Getting Married in Portugal as a Foreigner
The registry steps, the documents and a timeline from 12 months out to the day, built from official Portuguese and embassy pages, with the date we checked each one.
Foreign couples can marry in Portugal, and on paper it is straightforward: you file with a civil registry, show ID, a birth certificate and proof that you are free to marry.
This is a general overview of getting married in Portugal as a foreigner, and not legal advice. We are wedding photographers, not lawyers. Every legal point comes from a Portuguese government or embassy page that we link, checked in October 2026. Where sources disagree, or we could not open a page, we say so and tell you who to ask.
Start at a civil registry office (conservatória) at least one month before your date. The foreign partner shows ID, a birth certificate and a certificate of capacity to marry issued less than six months ago, or a declaration that their country issues none. Documents need a certified Portuguese translation unless they are in English, French or Spanish. Once authorised you have six months to marry. The official fee for a weekday civil wedding at the registry is EUR 120.
Can foreigners get married in Portugal without living there?
The official pages we read set no residence condition for foreign nationals. The Portuguese government’s marriage guide (marked as updated in September 2026) says the rules are the same for a Portuguese-and-foreign couple as for two Portuguese, with one addition: the foreign partner must prove they are legally able to marry. The IRN page on organising the marriage says foreign nationals who marry in Portugal apply at a civil registry office.
Neither page spells out the case where both partners are foreign, so confirm with the registry that your nationalities raise nothing extra. Per the IRN page, both of you attend the ceremony, or one of you plus the other’s representative with special powers.
The online route on the official page is for Portuguese citizens, and Brazilians with equal-rights status, who hold a digital ID. A visiting couple should expect to start at a registry office or through a representative. We found no fully online route for visiting foreigners, so ask the registry.
What documents do you need to get married in Portugal as a foreigner?
The IRN and gov.pt pages list the following for a foreign partner. The registry that will celebrate your wedding decides what it accepts, so ask for its list in writing.
- Photo ID. A passport, a residence permit or an equivalent document.
- Birth certificate. Issued under the law of your country. The Australian Embassy says it should be issued within six months, so ask the registry whether an age limit applies to yours.
- Certificate of capacity to marry. Issued by your country’s authorities less than six months ago. If your country issues no such certificate, the IRN page says to bring a declaration saying so.
- Certified translation. Into Portuguese for any document not written in English, French or Spanish.
- Your wedding details. The type of ceremony, the place, a property regime, and a date and time agreed with the registrar.
- Papers for a previous marriage. If either of you was married before, ask which divorce or death certificates are needed. The Australian Embassy notes that divorce papers may need an apostille.
The IRN page does not mention an apostille. Portuguese consulates describe it as the usual way to legalise documents from countries in the Hague Convention (see the consulate in Manchester), and the Australian Embassy says Portuguese authorities may ask for one. Ask the registry before you order anything, because an apostille is an extra step in your home country.
Two points from the IRN page. If the foreign partner does not speak Portuguese and the registry staff do not speak their language, an interpreter is appointed. Between two and four witnesses may take part, but it is not mandatory.
What do the US, UK, Canadian and Australian authorities say?
Embassies do not perform marriages (the Canadian page says so in as many words). What they do is issue or certify the home-country paperwork. Here is what each page said when we checked, and where it left a gap.
Civil, religious or symbolic: which ceremony is legal?
The official pages list three ways to marry in Portugal. When you open the file you say which one you are choosing.
At the registry, or elsewhere
The registrar celebrates it, normally at the registry in opening hours. Other places are possible, with extra fees.
Official fee EUR 120 on weekdays in office hoursThe priest starts the file
The priest can start the process and gathers the documents for the registry. The gov.pt guide says it has the same legal effects and requirements as a civil marriage.
Needs a priest and a churchA non-Catholic rite
The minister of a religious community established in Portugal can start the process, per the IRN page. Same legal effects as civil.
Ask the registry which communities qualifyThose three are the only ones the pages list. A ceremony led by a celebrant on a cliff or in a quinta, with no registry process behind it, is not one of them. Our reading is that it works as a celebration, not as the legal act, but ask the registry or your embassy how they would treat it. One simple option is to sign the legal paperwork on a weekday at the registry and hold the ceremony you imagined on another day.
