Step by step guide for marriage in Hong Kong

Got married in Hong Kong recently. Superb place and highly recommended for any wedding couples. Any nationalities can marry in Hong Kong, but in our case the Bridegroom = British, & Bride = Taiwanese.

First a few potential FAQ’s, followed by a step by step guide on how to get married in The Kong. My info is all a bit jumbled ~ but you’ll get the idea…

Why get married in HK?
Because it’s a memorable place to tie the knot, Brits don’t need a Certificate of No Impediment (which you do in Taiwan) and because there is no confusion as to whether a HK marriage is recognized in the eyes of the UK government (something of debate when a Brit gets married in Taiwan).

[u]How soon could I get married in HK?
[/u]
If you started the paperwork today you feasibly be married (if very organized) 3 to 4 weeks later - providing they have a marriage ceremony slot available for you.

[u]How long will I be in HK?
[/u]
There is paperwork to complete before you get to HK, but in terms of time in HK itself: you have to appear at the HK Immigration Office 2 days (minimum) before your date of marriage. After your wedding ceremony you will have to go to the Taiwan Representative Office to authenticate your marriage certificate. You get it back one work day later. The quickest trip in and out of HK would be 4 working days (including flights). For example:

Monday: Morning = Fly to HK. Afternoon = Appear at the HK Immigration Office (located in Central HK).

Tuesday: Free Day.

Wednesday: Morning = Marriage ceremony. Afternoon = Take your marriage certificate to be authenticated at the Taiwan Representative Office (get there before 2pm). You get it back the next working day.

Thursday: Morning = Free. Afternoon = Collect your authenticated marriage certificate from the Taiwan Rep Office (between 4pm – 5pm). Fly home later that evening.

Note: Check there are no National holidays while you are in HK. If there are you will need to account for the lost working day.

The best day to get married
At the time of writing, a weekday marriage costs HK$715 (NT$2,982) and a weekend marriage costs HK$1,935 (NT$8,072)

If you get married on a Wednesday or Thursday you shouldn’t need to stay in Hong Kong over the weekend (this factors in the time needed at the Taiwan Rep Office after the wedding).

A weekday trip makes for a cheaper stay as hotels are typically more expensive at weekends.

Choosing the date of marriage
They will tell you your timeframe after they have received and processed your application to be married. Your options of marriage date will be 15 days after they have processed you application and within 3 months. Within that timeframe you can request 3 preferences or marriage date and time.

When choosing a date, remember that some dates are considered lucky or unlucky. The luckiest dates will likely be fully booked a few months ahead of time.

Choosing the time of Marriage
If you get a morning marriage ceremony you will have enough time to get over to the Taiwan Representative Office to start the authentication of your marriage certificate the same day. This is important if you are on a tight timeline.

Choosing the location of marriage
You have a several choices within HK: immd.gov.hk/ehtml/address_6.htm We were advised to go with ‘Cotton Tree Drive’ and we had no regrets. It’s very central within HK and is said to be the nicest setting. It’s within Hong Kong gardens and it’s great for a few photos and post marriage pint (or two). The marriage registry building itself was low key – but the surroundings more than made up for it. It’s also only a 10 minute walk to the Taiwan Rep Office.

What happens at the marriage ceremony?
On your wedding day you need to arrive at least 15 minutes before your ceremony. You and your 2 witnesses need to complete some simple paperwork (‘I am who I say I am and here is my passport’ type of stuff) and pay the wedding fee (see above). You can have as many people attend the ceremony as you like – but you must have 2 witnesses.

You are called into a room and a clerk tells you that is going to happen.

The official walks into the room and gives a 2 minute speech about the laws governing marriage.

You exchange rings (optional).

Each of you then reads a statement/oath from a card. You can choose English or Mandarin Chinese. Each of you can choose your preferred language (they don’t have to be the same).

They then announce you are married.

The official leaves the room and returns 1 min later with 2 copies of the marriage certificate. You and your witnesses sign both copies. The certificate (x2) is written in both English and Chinese (bilingual). You get to keep one copy and the registry keeps the other.

The whole ‘ceremony’ takes no longer than 10 minutes. At no point in the ceremony were we asked to say anything other than the oath and there was no mention of any vows. I guess you could ask in advance if you have any special requests.

