​Civil Marriage or Civil Partnership?  What's the difference?

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A civil marriage is a ceremony that takes place with 2 registrars present (one to conduct the ceremony and one to complete legal paperwork). It is a spoken contract witnessed by 2 people and has no religious content, the ceremony can take place in an approved premise or a register office but because of the spoken nature of the contract it is not possible to just come in and sign the paperwork. A civil marriage is called a wedding.   After the ceremony, you will be either a husband or wife and will go by the title of Mr or Mrs, whether you choose to have the same surname or not.

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A Civil Partnership is a written contract between 2 people, with 2 witnesses. You do not have to say anything at all if you do not wish to, you can just sign the paperwork or you can have a personalised ceremony. After a civil partnership formation, you will legally be known as Civil Partners. If you are a heterosexual couple and you change your mind about being in a civil partnership you CANNOT convert to a marriage. To end a civil partnership the process is the same as ending a marriage but instead of being called divorce it is called a dissolution.

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A civil marriage and a civil partnership have the same legal standing for couples in this country but Civil Partnerships are not recognised in many countries abroad so if you intend living outside of the UK in the future please do not presume you will have the same legal rights as a married couple and you should seek professional legal advice for further guidance.

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If you would like to convert your civil partnership to a marriage, please contact us here.​​​