First Timer looking for advice on getting the ball rolling!

ShaShaBear

Myself and my OH are planning to get married in September 2014 (no date picked, we're not fussy!) and have started saving (admittedly a meager amount, OH's car simply does not want this wedding to go ahead!). But it occured to me, that I have absolutely no idea how to proceed for the wedding I want!

We decided on a civil wedding, and so far we love the 100-people deal in the Hillgrove in Monaghan. So I went onto the Civil Registration website and tried to figure out how to proceed when we have deposit money (anyone who has had this deal in Hillgrove that could give me a rough estimate on the deposit would be doing me a real kindness ).

Firstly, it keeps mentioning three months notice, but doesn't seem to say anywhere about you having the date already picked... Do I need to have the date booked with my hotel before registering? How do I know a solemniser will be able to accommodate this date when I book it? Does it have to be three months before the wedding?

Secondly, it mentions an Apostille stamp for birth certificates outside of Ireland (I still curse my parents to this day for the trouble this has caused me ). I have a British birth cert - do I still need to do this, and if so, how do I go about it?

Thirdly, does the €200 plus travel expenses for the solemniser need to be paid at the notification appointment? I'm just trying to figure out exactly how that meeting works, as well as how it ties in with me booking the date in the hotel

lowly26

if you really want to get married in this particular hotel, decide on a date and find out if they have it free. if they do you can provisionallybook it for a period which is normal two weeks after which time a deposit needs to be paid. if you provisonally book, you can use that time in between to try and get a solomiser. if not you can try a diff date then when one is avaible, but if you are getting married in 2014 it shouldnt be tohard to get one on the same dates (i'd think any way!!!)

Sleepy

Don't put down any heavy deposit for a wedding so far into the future and whatever you do put down, do it with a credit card so you can charge it back should they go out of business or anything similar.

The fee for the marriage license needs to be paid at the notification appointment so presumably solemniser's travel expenses need to be paid at the same time. One important thing to note here is that the HSE solemisers don't work weekends so you can't book them for a Saturday wedding. Alternatives would be the Humanists or the Spiritualist Union of Ireland (Tom Colton and associates).

Ever2010

This is the place to get your apostille stamp from the UK - I got mine in less than 2 weeks. Just under €50 I think!

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/about-us/what-we-do/services-we-deliver/legal-services/Legalisation/

ABajaninCork

Ever2010 wrote: »

This is the place to get your apostille stamp from the UK - I got mine in less than 2 weeks. Just under €50 I think!

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/about-us/what-we-do/services-we-deliver/legal-services/Legalisation/

I never knew that!! I'm British, married here, and no-one asked for an apostille stamp...

Vojera

You have to give at least three months notice to the registrar, but it can take a while to get an appointment so don't leave it that late. I have a feeling that my marriage permit says on it that it's only valid for 6 months, so you can't go to them mental early either. Maybe someone else could confirm that?

ABajaninCork

Vojera wrote: »

You have to give at least three months notice to the registrar, but it can take a while to get an appointment so don't leave it that late. I have a feeling that my marriage permit says on it that it's only valid for 6 months, so you can't go to them mental early either. Maybe someone else could confirm that?

This is true. I gave notice from the UK, so we did it via post in April. Happened to be in the country July, so got an appointment for then. I think the Registrar's office did say that the MRF is valid for six months only.

Cathmandooo

The 6 month thing is 6 months after your wedding date. As in if something happens that the wedding can't go ahead on your designated date you have 6 months to get married on that application or you'll have to go through the whole thing again

if you have your wedding date you can apply for the appointment any time more than 3 months in advance

Vojera

Cathmandooo wrote: »

The 6 month thing is 6 months after your wedding date. As in if something happens that the wedding can't go ahead on your designated date you have 6 months to get married on that application or you'll have to go through the whole thing again

if you have your wedding date you can apply for the appointment any time more than 3 months in advance

Ah, yes, you are correct! I My mistake It's on the General Registrar's website: http://www.groireland.ie/getting_married.htm

ShaShaBear

Hmm, guess I will have to ask the HSE about the stamp Something cheaper that I could be getting done now in preparation!

We're not planning on putting down the deposit just yet, we have to get it first :rolleyes: Hoping to book mid-summer for September of the next year, which should give us enough time to save. Obviously circumstances willing, I'm just trying to get my head around the procedure so I don't leave anything out - like a silly stamp on my birth certificate

Ever2010

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Hmm, guess I will have to ask the HSE about the stamp

You have to have the stamp - maybe it's something relatively new. I have an Irish passport (have lived here since I was a year old) but still had to get the stamp! We needed it when we went in to give our notification - we're getting married in July. All booked, so that's one thing off the list

ShaShaBear

Ever2010 wrote: »

You have to have the stamp - maybe it's something relatively new. I have an Irish passport (have lived here since I was a year old) but still had to get the stamp! We needed it when we went in to give our notification - we're getting married in July. All booked, so that's one thing off the list

Once the cert has this stamp, it's good indefinitely, right? Like if I got it stamped in the next few weeks, the stamp wouldn't have like a use-by date? And is there any other situation where by it might have received a stamp? I had to get mine reissued a while back, and I think it's stamped but from somewhere in Ireland?

lazygal

My now husband is an Irish citizen but wasn't born here. He has a birth cert from the country he was born in and both Irish and foreign passports. We brought all this when we registered intent to marry and never heard about an Apostille stamp being required. We got married and never had an issue with it. His sister married shortly before us, in the same situation as my husband, and she never needed it either. This was two years ago, I wonder what's changed since?

Vojera

According to the interwebs the need for an apostille stamp has been in force here since 1999, but there are tonnes of threads on wedding forums saying that x, y and z got married and never had to get the stamp. Maybe they were seeing a big increase in fraud and decided to enforce it?

Ever2010

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Once the cert has this stamp, it's good indefinitely, right? Like if I got it stamped in the next few weeks, the stamp wouldn't have like a use-by date? And is there any other situation where by it might have received a stamp? I had to get mine reissued a while back, and I think it's stamped but from somewhere in Ireland?

Yeah - it's just verifying that it's genuine - so you can use it for other things (I'm not sure what though ).

You'd be best to ring the HSE to ask - I'm sure they come across this all the time. Maybe that stamp you got is something that they'd accept. Might save you €50 as well!

When we gave notification he picked up my birthcert and looked for the stamp... so perhaps there were issues with fraud?

ShaShaBear

Ever2010 wrote: »

Yeah - it's just verifying that it's genuine - so you can use it for other things (I'm not sure what though ).

You'd be best to ring the HSE to ask - I'm sure they come across this all the time. Maybe that stamp you got is something that they'd accept. Might save you €50 as well!

When we gave notification he picked up my birthcert and looked for the stamp... so perhaps there were issues with fraud?

I don't mind getting it done really, but I'll hoke it out and see what stamp is on it - I might get away with it seeing as I assume if someone here stamped it, it was because they considered it satisfactory :rolleyes: