Civil marriage

In England

In medieval Europe, marriage was governed by canon law, which recognised as valid only those marriages where the parties stated they took one another as husband and wife, regardless of the presence or absence of witnesses. It was not necessary, however, to be married by any official or cleric. This institution was cancelled in England with the enactment of "Lord Hardwicke's Marriage Act" of 1753, which required that, in order to be valid and registered, all marriages were to be performed in an official ceremony in a religious setting recognised by the state, i.e. Church of England, the Quakers, or in a Jewish ceremony. Any other form of marriage was abolished. Children born into unions which were not valid under the Act would not automatically inherit the property or titles of their parents. For historical reasons, the Act did not apply in Scotland. Consequently, until 1940, it continued to be enough in Scotland for a man and a woman to pledge their commitment to each other in front of witnesses to legalise their marriage. This led to an industry of "fast marriages" in Scottish towns on the border with England; the town of Gretna Green was particularly well known for this. In 1836, the requirement that the ceremony take place in a religious forum was removed, and registrars were given the authority to register marriages not conducted by a religious official.

In other European countries

A couple waiting to get married in the town of Alghero on the island of Sardinia, Italy

Many European countries had institutions similar to common-law marriage. In 1566, the edict of the Council of Trent was proclaimed denying Catholics any form of marriage not executed in a religious ceremony before a priest and two witnesses.

The Protestant pastor and theologian of Geneva, John Calvin, decreed that in order for a couple to be considered married they must be registered by the state in addition to a church ceremony.

In 1792, with the French Revolution, religious marriage ceremonies in France were made secondary to civil marriage. Religious ceremonies could still be performed, but only for couples who had already been married in a civil ceremony. Napoleon later spread this custom throughout most of Europe. In present-day France, only civil marriage has legal validity. A religious ceremony may be performed after or before the civil union, but it has no legal effect.

In Germany, the Napoleonic code was valid only in territories conquered by Napoleon. With the fall of his empire, civil marriage in Germany began to die out. However, certain sovereign German states introduced civil marriages, which were either obligatory (like the French model) or optional, with either a religious or civil ceremony being accepted. Already before 1848 the Grand-Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach enacted optional civil marriages, followed by the German republics of the Free City of Frankfurt upon Main (1850, obligatory), Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (1851, optional) and Free and Hanseatic City of Lübeck (1852, optional). German Grand-Duchies such as Oldenburg (1852/55, optional), Baden (1860) and Hesse (1860) as well as the Kingdom of Württemberg (1863) followed suit.^[8] Civil marriages enabled interfaith marriages as well as marriages between spouses of different Christian denominations. After the unification of Germany in 1871, the Reichstag adopted a bill initiated by Chancellor Otto von Bismarck as the "Civil Marriage Law" in 1875 (see: Kulturkampf); since then, only civil marriages have been recognised in Germany. Religious ceremonies may still be performed at the couple's discretion. Until Dec. 31, 2008, religious marriages could not be performed until the couple had first married in a civil ceremony.

England and Wales

Today marriages in England or Wales must be held in authorised premises, which may include register offices, premises such as stately homes, castles and hotels that have been approved by the local authority, churches or chapels of the Church of England or Church in Wales, and other churches and religious premises that have been registered by the registrar general for marriage.^[9]

Civil marriages require a certificate, and at times a licence, that testify that the couple is fit for marriage. A short time after they are approved in the superintendent registrar's office, a short non-religious ceremony takes place which the registrar, the couple and two witnesses must attend; guests may also be present. Reference must not be made to God or any deity, or to a particular religion or denomination: this is strictly enforced, and readings and music in the ceremony must be agreed in advance.^[10]

United States

Marriage in the United States is still largely regulated by state laws (though not without occasional federal override—see Loving and Obergefell).

All states (and the District of Columbia) require a marriage license issued by local civil authorities. As a rule, ministers of religion (e.g. rabbis or Christian pastors) are authorized in law to perform marriages; various state or local officials, such as a mayor, judge, deputy marriage commissioner, or justice of the peace, are also empowered to conduct civil wedding ceremonies, which may take place in public offices. Many counties in Pennsylvania allow self-uniting marriages for which no official minister is required, as a concession to the state's Quaker heritage (though other religious traditions also avail themselves of the option). The type of ceremony (religious or civil) has no bearing on the legal validity of the marriage, and there is no requirement to precede a religious rite with a civil ceremony. Marriages performed outside of the United States are legally binding if officially recognized by the government of the country in which they are performed.

Countries with mandatory civil marriage

In most European countries there is a civil ceremony requirement. Following the civil marriage ceremony, couples are free to marry in a religious ceremony. Such ceremonies, however, only serve to provide a religious recognition of the marriage, since the state's recognition has already been given. In some of these countries (e.g. Belgium, the Netherlands and Turkey) most couples marry without any religious ceremony at all. Full, formal weddings, complete with wedding gowns and the presence of family and friends, are usually conducted in special ceremonial rooms in the town hall.

Countries with no civil marriage

There is no civil marriage in many Middle Eastern countries like Egypt, Syria,^[11] Jordan,^[12] UAE,^[13] Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Yemen, Libya, Mauritania, as well as in Indonesia,^[14] Iran, Lebanon and Israel, among others; all marriages are conducted by religious authorities, and are registered by civil authorities only after having been registered by authorities of officially approved religions, or, having been registered abroad. Some of those countries as Israel, Syria and Lebanon officially recognize Islam, Christianity, Druze, Judaism, and marriage is possible but usually only within the same community. Contrary to the situation in Lebanon, Syrian law prohibits the recognition of any marriage that falls outside the existing proscriptions of its personal status laws, even if the couple gets married abroad ^[15]. Egypt recognizes civil marriages but is very complicated. One will need to have all the necessary paperwork completed and then one must go with two men as your witnesses. Foreigners will need a paper from their embassy. This yields particular problems for those who are refused divorce by their spouses, or couples in religious traditions that forbid divorce altogether. Malaysia allows civil marriage for non-Muslims only, while in Kuwait, Bahrain and Afghanistan^[16] it is allowed for foreign citizens only.

Civil marriage and other unions of same-sex couples

People leaving the town hall of Høje, Denmark following a civil marriage

As of December 2017, there were several jurisdictions which permitted same-sex marriages, namely Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Kingdom of Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, both Taiwan and Austria by federal high court rulings (both not yet in effect until early 2019)^[17], England, Wales, Scotland (does not include Northern Ireland as of yet), the Isle of Man, Falkland Islands, Jersey (eff. 1/7/2018), Guernsey, Alderney (does not include the Channel Islands of Sark as of yet), Pitcairn Islands, Gibraltar, Akrotiri and Dhekelia, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Antarctic Territory, Ascension Island, Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha,^[18] United States and Uruguay. Also several states within Mexico - namely Mexico City, Baja California, Campeche, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Jalisco, Michoacán, Morelos, Nayarit, Quintana Roo, Guerrero, Querétaro and Puebla. Israel,^[19] Estonia and Armenia recognize same-sex civil marriages abroad from other countries - but does not allow same-sex marriages to be performed within their borders. Northern Ireland recognises same-sex civil partnerships but not same-sex marriages, and treats foreign same-sex marriages (including those from the rest of the UK) as civil partnerships.

In 22 countries worldwide and in several jurisdictions within both Mexico and the United States, a same-sex couple can be legally partnered in a civil union, domestic partnership or registered partnership. Couples in these unions or partnerships are afforded rights and obligations similar to, but not identical to, those of a married couple.