How to Get Married in Hong Kong?
Foreigner’s guide to official and hassle-free wedding in Hong Kong: We have been lucky enough to get involved in more than 500 official Hong Kong marriage of foreigner couples and learned some important lessons. These wedding couples came from all around the world including Germany, Indonesia, the Philippines, UK, USA, Canada, Cambodia, France, Russia, Ukraine, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Cameroon and many more… Read on to learn more about how to get married in Hong Kong and the requirements for different nationalities. We are happy to share our experiences and give you some hands-on application tips for your particular situation!
Click to view the REAL wedding moments to learn more about Hong Kong wedding for foreigner couples. These are the actual official marriage registry sites in Hong Kong!
Getting Married in Hong Kong Officially
As you may know, Hong Kong marriage is so popular around the world because of its simple procedure of registration as well as the minimal requirements. Even only being aย touristย can get married here in Hong Kong! We will explore with you the reasons of the popularity ofย Hong Kong weddingย and whether it is a good fit to your exact situation.
While you may not have any idea about how to get married in Hong Kong right now, we can help you gather all the required paperwork for the necessary filings before your arrival in Hong Kong, which allows you to travel to Hong Kongย as short as 3 days before the wedding day for once (we would share with you some handy tips and tricks on how to pick a suitable wedding date to achieve this if it can help your case). During your short stay in Hong Kong, your marriage will be officially registered in Hong Kong and you will get your Hong Kong Marriage Certificate right on the wedding day. Since there is no restriction for you to stay behind after your wedding, you can choose to leave Hong Kong for your honeymoon trip immediately on the same day or stay behind for a few days to explore this wonderful city of “East meets West”.
During the COVID-19 time, planning a wedding would take more work than before and we have summed up some tips for foreigners who are planning their wedding in Hong Kong during the pandemic. More details can be found at 5 golden rules for foreignersโ marriage plan in Hong Kong during COVID-19.
Simple Marriage Ceremony at Hong Kong Marriage Registry
We love simple things. If you are looking for a place for your simple yet memorable wedding, Hong Kong will be a suitable choice for sure! Marriage registration in the Hong Kong Marriage Registry is well known for its simplicity and wide recognition. You can learn more about the reasons of registering your marriage in Hong Kong at Why should you register your marriage in Hong Kong.
As you can imagine, we have met so many foreigner couples who actually decide to get married in Hong Kong mainly for legal paperwork purpose. True, it will take some time for you to go through the exact requirements but it is not as complicated as that in most of the other countries. Most importantly, unlike in many other countries, there is no special restriction or harsh requirements for foreigners to get married in Hong Kong, even if both of you are not local residents here. From our past experience, a simple and convenient application process is one of the most important considerations for foreigner couples who are living abroad. More details about foreigners getting married in Hong Kong can be found at Hong Kong Marriage Requirements for Foreigner.
When Should You Kickstart the Wedding Preparation
Generally, we would suggest our couples to get the preparations started around 3 to 4 months before the wedding day if possible. It is because it will take some time to gather all the necessary paperwork for filing the application and, most importantly, the marriage office processes wedding application on a first-come-first-served basis. It will be advantageous for you to start early and there will be a better chance of getting a spot of your wedding as well. In case you would like to get married within a shorter period of time, it will be very important to prepare all the required documents properly so that it can get a pass in one go because the Hong Kong Marriage Authorities has their own standards in accepting the applications. Getting the right papers for your application will also make you feel easier in the process so that you don’t have to go back and forth to save your costs and time. So it is a good idea to plan ahead your schedule of application to avoid getting stressed-out!
What is Notice of Intended Marriage
If you have made some research online on how to get married in Hong Kong, probably you have already heard of the document of “Notice of Intended Marriage”. As you apply to get married in Hong Kong, it is required to give a marriage notice before the formal registration of your marriage. Whatever you are local residents or foreigners coming from other countries, celebrating the marriage in a Hong Kong Marriage Registry or Licensed Church in Hong Kong, you must submit a Notice of Intended Marriage in advance to a marriage registry. Please check out the different categories of marriage in Hong Kong at Different Types of Wedding in Hong Kong.
When should you prepare to give a Notice of Intended Marriage?
As required by the Hong Kong Marriage Registry, couples can only get married after a Notice of Intended Marriage has been given for a period of not less than 15 days and not more than 3 months. Therefore, you should get ready for the submission when you are going to have the wedding day in 3-month time but don’t make it less than the 15-day requirement. Generally speaking, we would suggest couples to give their notice at least 1 to 2 months before the wedding day to ensure there is sufficient time for the processing. It will be easier for the marrying couples to make plans and confirm the flight schedule as well.
As to the information required for giving the Notice of Intended Marriage, this part is quite straightforward. Normally it only takes information like the names of the groom and bride, marital status, occupation, age, name of the parents and residential addresses etc. However, the requirements may be slightly different in some situations. For example, for those who is under 21 year-old or has been divorced, some documents such as the consent from parent or divorce certificate would also be required. From our past experience, it can save you some trouble (and also time, costs and stress!) in your application if you have the right papers filed properly in one go.
What should you do if you are living outside Hong Kong?
For foreigner couples, it is not necessary for you to come over to Hong Kong in weeks or months before the wedding day in order to give the marriage notice! We are able to help you submit all the required papers so that your Notice of Intended Marriage can be properly filed well before your travelling to Hong Kong. You can then fly to Hong Kong only a few days before the wedding day, making the marriage application and the whole planning much easier and more flexible.
Wedding Live-streaming Service
We do know some of your friends and family may not be able to join your wedding in Hong Kong though they would really love to witness the special moment you become husband and wife!ย We can actually arrange “Facebook Live-streaming” for your wedding ceremony so that all your friends and relatives can simply view LIVE your precious wedding moments from anywhere around the world! We have a very good news that this live-streaming service is now free of charge (limited quota, first-come-first-served) if you are joining our wedding day service!
What our foreigner couples are saying about their Hong Kong wedding with us
(clickย hereย to see the 120+ reviews from the officially married couples directly in our official Facebook Page)
Got Questions?
Need more information about marriage requirements, recognition, application timeline or any other details?
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