How to get married in Hong Kong

Nikki Chui, solicitor and appointed Civil Celebrant of Marriages. Updated September 2026.

This page is for anyone planning to marry in Hong Kong, resident or not. The rules are the same either way. What catches most couples out is not a document, it is timing: file the notice too early or too late against your wedding date and you file again from scratch. The sections below cover the notice, the venue choice, the cost and the documents, in that order.

What are the legal requirements to marry in Hong Kong?

Two requirements: both parties must be at least 16, and neither residency nor nationality matters.

Hong Kong marriages are governed by the Marriage Ordinance, Cap. 181. The minimum age is 16, using the Gregorian calendar. If either party is under 21, the marriage needs written consent from the person named in Schedule 3 to the Ordinance. Beyond that, there are no residency requirements, and the marrying parties may hold any nationality.

How does the notice of intended marriage work?

One of you gives a Notice of Intended Marriage to the Registrar, on Form MR1(S), either directly at a marriage registry or through a civil celebrant. The Registrar then exhibits it for at least 15 clear days before you can marry.

Fifteen clear days is a floor, not a target. Four to six weeks before your date is the comfortable range, because it leaves room to fix a document or resubmit a form without losing your booking. The notice costs HK$305, paid once, whichever route you choose. You do not fill in an application form at the counter, but you do need a Hong Kong identity card or valid travel document, plus your full name, marital condition, occupation, age, residential address and parents' names ready, since the Registrar prints these onto the notice.

The window that matters most: the ceremony has to happen within 3 months of the date you gave notice, not the date the certificate was issued. Miss it and the notice is void. You start again, with a new notice and a new HK$305.

Where can the marriage ceremony take place?

Three options: a Marriage Registry with a Registrar, a licensed place of worship with a competent minister, or anywhere else in Hong Kong with a civil celebrant.

A Marriage Registry ceremony is held in one of the Immigration Department's own halls, on the Registry's own schedule. It costs HK$715 on a weekday or Saturday morning, or HK$1,935 on a Saturday afternoon or Sunday. A licensed place of worship ceremony follows the rites of that church, denomination or body, with open doors, between 7am and 7pm. A civil celebrant ceremony can happen at any hour, at any place in Hong Kong other than the Registrar's own office and a licensed place of worship, which is why a celebrant is the only route to a hotel ballroom, a garden or a rooftop.

All three produce the same legal marriage. The Marriage Ordinance does not rank them. What changes is where, when, and how the ceremony is run. See how I structure a ceremony on the process page.

What does it cost to get married in Hong Kong?

Two separate bills: the government's HK$305 notice fee, and a ceremony fee that depends on where you marry.

• HK$305, the notice fee, paid once, to the government, whichever of the three routes you choose.
• HK$715, a Marriage Registry ceremony on a weekday or Saturday morning.
• HK$1,935, a Marriage Registry ceremony on a Saturday afternoon or Sunday.
• A civil celebrant's own fee, agreed privately. The law does not fix it. I charge HK$6,800 all inclusive: the ceremony, filing the notice with you, and the certificate issued on the day.

Never add these into one blended total. The HK$305 is a government fee. A celebrant's fee is a private arrangement between you and them. IMMD says so directly: "the law makes no provision regarding the fee charged by a civil celebrant." The full cost breakdown, including what "all inclusive" covers, has its own guide.

What documents do I need to bring?

Everyone needs a Hong Kong identity card or valid travel document. Beyond that, what you need depends on whether either of you is under 21, divorced, or widowed.

• Under 21: written consent from the person named in Schedule 3 to the Marriage Ordinance, on Form MR4.
• Divorced: proof the earlier marriage was dissolved by a court, and a sealed certified copy of the final decree before the ceremony.
• Widowed: proof of the earlier marriage and a death certificate for the former spouse.
• Anything not in English or Chinese: a certified translation.

A dedicated documents guide walks through each of these situations in full, including what changes if one of you is marrying from overseas.

What happens on the wedding day itself?

You sign a declaration, make your statements before the celebrant or Registrar, and sign the certificate alongside two witnesses aged 18 or older.

Bring your Hong Kong identity card or travel document and the Certificate of Registrar of Marriages. Two witnesses aged 18 or above need to attend and sign. If a party does not read English or Chinese, an interpreter attends, interprets the declaration, and signs it as interpreter. The certificate is signed in duplicate: one copy goes to you immediately, the other is filed by the Registrar.

Is a civil celebrant marriage legally valid?

Yes. A marriage held by an appointed Civil Celebrant of Marriages is registered under the Marriage Ordinance and has the same legal standing as one held at a Marriage Registry.

Only practising solicitors and notaries public who meet the Immigration Department's eligibility criteria are appointed. You can check any celebrant's appointment against the Registrar's own published list, and check their standing as a solicitor against the Law Society of Hong Kong's member directory. I'm the celebrant behind this site, and my own credentials are on the homepage for the same reason: a reader should not have to take my word for it.

Frequently asked questions