BIRTH CERTIFICATES FOR BOTH THE BRIDE AND THE GROOM
If you were born in Australia
This needs to be an Original Full Birth Certificate issued by Births, Deaths and Marriages in the State you were born in Australia. You need an Apostille from the Department of Foreign Affairs in Australia on each Birth Certificate.
If you were not born in Australia
You still need an Original Full Birth Certificate issued in the Country of your Birth. If the Birth Certificate is in English (if it originates from an English speaking country such as the US, UK, South Africa or Canada) then you need to get a true copy of the original certified by a Notary Public and then take that copy to the Department of Foreign Affairs for an Apostille.
If the Birth Certificate is not in English
Then it needs to be translated into English by a NAATI Accredited Translator before you take copies of the original + translation to a Notary Public to be certified. Again, the certified document will need to go to the Department of Foreign Affairs for an Apostille.
CERTIFICATES OF NO IMPEDIMENT FOR BOTH THE BRIDE AND THE GROOM
Certificates of No Impediment are issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs. You can only apply for a Certificate of No Impediment in Australia if you are an Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident of Australia. When you apply for a Certificate of No Impediment to Marriage you will need to request that it has an Apostille.
If you are not either an Australian Citizen or a Permanent Resident of Australia
You will need to get your Certificate of No Impediment from the equivalent overseas authority in the Country or at the Consulate of the country of which you are a citizen.
DIVORCE/DEATH CERTIFICATES FOR A BRIDE OR GROOM THAT HAS BEEN PREVIOUSLY MARRIED
If either the bride and/or groom have been married before, you will need to supply the Divorce or Death Certificate in regards to any previous spouses. All documents need to be original documents and have an Apostille applied from the Department of Foreign Affairs. Divorce Certificates can be issued from the Court where the Divorce decision was made. Death Certificates can be issued from Births, Deaths and Marriages in the State where the death took place.
RELIGIOUS CEREMONIES
GREEK-ORTHODOX WEDDINGS
If both the bride and groom are Greek-Orthodox
Additionally, to the previous documents, you will need a Baptism Certificate and a Celibacy Certificate issued from your Church or the Greek-Orthodox Archdiocese in your State. If these are issued on the Archdiocese letterhead in the Greek language, no further stamps or certification is required. So, these documents do not need to bear Apostilles, do not need to be translated, nor do they need and Consular legalisation.
If one of the parties is Greek-Orthodox and the other party is a Christian from another denomination or Christian faith
Depending on the Christian denomination, this wedding may go ahead in a Greek-Orthodox church. Generally, Catholic and Anglican people can usually be married to a Greek-Orthodox individual in a Greek-Orthodox church. However, in every case, we would like to contact the priest to assure us that he will perform the marriage.
In this case, the bride or groom from a different Christian faith would need to produce his/her Baptism Certificate, as well as a letter or Certificate of Celibacy/Freedom to marry.
These documents, if produced in the English language, will need to be photocopied, certified by a Notary Public and bear an Apostille from the Department of Foreign Affairs in Australia.
Translation of Documents for a Wedding in Greece
Once you have collected all your documents, you need to get them translated, unless they have been issued in the Greek language.
All translations need to be completed by a NAATI Accredited Translator who is registered with one of the Greek Consulates or the Greek Embassy in Australia.
After you receive your Certified Translations from us, you need to take them to your closest Greek Consulate for further legalisation.
You will need to submit your original documents with the translations to the Greek Authorities. If you need a Birth Certificate in Australia for other purposes, you will need to have it reissued.
Other Documents
Depending on which Church, Town, City or Island you get married in, you may need further documents. We are happy to check with the relevant authorities to make sure that you comply with their requirements. Some further requirements may be the following:
- A valid passport of the bride and groom
- Change of name certificate (if either – or both – the bride or groom have changed their name and the change of name is not noted on the Birth Certificate History of Name Change)
- Single Status (No Record) Certificate for the bride and groom (issued at Births, Deaths and Marriages)
- A Statutory Declaration of Intention to be married
- Completed application form provided by the Greek Authorities
- A wedding notice to be published in a Greek National Newspaper, two issues of which need to be submitted to the Greek Authorities
*All these ORIGINAL certificates need to be taken to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for an Apostille to be affixed. Then, we need to translate all documents. Finally, the Greek Consulate will need to legalise all original documents and translations.
When you have organised your wedding you will need to fax copies of all these legal documents to the Greek Authorities as soon as possible! When you arrive in Greece you will need to submit the original documents to the Authorities before you get married.
Please bear in mind that circumstances, laws and prices may have changed since publishing. Call us any time on 1300 665 233 for a comprehensive list of steps to take in order to get your documents translated. If your case is not identical to the cases below, please call us so that we can advise on the documents and process in your particular case.
We will normally ask you where you will be getting married. Then we will call the Authorities or Greek Priest where your wedding will take place. They are the only ones who can advise what documents in particular pertain to your individual case. We will then let you know how to go about getting those documents prepared and translated in Australia before you travel to Greece for your big day!
Here are some examples:
Civil Marriage in Greece
Both of us were born in Australia, we both live in Melbourne. We are both Australian citizens and we have lived here for the last 2 years. We are getting married in Santorini by civil marriage. Neither of us has ever been married before. What documents do we need to get married in Greece?
Greek Orthodox Marriage in Greece
We were both born in Australia and we both live in Melbourne. We are both Australian citizens and we have lived here for at least the last 2 years. We are getting married in Santorini by Greek-Orthodox church marriage. Neither of us has ever been married before. The bride is Greek-Orthodox and the groom is Anglican. What documents do we need to get married in Greece?
Returning to Australia after a Marriage in Greece
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