How much does the HK trip cost?
Costs are approximate (exchange rate at the time of writing, Oct 2009)

  1. Notarization of form in Taiwan: NT$400
  2. TPE – HKK Return and four nights in a 4 star and fairly centrally located hotel (HK Island) = NT$13,000 (each). Prices vary depending on booking ahead, days of travel and whether the hotels are busy with HK trade shows.
  3. iPermit for HK (Taiwan citizen only) NT$800
  4. HK Marriage Immigration Office fee: HK$305 (NT$1,272)
  5. HK Marriage Registry Fee: Weekday HK$715 (NT$2,982) or Weekend HK$1,935 (NT$8,072)
  6. Wedding Rings: Optional. We used an excellent Taipei based jeweler if want to send me a PM. Good English and makes all rings to order (with certificates, etc). Solid prices and a very well trusted person within the Chinese and Expat community.
  7. HK Shopping: Whatever you can afford.
  8. HK meals & General Fun: HK is expensive in comparison to Taiwan. But then you ARE in Hong Kong. Perhaps x2 or 3 the cost of living in Taiwan if you are living the ‘soup noodle’ life and x4 or 5 if you are living the ‘lobster & champagne’ life.

Step by step guide for getting married in HK.

  1. Shoot an e-mail to Hong Kong Immigration Office asking for information on getting married in HK immd.gov.hk/ehtml/mr.htm

  2. Their instructions are clear but incomplete….so follow this advice:

  3. Complete the form: ‘Notice of Intended Marriage’. Take it to your nearest local Notary Public in Taiwan. You need to sign the form in the presence the Notary.

Note: You are not asking the Notary to notarize the information on the form is accurate. You are only asking them to witness your signature/s. The Notary will stamp the form with a Notary seal. The cost of notarization varies from office to office, but we paid NT$400.

  1. Complete the form: ’Marriage Registration and Records Office – Information required for Registration of marriage in Hong Kong ’. They didn’t send me this form to me the first time round and I got an e-mail asking why I didn’t complete it. You can download it at the above link or ask them for it.

  2. Make copies of your passports (identity page only).

  3. Go to your local Taiwan bank and get a cheque written out for HK$305, made payable to ‘The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’.

  4. Make sure you have 2 witnesses that can join you on your wedding day. They must be over 18 years old and have their passport or HK identity card (if they reside in HK) with them on the wedding day.

  5. Write a cover letter with your telephone number, e-mail address, preferred marriage location, preferred marriage date/s and time.

  6. Make copies of everything for your personal record. Then send the above by registered mail to:

Births & Deaths General Register Office/Marriage Registration & Records Office,
3/F, Low Block,
Queensway Government Office
66 Queensway
Hong Kong

  1. They will send you an e-mail confirmation when they receive it. Then, two or so weeks later they will send you a congratulatory e-mail with your confirmed location, date and time of marriage. Reply with a confirmation.

  2. Book your flight and hotel. Package deals are the cheapest.

  3. Taiwan citizens need an ‘iPermit’ visa for Hong Kong. Your travel agent can arrange this for you (copy of passport and NT$800 or thereabouts). Brits don’t need a visa for Hong Kong.

  4. Arrive in Hong Kong and appear at the HK immigration Office 2 (or more) days before your marriage cermony. The office closes at 16.45pm. Your witnesses do not need attend. Take your passports, iPermit (if Taiwanese) and a copies any correspondence you’ve had with the HK Immigration Office. One of you (you choose) will be asked to raise your hand and read an affidavit from a card. It states you know of no reason why you can’t be married. They then give you an offical letter stating you are cleared and ready for marriage. Take this letter with you when you go to your marriage cermony.

  5. Attend your marriage ceremony! Take your letter (see above), passports, wedding fee (HK cash is fine) and make sure your 2 witnesses have their passports or HK ID with them. You will get your marriage certificate at the ceremony.

Note: Everyone told me the problem with HK marriages is that you can’t get a replacement marriage certificate if you lose the original. In fact, you can. You can request an additional/official copy of your marriage certificate at any time. It takes 9 working days and costs HKK$260 if you order it in your wedding day (should you want to order a second copy). It costs more if they have to run a search after your wedding date.

  1. After getting married, head over to the Taiwan Representative Office with your marriage certificate and passports. It’s located 10 mins walk from Cotton Tree Registry. You need to get there before 2pm if you want everything back the following day.

Chung Hwa Travel Agency,
40F, Tower One,
Lippo Centre,
89 Queensway.
Hong Kong

Before going in to the Taiwan Rep Office, you need to stop by the ‘Copy Center’ in the basement of the Lippo Center. From memory, make 2 x copy of:

a. Your ‘hot off the press’ wedding certificate
b. Your passports (identity page only)
c. Your iPermit (if Taiwanese)
d. The passport page showing the immigration stamp you received when you landed in HK (unless Taiwanese)

At the Taiwan Rep Office you will complete the authentication forms. You will need to decide on your Chinese name if you don’t have one already. You don’t need a chop as they ask for the written version. Providing you submit the authentication paperwork before 2pm you can then collect it the following afternoon. I recall the authentication costing somewhere around HK$250

Note – They should ask you, but be sure to tell them to authenticate the photocopy of your marriage certificate. This is fine for use in Taiwan. If not, they may authenticate (stamp) your original marriage certificate.

