International and multinational couples have been travelling to Denmark to get married from as far back as the early 1960s!
Over 20,000 couples make the journey to Denmark every year because the bureaucracy is much easier for foreign couples than when trying to get married elsewhere.
So why has Denmark been the easiest country for foreigners to get married for over 60 years?
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Why is Denmark the easiest country in Europe for foreign couples to get married?
These are the 7 main reasons why Denmark is so easy for foreigners to get married:
- No birth certificate or single status certificate is required
- You can get married on a tourist visa and any other visa
- The marriage application process can be handled 100% online
- There is no required amount of days you have to stay in Denmark
- Technically it’s possible to arrive, marry and leave Denmark the same day.
- You can get married without bringing your own witnesses
- The Danish International Marriage Certificate
Each of these factors combined makes Denmark by far the most accessible and easiest place for foreigners who are considering eloping in Europe…But what does it actually mean, and is there a catch?
Let’s dive into each of these claims in a little more detail (click on each to find out more):
No.1 - No birth certificate / single status certificate is required
It’s true! In 99.99% of cases the Danish authorities do not require a birth certificate OR a marital status certificate in order to get married here.
This makes the documentation required for couples wanting to get married abroad far simpler than it would be anywhere else!
No. 2 - Marriage on a tourist visa
You do not need to apply for any kind of special visa to get married in Denmark.
If you are required to obtain a visa for entry into Denmark, then a simple tourist visa will suffice.
You can get married on a tourist visa.
No. 3 - Online application process
The Danish authorities ie. The Agency of Family Law – the agency that process all marriage applications, require that all documentation is submitted to them digitally.
This means all communication is done online.
No. 4 - No requirement to stay in Denmark for a period of time
There are some countries that state if you wish to get married there you must stay in that country for a set period of time before the wedding ceremony can take place.
Well, not in Denmark!! There is no legal requirement for couples to remain in the country for any set period of time prior to, or after, the wedding.
No. 5 - You can turn up, marry and leave on the same day
There are a lot of town halls that not only allow couples to present their documents on the day of their wedding, they actually insist on it!
Which means it’s totally possible to arrive in Denmark, present your documents, get married and then leave – all on the same day!
Which is super convenient for those couples who have very little time.
Do note there are also some town halls that insist document presentation is done one working day prior to the wedding day.
And actually we recommend trying to spend at least one night in Denmark if you can – it is your wedding day after all. This enables you to soak it up and allow yourselves to fully relax into your special day! 🥰
No. 6 - You do not have to bring your own witnesses
Many of the town halls in Denmark are able to provide 2 witnesses for couples. This is free of charge and as standard procedure.
Some do not provide witnesses every day of the week (on Saturdays, for example), but many do.
This means it’s totally possible to find the right town hall to accommodate your witness needs if you plan on coming alone.
No. 7 - The Danish international marriage certificate
The Danish authorities recognise that so many couples come from all over Europe and the world to get married in Denmark, so to make life a little easier for foreign couples, they issue what is known as the ‘International marriage certificate’.
This certificate, as well as being issued in Danish, also contains the translations in English, German, Spanish and French.
So, now we’ve looked at why it is so easy for foreign couples to get married here in Denmark, but there are other countries around Europe where it’s also considered easy for international and foreign couples to get married.
So let’s take a quick look at how Denmark stands out from these other countries that also allow foreigners to marry.
Which Countries in Europe Allow Foreigners to Get Married Easily?
There are quite a few countries in Europe that allow foreigners to get married fairly easily and without couples having to legally reside there first:
- Denmark
- Cyprus
- Malta
- Faroe Islands
- Gibraltar
- Iceland
But… Is it actually that easy?
Let’s take a look at, and compare, each of these countries in greater depth below and find out exactly how easy it is for foreigners to get married there.
Denmark
Ok, so we may be biassed 😉 but we have to face the facts.
Couples can get married in a matter of weeks in Denmark with only their passports or ID cards (depending on their circumstances of course).
An approval for marriage can be issued in as little as 5 days and a wedding date secured that same week, depending on the town hall you choose.
It’s fast and easy, yet intimate and romantic. There is a reason why it’s Europe’s number one destination for foreigners to get married! Keep on reading to find out more in depth information below!