Can you get married in Sintra or Lisbon, and what does it cost?
The IRN page says a civil ceremony can be held at a registry office during normal hours, and that public municipal venues are available in Lisbon and the Algarve (it links the Lisbon and Albufeira councils). It lists nothing equivalent for Sintra or Cascais, so ask the registry for that area what is possible.
The gov.pt guide adds that a ceremony can be held at the registry or elsewhere. A weekend, holiday, after-hours or off-site ceremony carries a higher official fee than the EUR 120 weekday one, and for off-site ceremonies you arrange transport or pay the registrar’s travel costs. An antenuptial agreement for a property regime has its own fee on the IRN page. Fees can change, so confirm them when you file.
Marrying inside a Sintra monument: the Parques de Sintra image page says visitors may photograph the general environment for private use, that professional photography is not allowed under that policy, and that other use needs prior authorisation, which can be refused. Quinta da Regaleira has its own rules. Gardens, viewpoints and the streets of the town are free to shoot in. See our Sintra photographer page for how we plan around this.
How long does it take? A timeline from 12 months out
The firm numbers come from the official pages: one month minimum notice, a certificate under six months old, six months to marry once authorised. The 12-month rhythm is our own planning suggestion, built around them.
Same-sex couples marrying in Portugal
Portugal’s official gazette carries Lei n.º 9/2010 on civil marriage between persons of the same sex, and the Government of Canada’s page for its Lisbon embassy says Portugal recognises and performs same-sex marriages (last modified August 2021). The IRN page we read describes one procedure for “the couple” and sets out no separate steps for same-sex couples.
Two things to confirm. Ask the registry about anything specific to your documents. And whether your home state or country will recognise a marriage celebrated in Portugal is a question for your own government, so check it before you travel.
Where the paperwork meets the photography plan
Two paperwork facts shape the day. The registrar agrees the date and time with you, so the photography schedule is built around that slot. And the registry decides what happens inside its walls: we found no official rules on photography at registry offices, so ask whether a photographer may attend and what is allowed.
Our wedding photography covers a full day across Lisbon, Sintra, Cascais, Porto, the Douro Valley and the Algarve, all in English, with backup equipment always. We hold your date with a deposit and run a planning call before the wedding. Packages as a guide, final pricing depends on date, location and coverage. All include a private online gallery, delivery within 6 weeks and the planning call; printed albums and travel outside the Lisbon area are add-ons.
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For smaller weddings under 100 guests. A single photographer, full day, 400+ edited photos.
Smaller weddingsFrom EUR 2200
Both partners covered while getting ready. 600+ edited photos.
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Two photographers plus a videographer, a cinematic wedding film, 600+ edited photos.
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See wedding photographyCommon questions
Do you need to live in Portugal to get married there?
The IRN and gov.pt pages we read list no residence requirement for foreign nationals. They ask for ID, a birth certificate and a certificate of capacity to marry. Confirm with the registry for your nationalities.
How far ahead do you need to apply to marry in Portugal?
The IRN page says at least one month before the chosen date, and that you then have up to six months to marry once authorised. Start gathering documents earlier: the Canadian Embassy suggests three to six months.
Do you need a certificate of no impediment to marry in Portugal?
The IRN page asks the foreign partner for a certificate of capacity to marry issued less than six months ago, or a declaration that their country issues none. GOV.UK says British nationals living outside the UK do not need a CNI. Others should ask the registry and their embassy.
Is a symbolic ceremony legal in Portugal?
The official pages list civil, Catholic and civil-in-religious-form marriage. A ceremony outside those has no registry process behind it, so ask the registry how it would treat it before you plan around it.
Can we get married in Sintra?
The IRN page lists municipal venues for Lisbon and the Algarve only. For Sintra, ask the local registry what is possible. The gov.pt guide says off-site and weekend ceremonies cost more than the EUR 120 weekday fee.
Will our marriage in Portugal be recognised back home?
That depends on your country. The Canadian Embassy page says marriages in Portugal do not need to be registered in Canada. For the US, the UK and Australia, check with your own authorities.