Minimum residency period prior to marriage: 5 working days
Minimum age: 18 years old
Before travel:
The legal documents required for a wedding in Mexico are dependent on your personal circumstances and vary between the regions of Mexico and will vary from hotel to hotel as each region is looked after by a different Wedding Judge/Minister. It may be necessary to have some or all of your documents legalised in the UK prior to travel. This is the process of certifying the signature or stamp on a document to prove that it is authentic in order to be accepted by the overseas authorities. This is done at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office or the Ireland Consular by attaching a legalisation certificate to the document which is known as an 'apostille'.
If you are single and never previously married or changed your name for any reason you may have the option to just travel with just your passport, saving you unnecessary time and cost. Whilst this will avoid the need for the translations of birth certificates and other documents, you must be aware that parents’ names will not appear on the marriage certificate. In all situations, we will work with the hotel Wedding Planners on a case by case basis.
It may also be necessary to have Spanish translations made of some or all of your documents which for most hotels can only be done in Mexico on arrival at an extra cost, other hotels offer the choice of the translations being made in the UK prior to travel or in Mexico on arrival and a few insist that translations be made in the UK only.
We have listed below documents that may be required, depending on your personal circumstances.
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Passport (which expires more than 6 months after the date of your return to the UK)
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Birth certificate (showing both parent’s names)
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Tourist ID. These are provided on the plane prior to arrival into Cancun International Airport.
If applicable
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*If you have been divorced: Decree Absolute is required.
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If you have been widowed: the former marriage certificate and original
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Death certificate.
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If you have changed your name: Deed Poll certificate is required. If you have been divorced and have reverted to using your maiden name then this counts as a change of name, and proof of that change will be required.
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If you have been adopted: Adoption papers are required.
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If any of the above documents are required they must be legalised (except for your passport) by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office at the address below, prior to travel. The approximate cost of this is £30 per document (subject to change).
*If the Bride is divorced, at least a year must have passed before she can remarry) If divorced less than one year, a mandatory pregnancy test must be taken, (additional costs). If test is positive, wedding cannot be performed.
If you have any queries regarding the legalisation process, please use the contact details below:
Legalisation Office, Foreign & Commonwealth Office, PO Box 6255, Milton Keynes. Telephone: 03700 002244 / Website: www.fco.gov.uk/legalisation
Or -
Consular Section, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 80 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2. Telephone: (10.00-13.00) (01) 408 2682
Witnesses: Legal Wedding Ceremonies four witnesses are required. If the wedding couple provides their own witnesses the following is needed; passport copies & Tourist ID. If not the hotel will provide at no extra cost. Witnesses must be at least 18 years of age at the time of the ceremony.
In Mexico:
Both the bride and the groom are required to have compulsory blood tests taken before the marriage to determine blood type H.I.V and S.T.D. Tests must be taken at the resort. (If test is positive wedding cannot be performed). This will be done at a Mexican hospital (or in some cases, at the hotel) during your stay and will be at an extra cost.
The marriage certificate will be issued in Spanish. Most hotels offer a translation service in resort at an extra cost, payable locally. Alternatively the marriage certificate can be translated in the UK. Please note: to ensure administrative problems or delays are not encountered, you accept that by booking a wedding in Mexico with Tropical Sky that you commit to taking the documents detailed by the hotel. Regardless if you booked a free wedding or not, in Mexico, the compulsory blood tests, marriage validation, Judge fees to perform the wedding are paid for locally and can amount up to $1000.
As each wedding is individual we highly recommend that you scan all of your existing documents to us so that these can be checked for you. This may save you time and costs depending on your personal circumstances. However we feel that it is best to advise you of these additional costs if they are necessary.
Where it is possible to be married by a Judge or Wedding Minister, the ceremony will be non-denominational unless otherwise stated and will be a civil wedding.
Symbolic Wedding Ceremonies
You may have done some research and found that having a legal Civil wedding in Mexico can be fraught with additional costs for the Judge, or that you have to complete blood tests in a foreign country, maybe you have a phobia of needles or just don’t have the time to complete the array of translations and certifications required for a legal wedding. Regardless if you booked a free wedding or not, in Mexico, the compulsory blood tests, marriage validation, Judge fees to perform the wedding are paid for locally and can amount up to $1000. Many wedding couples are now choosing to be legally married in the UK followed by a symbolic wedding ceremony in resort with family and friends. Symbolic weddings are less costly, and a great choice for busy couples that prefer to bypass the gathering and completion of documentation required for a legally-binding ceremony in a foreign country. The wedding package inclusions listed are based on a symbolic wedding as all legal fees are paid in resort.
Tropical Sky Weddings and the information given above only apply to couples:
• Born in the UK & have a valid UK passport (with some month’s validity on return home)
If couples do not fulfil these requirements they must advise us. Couples should be referred to the embassy of the country of origin and the country where they wish to marry as they may require extra documentation to satisfy their own embassy requirements – Tropical Sky cannot advise on this and couples must investigate this on their own.
As Tropical Sky weddings have no jurisdiction over hotels/resorts/venues/legal requirements and their charges, we cannot be responsible for any increases or changes to these wedding arrangements. We will, however, endeavour to advise you of changes as soon as we are made aware of them. All prices and legal requirements correct as of June 2015.
