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Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations
Vital Statistics
Marriage Licence
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| Who Needs This
Licence? |
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Anyone who wants to be married
in Nova Scotia. |
| Issuing Department
/ Agency: |
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Vital Statistics Office
Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations
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| Where can you get this Licence and / or further information? |
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Contact a Deputy
Issuer of Marriage Licences properly authorized by the Government of
Nova Scotia.
For administrative purposes only, contact the Vital Statistics Office. |
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Phone
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Outside of Nova Scotia: (902) 424-4381
Toll-Free in Nova Scotia: 1-877-848-2578
Hours: 8:30 a.m to 4:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday (except Holidays). |
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Visit
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Vital Statistics
Office
Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations
Joseph Howe Building
Ground Floor
1690 Hollis Street
Halifax, NS B3J 3J9
Canada |
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E-mail
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vstat@gov.ns.ca
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Write:
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P.O. Box 157
Halifax, NS B3J 2M9
Canada |
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Fax
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(902) 424-0678 |
| Application Process: |
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- One or both parties to the marriage must apply in person to a Deputy
Issuer of Marriage Licences in their community (find a location
near you).
- Only one member of the couple needs to apply for the license, but you will be asked to provide a signed piece of identification and proof of age for both parties to the intended marriage. Documents must be either originals or certified copies and must include the following information:
- Full name, including given names
- Age
- Current address
- Proof of marital status is required if either party is widowed or divorced; see "Who Can Get Married?" for further information
- Need of parental consent to get a Marriage Licence:
- If you are 19 or over, you do not need parental consent.
- If you are 16, 17, or 18, you need the written consent of your
parent(s) or guardian(s). Your local Deputy Issuer of Marriage
Licences has the required consent forms.
- If you are under 16, a Marriage Licence cannot be issued without
a court order.
- If one or both of the intended parties was divorced, proof of divorce
must be provided. Appropriate documentation, such as consents
and divorce decrees (note: originals are needed, decree absolute or
certificate of divorce only), are required along with the affidavit.
For more information go to our page on getting married in Nova
Scotia.
- If one or both of the intended parties is widowed, proof of death
must be provided.
- There is a five day waiting period between the
day of application for the licence and the date of issuance. Note:
The waiting period does not start until those documents and the application
are together.
- If all requirements are met and the application is approved, the
licence can be picked up by the applicant.
- The applicant must pay for it at that time.
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| Waiting Period:
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5 business days
Provided that all the items that must accompany the application have been received
(Please allow several extra days for mail delivery.) |
| Expiry : |
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This licence is valid for 1 year
from date of issuance. |
| Price: (No tax
is charged) |
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$119.39 |
| Related Requirements:
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Necessary support documentation
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| Additional Information:
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- You do not have to be a Nova Scotia resident in order to be married
here, but the licence is only valid in this Province.
- After the marriage has been completed, it will have to be properly
registered; see Marriage: Registration by
the person (minister, judge, etc.) who solemnizes the marriage.
- Blood tests are not required under Nova Scotia legislation.
- In Nova Scotia, couples can choose a religious or civil ceremony.
Either type of ceremony must be witnessed by two people who are at least
16 years of age.
- Religious ceremonies are performed by a religious representative
of your choice, as long as they are registered with Nova Scotia Vital
Statistics under the Solemnization of Marriage Act.
- Civil ceremonies are performed by a Justice of the Peace or Judge.
Contact the Deputy Issuer of Marriage Licences to obtain a list of Justices
of the Peace authorized to perform marriages. You can also get this
list of Justices of the Peace from the Department
of Justice website .
- The religious representative or Justice of the Peace or Judge who
performs the ceremony will also help to complete the necessary Marriage
Registration Form.
- This form is then sent within 48 hours of the marriage ceremony by
the religious representative or Justice of the Peace or Judge to the
Deputy Issuer who returns it to the Vital Statistics office, where the
marriage is registered and a legal record is kept.
- At the time of the ceremony, your religious representative or Justice
of the Peace or Judge will provide you with a certificate of marriage
- this interim document can be used temporarily to prove that you are
married.
- After the marriage, and following the receipt and registration of
the Marriage Registration Form, a permanent Marriage Certificate may
be applied for through the office of Vital Statistics.
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| Legislative Authority:
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Solemnization of Marriage Act,
Revised Statutes of Nova Scotia, 1989, Chapter 436 |
Last Updated: April 2009
Back to the Vital Statistics
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