Documentation Required From Each Partner in Denmark
Documentation Required:
- Valid Passport or EU ID
- Visa for Denmark (where applicable)
- Residence permit for EU (where applicable)
- Proof any previous marriage is legally ended (where applicable)
- Birth certificate of any children you have together (where applicable)
Documentation that is not Required:
- You are not required to provide your own birth certificate
- You are not required to provide any proof of single status
Where do you apply in Denmark?
You must apply to the Danish Agency of Family Law.
The Danish Government agency set up to process all international marriage applications.
Conditions in Denmark
You cannot get married in Denmark if you are a foreign couple and you have not applied for an approval certificate, also known as a prøvelsesattest, via the Agency of Family Law.
No town hall in Denmark can legally allow you marry without this certificate.
Approx. Timeframe in Denmark
The turnaround time, if you are to adhere to the AFL’s strict requirements and get an approval first time around can be very quick.
The Agency of Family Law aims to respond to all applications within 5 working days and when you get the approval, then you can get married as quickly as several days afterwards – IF you choose a town hall with great availability.
Normally though, most couples tend to leave at least a couple of weeks between their approval and their wedding day – just to get everything in order (travel, accommodation etc).
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Cyprus
While Cyprus is often cited as a European country in which it’s easy to get married for foreigners, it’s not as totally straightforward as it might initially seem.
Documentation Required From Each Partner in Cyprus
Documentation Required:
- Passports
- Birth certificates
- Visas / permits (where applicable)
- Single status certificates
- Divorce / Death certificates (where applicable)
- Signed declaration or oath of no impediment to their marriage
Where do you apply in Cyprus?
You must apply to the marriage officer in the municipality where you’d like to get married.
Conditions in Cyprus
You can only apply in person to the marriage officer in the municipality where you’d like to get married.
You are also only issued with 1 x original marriage certificate, and you will be charged a fee for any certified copies.
Approx. Timeframe in Cyprus
You will need to stay in Cyprus for around 20 days.
The earliest you can get married after you have given notice and had your application for marriage approved is 15 days.
The latest is 3 months after. You must get married within this time period.
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Malta
Again, Malta is often spoken of as an easy country for foreigners to get married.
But once again, it might not be as straightforward as initially implied.
Documentation Required From Each Partner in Malta
Documentation Required:
- Passports
- Visa / permit (if applicable)
- Original birth certificates
- Freedom to Marry / Single Status Certificate
- Original divorce decrees / death certificates (where applicable)
Where do you apply in Malta?
You must apply to the marriage registry where you intend to get married – this will either be in Valletta or in Rabat, Gozo.
There are only these 2 marriage registries in Malta.
Conditions in Malta
The Maltese authorities request that you inform the marriage office of your intention to marry 3 months ahead of your proposed wedding date.
They will then publicly post your banns on their marriage board at the marriage office.
This is a document where they state each of your details, your intention to marry and where your intended marriage will take place.
Approx. Timeframe in Malta
The marriage office will post your banns for a minimum of 8 days before you are given permission to marry.
Couples must get married between 6 days and 3 months after the banns have been posted.
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The Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are actually part of Danish territory, but the process is different if you want to get married on the Faroe Islands.
You must apply directly to the town hall on the Faroe Islands and not the Danish Agency of Family Law in Denmark.
The list of required documents is slightly different—they want to see your birth certificates and proof of marital status.
Documentation Required From Each Partner in The Faroe Islands
Documentation Required:
- Passports
- Birth certificates
- Divorce decree / Death cert (where applicable)
- Single Status Certificates
- Letter from your Commander (applicable for serving military members)
- Notice of Marriage
Any documents not in English should be translated into English by a certified translator and legalised, where applicable.
Where do you apply in The Faroe Islands?
You apply directly to the Tórshavn town hall marriage office on the Faroe Islands.
Conditions in The Faroe Islands
The Tórshavn town hall marriage office requires that you submit the Notice of Marriage no sooner than 4 months and not less than 4 weeks before your wedding date.
It is also worth bearing in mind that the Faroe Islands are NOT actually part of the EU so if you need your marriage certificate to be legalised after your wedding, your marriage certificate must be stamped by authorities in 3 separate offices – two on the Faroe Islands and one in Denmark.
Approx. Timeframe in The Faroe Islands
At least 2 days as you must present your documents one working day prior to your wedding day.
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Gibraltar
Gibraltar is located in Spain but is actually part of British territory.
This essentially means that the marriage application process is the same as if you wanted to get married in the UK but without the requirement to ‘give notice’ to the UK government or have your banns read and posted.
