International Student Marrying a Visitor

[redstar15]

Hi,

I live in Waterloo, ON and I have a serious girlfriend from back home (from my home country, known her for two years). I went back home this past summer and we got engaged.

Now we want to get married.

I am pretty busy so we are planning to have her come up here and get married here.

My questions are:

• Can we get married considering I am international student and she will be a visitor when she comes to visit? If yes what’s the place to go to?

• She will only have one piece of identification (passport), since she is going to be a visitor when she comes here, and the website said you need two pieces of identification to get a marriage license. will that be enough?

• How much is the fee to get married?

• How long (roughly) will it take to get the license and get married (I am not talking about registering the marriage rather just the marriage itself)?

I truly appreciate your time!!!

THANK YOU

[SettlementOrgMod]

Hello,

Thank you for sharing your situation and question with us.

We can appreciate that you would be interested in this type of information.

Regarding your first question,

• Can we get married considering I am international student and she will be a visitor when she comes to visit? If yes what’s the place to go to?

To get married in Ontario, you do not have to be a Canadian citizen or live in Ontario.

You can find some detailed information in our Settlement.Org Who can get married in Ontario? article. .

Regarding your second question,

• She will only have one piece of identification (passport), since she is going to be a visitor when she comes here, and the website said you need two pieces of identification to get a marriage license. will that be enough?

In terms of the supporting documents that are acceptable you can find a list on the the City of Waterloo website in the Marriages section, under “Supporting Documents”. You may be able to find another option there.

Regarding your third question,

• How much is the fee to get married?

You mentioned that you are in Waterloo.

According to the City of Waterloo website in the Marriages section, he fee for a marriage licence is $149 and the fee for a civil marriage ceremony is $150. They accept cash or debit.
Regarding your fourth question,

• How long (roughly) will it take to get the license and get married (I am not talking about registering the marriage rather just the marriage itself)?

According to the City of Waterloo website in the Marriages section,

The form must be completed and signed by both parties, then submitted in person to the City Clerk’s office at City Hall, along with supporting identification and documents for both parties.

Both parties are encouraged to attend in person. If only one person can attend, they must have the proper documents for the absent party. The licence will be issued within 10 to 15 minutes if everything is in order.

In terms of the actual civil ceremony, to the City of Waterloo website states,

The City of Waterloo offers civil marriage ceremonies Monday to Friday, between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Appointments are highly encouraged and are booked online. Walk-ins welcome depending on availability.

I hope this information is helpful. Please let us know if you have further questions and if there is any follow up to your question/situation.

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Anna
Settlement.Org Content and Information/Referral Specialist, CIRS
Settlement.Org