Marriages

A marriage licence, or banns form, is required for your marriage to be legally recognized.

• Marriage Licence: You can obtain this from a government office.

• Banns Form: This is issued by a church after your intention to marry is publicly announced during a divine service—a process known as the publication of banns.

Note: Banns cannot be used if either you or your partner has been previously married. In that case, you must obtain a marriage licence.

After the ceremony, the marriage licence or banns form must be signed by you, your spouse, two witnesses, and the officiant who performed the marriage.

To get a marriage licence, you will need:

• Two (2) pieces of original identification are required for each applicant; photocopies will not be accepted. One piece of identification must establish proof of identity and the second piece must be photo identification.

Examples of valid government issued identification documents:

• Government-issued birth certificate, including any change if name certificates
• Valid passport
• Record of Immigrant Landing
• Canadian Citizenship Card
• Canadian Permanent Resident Card

Examples of valid government issued photo ID:

• Valid driver's licence
• Valid passport
• Valid Ontario Photo Card
• Valid Native Status Card
• Nexus Card

If a valid passport is used as an identity document, it can not also be used as the photo ID.

The fee for a marriage licence from the Township of Otonabee-South Monaghan is $125.00.

A marriage licence is valid for 90 days from the date it was issued.

Marriage License Application Form

Remarry After a Divorce

Divorced in Canada

You will need to bring official proof of the divorce with you when you apply for a marriage licence.  This can be the original or a court-certified copy of one of the following three documents:

• The final decree
• The final judgement
• A certificate of divorce

A Divorce Order or Decree Nisi is not acceptable. Cerified copies can be obtained from the court that granted the divorce. Photocopies will not be accepted.

Out of county divorces

If you were divorced outside of Canada, you will need to provide certain documents to prove that you are no longer married. The government needs to validate these documents. This process can take up to 4 weeks.

You will need to send the following documents to ServiceOntario:

• Marriage licence application form;: completed and signed
• Statement of sole responsibility: for each divorce (signed by both people who plan to get married and a witness)
• Legal opinion letter: from an Ontario lawyer, addressed to both people who plan to get married, giving reason why the divorce or annulment should be recognized in Ontario.
• Divorce decree or annulment: an original or court-certified copy in English or French. If the decree is in another language, you will need to include a translated copy and an affidavit sworn by a certified translator.

A marriage certificate is the official legal record of a marriage.
It includes the names of the couple, the date of the marriage, and where it took place. Marriage certificates are issued by the Registrar General.

You may need a marriage certificate to:

• Prove you are legally married

• Apply for certain government or social benefits

• Settle a loved one’s estate

• Change your last name

Note: A Record of Solemnization of Marriage is not the same as a marriage certificate. It is a ceremonial document, not a legal one.

Before you can get a marriage certificate, the marriage must be registered with the province.

The person who performed the ceremony will do this by sending the signed and completed marriage licence to ServiceOntario.

Order a Marriage Certificate

When you get married, you don't have to legally change your last name (surname). But if you choose to legally change your last name, you can do so through ServiceOntario.

Change Your Last Name