Documentation and legal requirements - Dominican Republic
The information below is intended as a guide, as documentation and legal requirements change regularly. Please check with your Wedding Coordinator and with the relevant embassy before arranging your documentation.
Legal requirements
Minimum residency period prior to wedding: 5 days (excluding day of arrival, weekends and bank holidays).
Witnesses required: 2. Witnesses can not be related to the bride and groom.
Minimum Age: 18 (If under 18, see below).
Marriage Certificate issued in local language? Yes. Your certificate may take 3-6 months to be returned to the UK.
Other requirements: None.
Documentation requirements
The following documents must be obtained in the UK and sent to Sovereign no later than 12 weeks before departure. We need two photocopies of the following documents. All original documents must be taken to resort – photocopies of documents are not accepted in resort.
Full 10-year British passports? Yes
Birth certificates? Yes – full original.
If never previously married:
Single status statutory declaration? Yes. If you have never been married, a Single Status Statutory Declaration (one per person) must have been stamped and certified by a Solicitor and issued within 3 months of the intended date of marriage.
Certificate of No Impediment? No.
If divorced: Decree absolute and an affidavit stamped and signed by a solicitor declaring marital status and eligibility to marry. The bride must have been divorced for 12 months unless her new husband is the same man she has divorced.
If widowed: Spouse’s Death Certificate and Previous Marriage Certificate and an affidavit stamped and signed by a solicitor declaring marital status and eligibility to marry.
If adopted: Adoption Certicate.
If name changed: Proof of deed poll or statutory declaration. This is also required for divorcees or widows who have reverted back to their maiden name.
If under 18: Parental consent in the form of an affidavit, stamped and signed by a solicitor.
Please note: All affidavits are to be declared per person and must include passport numbers, address and line of employment. Affidavits are valid for a period of three months from the date of issue.
Certification / Legalisation / Translation of all documents? Each original document must be legalised in the UK prior to departure, first by sending them to the Legalization Office at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Documents must then also be legalised by the Consular Section of the Embassy. There is a fee for legalisation per document. All documents must then be translated into Spanish by a legal translator showing an official stamp, name and signature. It is strongly recommended that translations be done through the embassy. There is a fee per document for this service and includes legal certification of the translation as a copy of the original.
Please note that once you get married in the Dominican Republic you must legalise your documents in the Embassy of The United Kingdom in the Dominican Republic.
