of you are subject to immigration control - £47 per person.
Additional fees may apply. For example, when carrying out additional checks to make sure an overseas divorce is valid, or if you are requesting or applying for a waiver.
What you will need at the appointment
When you give your notice you will need to:
- tell us where and when you intend to have your legal ceremony
- provide original documents to evidence your name, age, address and nationality
Depending on your specific circumstances, you may also need to:
- provide evidence of immigration status, marital status, or change of name (a change of name may also include if you now use your maiden name but your divorce documents were issued in a different name – a marriage or civil partnership certificate, deed poll certificate, or change of name deed will be required)
- provide official translations together with all original documents not in English
- bring an interpreter (you cannot interpret for each other)
- provide a recent passport style photo for each partner
- provide your EUSS share code if you have one
Book your appointment to give notice
All appointments must be booked online.
On completion of your booking, you will be informed of who must attend and the official documents you must bring with you to your appointment.
You will have to book and pay the fee again if you do not bring all the correct documents or are unable to prove your immigration status at your appointment.
To book your appointment you will need to have:
- an email address and phone number so we can contact you
- a credit or debit card to make your payment. All card types are accepted, except American Express
Book Your Appointment to Give Notice
Location of register office
Havering Register Office
Langtons House
Billet Lane
Hornchurch RM11 1XJ
Reschedule your appointment
If you need to reschedule your appointment, you must allow for at least 29 days between your new appointment and your ceremony date.
You can reschedule up to two full days before your appointment by following the link you will receive in your booking confirmation.
It will not be possible to reschedule your appointment outside of this timeframe.
Contact us
01708 433481