A civil partnership is a legally recognised partnership as an alternative to marriage.
Update November 2019: Regulations to extend civil partnerships for opposite-sex couples have now been approved by Parliament and were made on 5th November 2019. These regulations will come into force on 2nd December 2019 and opposite-sex civil partnership ceremonies will be able to take place from 31st December 2019.
Before you are able to form a civil partnership you must both Give Notice at least 29 days before your ceremony date. Opposite-sex couples will be able to Give Notice from the 2nd December 2019.
To book your civil partnership ceremony or notice appointment please call 029 2087 1680/4.
Forming a Civil Partnership
Unlike a marriage there are no prescribed words that you may say, instead the partnership is formed by each of you reading a legal declaration and signing the civil partnership schedule in the presence of a Registrar and two witnesses.
For a Civil Partnership, a couple must be:
- over 18 (or provide evidence of consent if aged 16 or 17)
- not related to each other
- not in an existing marriage or civil partnership.
To arrange a Civil Partnership in Cardiff:
- you need to give notice of your intention to register at the Register Office
- you will need to reserve a time slot for your ceremony. This can be up to two years in advance
- pay the statutory fee for giving notice of intention
After 29 days of giving notice you can register your partnership by signing a civil partnership schedule in front of the registrar and your two witnesses.
There is also a single fee for the formation of the civil partnership.
Find out about planning your ceremony.
You are welcome to celebrate in any way that you choose, from a simple signing of the schedule with a Registrar and two witnesses to a full ceremony with family and friends. You don’t need to have a ceremony to form a civil partnership, however, if you are booking the St David’s Room or one of our approved venues we offer choices of ceremony to help make the day really special.
Converting Civil Partnerships
You can convert your civil partnership into a marriage at the register office.
You’ll get a marriage certificate, dated when your civil partnership was formed.
Find out about costs to convert a civil partnership
What you need
You will need to sign a ‘conversion into marriage’ declaration. Make an appointment to do this with the superintendent registrar at the register office.
You will need your original civil partnership certificate and your ID.
Converting with a ceremony
You can choose to celebrate the conversion of your civil partnership to marriage by arranging a ceremony with us.
If you decide to book the St. David’s room, St. Dwynwen’s room or one of our many approved venues we offer a choice of ceremonies to complete your special day.