  1. Return to the Taiwan Rep Office the following day (between 4 – 5pm) to collect your authenticated photocopy of your marriage certificate. Your Hong Kong marriage paperwork is now complete.

  2. Back in Taiwan, you need to register your marriage within 1 month. This may require a visit to the MOFA (not always necessary apparently) but certainly a visit to the county office where your wife/husband is registered. After that, you can apply for a Taiwan marriage visa. This process is a whole new thread and has been well documented elsewhere on Forumosa.

I hope this helps :slight_smile:

Full credit to Taffy who guided us through the HK marriage process. Many thanks Taffy.

Finally, Mr.& Mrs. BlackAdder wish you all the best!

My British daughter and her fiancee are looking for a more exotic destination for their wedding and I found the post veryinteresting with much useful information. I’ve pasted it and emailed off to her. The only negative I see if that it will likely be cost-prohibitive for guests to attend the ceremony if it is in Hong Kong. Unless the bride and groom are paying…not sure what is customary…I think everyone (guests) normally pay their own travel expense.

Nice, informative post. Well done. Most importantly, congratulations to you and Mrs. Adder. :bravo:

Happy to hear the info was of help. Let me know if you need any further details. I think the custom is for guests to make their own way but the good news is that most people are more than happy to have an excuse to have a party HK! Also a good way to ensure only the nearest and dearest are there; HK is a great place for a small group of friends. A superb place for tying the knot (sights, food, energy, things to do, places to visit), if only for a few days when on a budget.

[quote=“Northcoast Surfer”]Nice, informative post. Well done. Most importantly, congratulations to you and Mrs. Adder. :bravo:

[/quote]
Thanks Northcoast :slight_smile: How did you find my perfect teddy lookalike?

Does anybody know the address of a Public Notary Office in Taipei? Or what Public Notary Office is in Chinese?

Thanks for the info, BlackAdder, it’s been our Bible in getting the application forms sorted this week to send of to HK! :bravo:

Just a quick question: while UK people do not need a Certificate of No Impediment to get married in HK, is it right that Taiwanese people also do not need one? I really don’t think that we do, but it’s the only piece of information that we seem to be missing.

Oh, and we haven’t got any HK ID/iPermit information to fill in on the forms, as we haven’t got those yet. Surely that won’t matter…? :ohreally:

Oh, it seems I can answer my own question. From the email with the attached documents they sent me:

I followed these directions in 2011 and they were perfect. Now happily married and living in the south :slight_smile: I just want to add one thing: If you want to make photocopies you can do them in the trade office. There’s no need to go to the copy shop in the basement.
Many thanks!!

I followed these directions only last week and they were absolutely spot on, the authentication cost us 120 Hong Kong dollars.

I currently don’t have an ARC.

Im plan to marry in Hong Kong.

What visa would I be on once I am back have registered the marriage in Taiwan?

And if I would still be on my Visitor Visa, how long would I have to get the marriage visa?

And is the marriage visa called the JFRV?

Thanks guys

Joe

Just got back from a fantastic trip to Hong Kong, and I followed this excellent guide without a hitch (if you’ll pardon the pun). I chose to get married in Hong Kong due to Taiwan’s silly requirement for a Certificate of No Impediment - as a UK citizen I was told I needed to return to the UK and stay for a month before my local registry office could issue a certificate that basically says “we don’t know if he’s married or not”…

Anyway, Hong Kong was superb and I have no regrets about going. I do have some points to add for others considering heading over there for their weddings.

Documents for Divorcees
I was previously married to a Taiwanese citizen and so I needed to furnish evidence that my divorce was final and legal. The documentation is not clear as to when you need to provide copies of your divorce certificate and statutory declaration. I made additional copies to take with me to the ceremony but they weren’t necessary.

To clarify then, the applicant need only submit these documents when sending the Notice of Intended Marriage to Hong Kong. The extra documents I sent were:
Taiwanese Certificate of Divorce (certified copy)
Statutory Declaration of divorcee (notarized)
Copy of old passport and APRC (to prove residency in Taiwan at time of divorce from Taiwanese citizen)

That’s in addition to the usual:
Notice of Intended Marriage (notarized)
Information required for Registration of Marriage in Hong Kong (one page)
Information required for Registration of Marriage in Hong Kong (four pages)
Copy of current passports for both parties (ID pages)

When I visited the immigration office two days prior to the wedding I even got the Statutory Declaration back. So don’t waste money making a second one like I did!

