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Bermuda Wedding Ceremony and
Marriage Laws
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Marriages in Bermuda need to follow local laws of the island.
if you are a visitor wanting to get married in Bermuda, the first step is to get the Marriage License.
A marriage in Bermuda can be performed by either a registered Marriage Officer of a church, or the Registrar, or the Assistant Registrar General for civil weddings. So even if you are not religious minded, you will need one of the above officials to complete your marriage in Bermuda.
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Civil marriage ceremonies can also take place in the Registrar General's office with prior appointment. Timings are Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
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For a non-resident of Bermuda to get married, two witnesses over 18-yedars age are required for Registry marriages. If you don't have witnesses, the registrar or the clergyman may be able to help.
Visitors who do not marry a Bermudian or someone ordinarily resident in Bermuda can not get married in a local church.
However it is possible for non-resident Roman Catholics to be married in certain Catholic Churches in Bermuda.
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In case of Roman Catholic, a priest will perform the marriage only when either the person has his or her Catholic family living and practicing their religion in Bermuda, or if the person once lived in the island and was a member of a Catholic church. For detailed information, contact the Roman Catholic Chancery Office at (441) 232-4414.
All Catholic wedding ceremonies are held in a church. Clergy of some Protestant denominations do perform weddings for overseas visitors, and some are willing to officiate at outdoor weddings as well. But in Bermuda, divorced persons cannot be married in any of the Roman Catholic churches. It can however happen at other churches, such as Anglican, Methodist etc., but only by making special request to the minister concerned.
Any questions on this subject should be addressed by airmail directly to the Bishop of Hamilton in Bermuda, P. O Box HM 1191, Hamilton HM EX, Bermuda. Locally, Catholics are required to give 12 months notice.
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For overseas persons, it is possible to have a religious wedding ceremony in Bermuda. But policies do differ from faith to faith.
For example, a Jewish community in Bermuda does not have a resident Rabbi. To have a Jewish ceremony, the Rabbi needs to be brought into Bermuda to conduct the ceremony.
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For a Muslim ceremony though, there is a resident Imam - Ameer Shakir. Phone (441)293-9108 or (441) 292-5986 for details.
For marriages in hotels, the specific hotel authority should be contacted directly to know the process and under what bindings and circumstances.
Under the provisions of the Marriage Act 1944, marriage is allowed at sea with a marriage license and in a Bermuda government registered cruise ship. The Captain of the cruise will be the licensed Marriage Officer.
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The Minister of Labor, Home Affairs & Public Safety of the Bermuda Government can license a particular visiting minister or any competent religious person to conduct a Bermuda marriage ceremony.
In Bermuda, Justices of the Peace do not have authority to perform weddings unless one is also a local minister or a priest of a recognized church and licensed to perform weddings.
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Bermuda marriages are recognized in the USA and elsewhere. But appropriate checks are made from Bermuda with federal, state or provincial authorities to determine if proposed marriages are bigamous.
Minors in Bermuda are considered between 16 to those not yet 21 years old. All minors must have notarized written consent of both parents or the surviving parent or legal guardian. A marriage will not be performed if either or both parties are under 18 years at the time of the ceremony.
For British resident in England or Scotland or Northern Ireland who plan to marry a British resident in Bermuda, some local churches will require considerable notice from both parties for weddings.
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