Civil partnership arrangement and registration

Please tell us what you think about our website, we welcome your feedback.

The county of Wiltshire with its ancient stone circles, expansive views of the countryside and white chalk horses carved into unspoilt hillsides all help to create a unique setting for your civil partnership. Same sex couples will be able to gain legal recognition of their relationship by forming a civil partnership at a register office or approved venue of their choice.

In Wiltshire we offer a provisional booking service so that you can reserve the date and time of your registration.

Time of Civil Partnership

From the 1st October 2012 the law has changed to allow local authorities to remove the time restrictions for registering a civil partnership. Wiltshire Council has taken this opportunity to give couples greater choice. If you wish to register your civil partnership in an approved venue in Wiltshire after 1st October 2012 then you are no longer legally limited to the time when the registration can take place. Please contact us to discuss the options available to you.

To be able to register a civil partnership a couple must be:

• Of the same sex
• Over 18 (or be able to provide evidence of consent if 16 or 17)
• Not already in an existing civil partnership or marriage
• Not related to each other within the prohibited degrees of relationship

Couples will need to complete legal preliminaries in the local authority area where they have resided for at least seven days. This will be in the form of a notice where evidence of name, age and nationality must be shown. There will be a waiting period of 15 clear days before a formation can take place. The notice will be published at the Wiltshire Register Office, Trowbridge although addresses will not be included.

A civil partnership will be registered once the couple have signed in the presence of a civil partnership registrar and two witnesses.

There will be no legal requirement for a ceremony as part of the civil partnership registration but Wiltshire Council will be offering a discretionary standard ceremony if required by couples for the statutory fee. An enhanced ceremony can be prepared to suit individual couples' personal requirements for an additional fee.

If one or both of a couple are subject to immigration control they will need to provide evidence of any exemption or obtain a certificate of approval from the Home Office or marriage visa if they reside abroad.

Procedures will be in place to enable a registration to happen at the residence of someone who is housebound, detained or seriously ill and not expected to recover.

You need to produce proof of your identity and address. Passports are ideal for proving identity but if you do not have a current valid passport we will advise you as to what other forms of identity may be acceptable, i.e. birth certificate.

If you have been married before and divorced you will need to show a decree absolute of divorce bearing the court's original stamp. If your husband or wife died we will need to see a certified copy of their death certificate.

If you have changed your name by deed poll, change of name deed or by statutory declaration the documents will need to be shown.

Evidence that the person is free legally to enter into a civil partnership and evidence of address will also need to be shown.

You must both have had your usual place of residence in England or Wales for the seven days immediately before giving notice. The notices must be given to the Civil Partnership Registrar in any register office of your choice within the local authority in which you have resided for seven days, regardless of where the partnership is due to take place. It does not matter if you move to a different address after the notice is given.

Each of you must give notice in person. The notice is a legal statement signed by you. The person you are entering into a partnership with, a relative or friend cannot give the notice on your behalf.

Payment

For full details of costs or payments, please look at the fees page.

Related information

• Registration service office locations and opening times

Related documents

• A Guide to Civil Partnership

Related links

• General Register Office
• Women and Equality Unit - civil partnership
• The Couple Connection

Last updated: 3 October 2012