Make an appointment to give notice
Giving notice is telling people of your intention to marry or form a civil partnership.
You legally have to give notice in England or Wales to have a civil or religious marriage ceremony or to form a civil partnership.
However, if you plan to marry in a Church of England church, you won't need to give notice as the vicar will normally complete similar documentation, usually called Banns. If the vicar is unable to do this, you'll be advised to give notice at your local register office.
How to make an appointment to give notice
You need to book an appointment to give notice. To make an appointment:
- Phone us using the contact details on this page.
- When you make your appointment, we'll tell you whether you need to attend together or separately.
Phone 01706 924784 to make an appointment to give notice
Where to give notice
You must attend your local register office to give notice. This means if you live in different areas, you’ll need to give notice at different register offices.
You must have been a resident in your registration district for at least the past 7 days.
Rochdale Register Office is located at:
Number One Riverside
Smith Street
Rochdale OL16 1XU
How much it costs to give notice
It costs £35 each to give notice of marriage or civil partnership.
If you're a foreign national without appropriate immigration status, it will cost £47 per person.
If you got divorced abroad, there's an extra fee of £50 for the Superintendent Registrar to verify the divorce documents. If the documents have to be referred to the Register General this fee will increase to £75.
About the notice on display
A notice is a signed declaration made by each party to the marriage or civil partnership. It includes the names, ages, marital status, address, occupation and nationality of the people intending to marry. It also states the intended venue for the ceremony.
Your notice will be displayed at the Register Office for 28 days to give people the opportunity to make a legal objection. Each notice is valid for 12 months.
If we do not receive any legal objections, we issue authorisation for the marriage or civil partnership to go ahead. The authorisation is only valid for the venue stated. If you change your venue after giving notice, you will need to give notice again, including paying the fees again.
Immigration laws
We're working with the Home Office to identify marriages and civil partnerships that would abuse UK immigration laws.
If you arrange, facilitate or enter a marriage or civil partnership solely to gain permission to stay in the UK, you could:
- Get arrested.
- Be prosecuted.
- Face deportation.
- Be barred from re-entering the UK for up to 14 years.