Wedding in Mauritius

For the civil or civil wedding in Mauritius, the required documents and formalities for wedding couples differ slightly from those in the home country. As a competent partner and wedding planner for your wedding in Mauritius, we take over the complete organisation of the formal part.

 

Getting married in Mauritius is legally valid in all member states of the Hague Convention. Only the registration has to be done after the return in the home country. Even if you find your country in the List of the member states, it is advisable to check with the relevant registry office before traveling for further information. Some countries require additionally for the Wedding Certificate to pass through the relevant embassy or consulate before being taken home for registration.

 

By email we need 11 to 6 weeks prior to the wedding date (in a PDF) the following from you:

 

- The filled in Application to marry

- Copy of the first 3 double pages of both passports

- Copy of the international birth certificates (must be max. 3 months old on the wedding day! Some countries such as India do not produce new birth certificates other than the original one upon birth. For these countries the government of Mauritius makes exceptions but an Affidavit needs to be sworn in Port Louis on the same day that you do the formal part. Should you book our service "help with the formal part", the fees for the affidavit are included.

- If you were married before and got divorced, we need a certified translation of the divorce decree (can be done by any translation agency).

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Once we have received all your documents we will send them to the Central Civil Status Office in Port Louis. Their approval (or demand for further documentation) usually takes 2 to 4 weeks. Unfortunately we cannot accelerate the process by sending emails or going there in person.

 

If the surname on your international birth certificate is different from the surname on your passport, we will need documents to justify the name change (dead poll) unless the different surname is due to a previous marriage. If you do not provide this, the wedding certificate will show the surname according to the birth certificate.

 

Civil weddings can only take place Monday through Friday after 4:15 p.m. and all day on weekends and holidays. Symbolic weddings can take place on any day and at any time. Please note that there must be at least one day between the appointment at the registry office and the wedding. Therefore, the ceremony and the appointment at the registry office in Port Louis cannot take place on the same day.

 

Should the wedding take place within a period of 10 months after the divorce / after the death of the husband, a certificate from a Mauritian doctor must be presented that there is no pregnancy of the bride at the time of the wedding. Should there be a pregnancy, the wedding may not be performed in Mauritius for legal reasons.

 

In Mauritius, the birth name, according to the international birth certificate, is always entered on the marriage certificate. A change of name due to the wedding must be applied for afterwards in your home country via the registry office. If the current family name differs from the birth name, please check in advance with your registry office whether the apostille on the birth name is accepted in the course of recognition in the home country. Only if a Deed Poll is available, the valid name according to the Deed Poll will be transferred to the wedding certificate according to Mauritian law. The Deed Poll can be an official document about a name change or a confirmation about the name change certified by the registry office.

 

If you are arriving alone, we will also provide the two mandatory witnesses. We will bring the wedding certificate, stamped by the authorities (Apostille), to your accommodation two to three working days after the wedding day.

 

Neither a certificate of marriageability nor a confirmation of residence is required in Mauritius.