Weekend Weddings
Saturday morning is not considered a weekend in terms of fees, which was a pleasant surprise for me. Note however, that Cotton Tree Drive (great location by the way!) is not open on Saturday afternoons or Sundays anyway. The price was the same as on a weekday: HKD715.

At the Taiwanese Representative Office
Exit B at Admiralty (also probably the easiest place to catch the bus to Ocean Centre)
Standard processing time is now TWO working days for HKD120 - it changed on September 1st (taiwaninfo.org/news103.htm). If you want your documents back the next day you must pay an extra HKD60. Don’t be late - you’ll be in the same line as the folks applying for visas to Taiwan, and you need to submit your document in the morning for next day service. My advice is to get in there before all the visa run folks arrive from their morning flights. And even though the website says you can pick up before 5pm, both my wife and I remember being told that we had to get the document between 4 and 4:45 the next day, so be warned!

Good news is that they have a photocopier (as Baoneer noted previously). Copies cost a dollar (HKD) a page and you can pay at the counter when you submit your docs - you don’t need change for the machine! Documents needed were one each of both our passports, my ARC (possibly not necessary, I had an extra one and just handed it in) and two copies of the marriage certificate. They gave me back the original at the time of submission and authenticated the copy, just as BlackAdder suggested.

Hi Guys,

This info looks great, thanks.

I do have a quick question I’d like the answer for before really getting into this…

Myself and my Taiwanese girlfriend wish to keep this to ourselves (in the meantime). Can anyone foresee a reason why her parents would have to know about this?

Thanks in advance.

Your girlfriend needs to provide the names of her parents, both in Chinese and with the spellings used on their passports. I’m not sure what would happen if you didn’t get it right, but we ended up making a call from the immigration office in Hong Kong to check the spellings.

Thanks Spaint.

The girlfriend did some re-search and came across some info which basically stated that we need the “household registration transcript” and that we would have to register our marriage on this? Does this ring any bells with anyone who’s been through the process? Her family has this and questions would be asked if she needed it.

Thanks in advance

I didn’t think of it when you asked your initial question, but registering the marriage in Taiwan is a critical step if you want to have a visa through marriage. There is some kind of 30-day validity period after having your marriage certificate authenticated by the TECO in Hong Kong within which you must register your marriage at your wife’s local household registration office. Best case scenario for not registering within 30 days is perhaps merely a fine, worst case scenario would be that your marriage is not legally recognized at all (by which I mean for purposes of inheritance, medical power of attorney, etc.)

To register your marriage you need your passport, her ID card, she needs two photos, and as you noted, you need the hukou mingbu 戶口名簿. This is a document kept by the head of the household and yeah, like you said it’ll raise questions if your girlfriend takes it. Your name being added to the thing will probably also raise questions.

Is your girlfriend estranged from her family? If she is, she should get her name off their hukou.

If you are already married in Taiwan can you get married in HK?

To be clear: My wife and I got married in Taiwan but we want a marriage which is recognised in the UK, which is why we want to get married in HK. If you already are married in Taiwan can you get married in HK to the same person?

Thanks!

I guess no one knows the answer to your question (can you get married to the same person again in a different jurisdiction?), so I’m going to turn the question back at you:

Why do you want a marriage that is “recognized” in the UK?

Is it for immigration purposes? If so, I am 99.9% sure that the Taiwanese marriage is fine for this. A Taiwanese marriage is recognized in the UK inasmuch as you will be recognized as a person who is legally married and your wife is recognized as your spouse.

Is it so you can “register” your marriage in the UK even though you don’t live there? (I don’t personally see the benefit of this - what’s it for?) Then in that case no, a Taiwanese marriage is useless because (for reasons that utterly evade comprehension) you can’t register them in the UK.

Hey all. My girlfriend and I have arranged to get married in Hong Kong in August. I have a couple of questions:

  1. What exactly is the content of the cards you read from during the ceremony? Is this similar to the vows that you repeat back to a registrar in a UK marriage?

  2. Is it normal to do the ceremony in wedding clothes (suit and a wedding dress)? We’re not having a reception, so this would basically be the only time to wear them…

Cheers!

The cards don’t have much on them. It’s just like three lines and basically says that you swear you are not married to anyone else and that you are marrying so-so of your own accord.

As for dress, I wore a nice sundress and he did slacks and a dress shirt. Nothing too fancy. Other people that were there were in full wedding dress and tux, so pretty much anything goes.

Ok thanks a lot :slight_smile: We didn’t want to turn up and look a pair of fools, the only ones dressed up. I guess most people go straight from there to their reception anyway, so it’s normal to wear the dress etc.

Do you know anywhere nice nearby to take photos afterwards? A park or anything like that?