Documentation Required From Each Partner in Gibraltar
Documentation Required:
- Passports
- Original Birth certificates
- Visas / permits (where applicable)
- Original marriage certificate (if you were previously married – for female applicants only)
- Divorce decree / Death certificate (where applicable)
All documents not in English should be translated into English by a certified translator and legalised, where applicable.
Where do you apply in Gibraltar?
The Gibraltar Civil Status and Registration Office.
Conditions in Gibraltar
You must stay you must stay in Gibraltar for a minimum of 24 hours and be able to provide proof of such.
You must attend the registry office to present the originals of all your documents no later than 10.30 am one working day prior to your ceremony and to sign any necessary or required affidavits.
You must also provide 2 witnesses as these are not provided by the authorities for your wedding.
Approx. Timeframe in Gibraltar
The Registry Office will “aim to respond [to applications] as soon as possible.”
Iceland
Iceland certainly has that wild charm that many couples long for in their European elopement.
It is a part of Europe that has a special kind of magic about it, given its creation came about from a, still very active, volcano.
Documentation Required From Each Partner in Iceland
Documentation Required:
- Passports – with accompanying notarization from a Notary Public.
- Visa / residence permit (where applicable)
- Birth Certificates – with accompanying notarization from a Notary Public.
- Marital Status Certificate – dated within 12 weeks of your wedding date and must be legalised with an Apostille stamp (or other legalisation stamp where Apostille not available)
- Final Divorce Documentation / Death Certificates with any necessary legalisations (where applicable)
- Hjónavígsluskýrsla – the legal ‘Marriage Notification’ form
Additional Documentation Required if One or Both of You are Foreigners:
- Airline Ticket Itinerary
- Passport copy of trustworthy person 1 (must be over 18).
- Passport copy of trustworthy person 2 (must be over 18).
Where do you apply in Iceland?
The National Marriage Registry Office (located in Reykjavik).
Conditions in Iceland
Iceland is a very expensive country and could be a potential ‘roadblock’ for those looking for a fast and cheaper elopement experience.
Approx. Timeframe in Iceland
You must submit your application for a marriage to the Icelandic authorities no later than 3 weeks prior to your proposed wedding date.
However, the advice is that you should do this much sooner than this to allow for any questions or requests for further information to be obtained and processed.
So, as you can see, it is certainly possible for foreign couples to get married at various locations in Europe, but it’s not necessarily going to be that easy for everyone.
Most of these ‘easy’ countries require that couples provide original birth certificates, single status certificates and witnesses are not always provided for couples.
These factors might seem simple to resolve for some, but we know from experience that obtaining an original birth certificate alone is just not possible for huge numbers of foreigners who are hoping to get married.
Why Do Couples Choose Not To Get Married In The Country In Which They Legally Reside?
Simply saying that Denmark is the easiest place for foreigners to get married does not always give the bigger picture as to why couples choose not to get married in their home countries or the country in which they legally reside.
Couples from the following countries are so commonly among those that travel here to get married:
- German citizens and residents
- Irish citizens and residents
- Polish citizens and residents
- Indian citizens and residents
- French citizens and residents
- Italien citizens and residents
To further understand why Denmark is the easiest country for foreigners to get married than it is for them to get married at home, let’s take a quick look at why.
German citizens and residents
So why do those specifically living in Germany choose to get married in Denmark?
Well, whether you’re a German couple, a German citizen wanting to marry a non German citizen, or 2 non Germans legally residing in Germany, the simple answer is…. Denmark is the easiest country in Europe for foreign couples to get married!
The dialogue we hear from couple after couple who hold German residence, no matter how simple or complex their situation happens to be, is that it’s just too difficult to get married in Germany.
The bureaucratic system there makes it a long and drawn out process for even what we in the Danish wedding industry would see as being the most straightforward of cases.
The marriage system in Germany is designed specifically for 2 German citizens to get married and simply doesn’t reflect today’s reality; people travel a lot more, choose to reside in different countries and so naturally marriages begin to cross and break down borders.
As the German system does not take this into account, this is where the difficulties begin to arise.
Irish citizens and residents
Many couples who reside in Ireland also decide to travel to Denmark to get married.
It can be a fairly long wait to get married in Ireland too. First you have to register your intent to marry and you have to do this at least 3 months before you wish to get married.
This wait is simply too long for those that, for whatever reason, need to get married quickly.
The documentation required can be more complex there too, with Birth Certificates and Freedom to Marry Certificates being on the list of required documents for foreign couples wishing to marry in Ireland.
