If your marriage/partnership is to be performed abroad, it will be subject to the law of the country in question.

The Swiss representation is not in charge of civil status procedures with foreign authorities. For information on the conditions, documents required and formalities to be respected, please directly contact the civil status authorities of the place where you are planning to get married or partnered. Only these authorities can give you authoritative information.

In particular, please enquire as to whether a Swiss certificate of capacity to marry is required or whether an individual Swiss civil status certificate is sufficient, whether other Swiss civil status documents are required and whether the documents need to be legalised.

Since 1 January 2000, there is no longer a compulsory procedure for the publication of marriage announcements in Switzerland before the marriage can be celebrated by the competent civil status authority.

Marriage Ceremony in the U.S. (for non-resident Swiss Citizens)

In the United States, the state laws stipulate who is authorized to perform a marriage: judge, court clerk, justices of the peace, recognized members of the clergy (such as Priest, Minister, Rabbi, Imam, etc.). The required documents may vary from state to state. Therefore, please contact the responsible U.S. authority to inquire about the procedure and the required documents.

For Swiss citizens, the following documents are usually required: Swiss passport, multilingual birth certificate (obtainable at the place of birth) and the certificate of civil status (obtainable at the place of origin).

WARNING: the marriages celebrated via video conferencing in the State of Utah are NOT recognized by the Swiss civil status authorities. Swiss citizens and foreign citizens resident in Switzerland should therefore NOT make use of that option.