Marriage

A notarial marriage is a type of civil marriage celebrated before a notary, who acts as a public authority. It has the same legal validity as a marriage held at a court or town hall and is governed by Law 15/2015 on Voluntary Jurisdiction (Ley de Jurisdicción Voluntaria).

Main features

• Legal and civilit is fully valid in law.
• Celebrated before a notarywho acts as an official public witness (fedatario público).
• Quick and flexibleyou can choose the date, time and place.
• Marriage recordit is entered in the Civil Registry after the ceremony.

Requirements

• Spanish ID card (DNI), foreigner identification number (NIE) or passport of both parties (original and copy).
• Full birth certificate of both parties.
• Certificate of registration on the local population register (empadronamiento) for the last 2 years.
• Sworn statement of marital status.
• A witness who is not a family member, with their identity document.
• In the event of divorce or widowhood: additional documents depending on the case.

Step by step to marry before a notary

1. Apply for the marriage file (expediente matrimonial) at the Civil Registry for the place of residence of one of the parties.


2. Wait for it to be approved (this can take 1 to 3 months).


3. Receive authorisation to marry.


4. Choose a notary in the district where one of you lives.


5. Hand over the approved file to the notary.


6. Set the date and place of the ceremony.


7. Celebration of the marriage before the notary, with signature of the marriage record.


8. The notary officially registers the marriage with the Civil Registry.

Advantages of a Notarial Marriage

Important note

Although the ceremony is held before a notary, the marriage file must first be processed at the Civil Registry. Without this step, no civil marriage can take place, whether notarial or judicial.