These are not always easy documents to obtain for many people; one of the most common things we hear on a daily basis is “Do I need to provide my birth certificate to get married in Denmark, because I just don’t have one?”
Polish citizens and residents
Many couples who reside in Poland decide to come to Denmark to get married instead of facing the Polish system.
The documents required in Poland are quite lengthy and you must submit them in person at the local registry office.
The meeting will be conducted in Polish only, so if one or both of you do not speak Polish, then you must bring a translator with you.
You must bring with you the required list of documents, one of which is a document from your ‘home’ country / country of origin, that says you are permitted to marry.
If you are not able to obtain this document, then the Polish authorities may waive this requirement but you must have a valid reason, for example, war, and you can only proceed with marriage in Poland once the official court decision on this has been issued.
Indian citizens and residents
If you are a foreigner residing in India and you wish to get married there, you must provide a lot of documents in order to have your marriage application processed, including your birth certificate and a letter of ‘No Objection’. You must also give notice of your intended marriage so it can be posted by the authorities. This allows any formal objections to be made before they can proceed with your marriage application.
It is also recommended that you contact your embassy or consulate as well as local authorities to ensure that there is nothing else required for your marriage to legally take place in India.
Spanish citizens and residents
A lot of Spanish residents choose to get married in Denmark.
The bureaucratic system in Spain sees long queues, various lengths of processing times (depending on the office you apply to – smaller towns and cities may not be as fast to process applications as the larger offices), as well as long lists of documentation required.
French citizens and residents
It’s actually not possible to get married in France unless at least one of you has a ‘lasting link’ with the town in which you would like to get married.
Should you have a lasting link to the area in which you hope to get married, then the authorities can request additional information and documentation from either of you after which they will process your file and hold an interview with you (you may be interviewed separately if the authorities deem it necessary).
Italian citizens and residents
Italy is often one of those countries which couples choose to go to for their ‘big’ celebrations with families, once the legalities have been taken care of in Denmark.
Which immediately suggests actually getting the legal part done there is not that simple.
And when you do a little research, you’ll find that both birth certificates and single status certificates are a requirement to get married in Italy.
Both of which can be very time consuming or perhaps totally impossible for some people.
Also, a legal ceremony in Italy would be held in Italian. So if one or both of you do not speak Italian, then a translator must be present.
In Denmark all wedding ceremonies will be held in English or German making it super accessible for couples from all over the world.
Why Denmark for LGBTQ+ couples?
It’s well known that Denmark is a world leader when it comes to the rights of same sex couples. The same-sex marriage law was brought into force in 2012, which gave same sex couples exactly the same rights as heterosexual couples when entering into marriage. As such, Denmark has become a huge destination for same sex couples from all over the world.
A lot of same sex couples we speak to come from countries where same sex marriage is illegal, they face persecution, or legal ramifications if they express their love for each other.
This is not the case in Denmark. Not only are the document requirements exactly the same for LGBTQ+ couples, but it is a safe place where showing your love and affection for each other comes with zero negative consequences. This is hugely important to so many LGBTQ+ couples and therefore makes Denmark one of the easiest countries for LGBTQ+ couples to get married.
Conclusion
It’s inevitable that couples worldwide who do not fit the specific criteria for a straightforward marriage process, wherever they reside, begin to look elsewhere.
And after not very much research they come to the realisation that Denmark could be (and is!) the answer they’ve been looking for. Denmark really is the easiest place for foreign couples to get married.
As such, international and multi-international couples, same-sex, straight, interracial, and interfaith couples residing in countries from all over the world have been choosing Denmark for years.
This is so clearly because of the simplicity of the bureaucracy, the paperwork and the marriage process, combined with the welcoming and warm attitude shown to foreign couples getting married in Denmark.
There are also Danish wedding agencies like us here at Getting Married in Denmark who are designed to help international couples navigate the requirements of the Danish government department which all marriage applications must go through, and for a fraction of the price of hiring a lawyer.
This wonderful mix of factors ensures foreign couples’ experiences of getting married is a smooth and simple process rather than one of bureaucracy, hurdles and difficulties.
Whatever your nationality, race, sexuality, religion, or whereabouts in the world in which you reside, Denmark is really the easiest country for foreign couples to get married in.
So, if you’re hoping to book your wedding date in a stress-free, simple manner so you can focus on actually getting married and all the wonderful things that involve, then contact us now for your free documentation list.
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