Instructions for completing the application for registration as a marriage celebrant
You must not advertise your services or accept a notice of intended marriage or solemnise marriage ceremonies until you have been notified by the Registrar of Marriage Celebrants that you have been registered as a marriage celebrant.
How to apply
The department recommends that you complete the online version of the application by creating an account on the Marriage Celebrants Portal, available on the department’s website. If you are unable to complete your application online, email us at marriagecelebrantssection@ag.gov.au.
General comments
These instructions are for persons wishing to apply to the Registrar of Marriage Celebrants for registration as a marriage celebrant under Part IV, Division 1, Subdivision C of the Marriage Act 1961 (Cth) (the Act).
An application will not be accepted if you do not have the required qualification or skills. See the 'Qualification or skills' section below for more details.
The Application for Registration as a Marriage Celebrant form (application form) is used by the Registrar to assess whether you are entitled to be registered as a marriage celebrant under section 39C of the Marriage Act. Completing the qualification and paying for your application does not automatically entitle you to registration as a marriage celebrant.
Fees and charges
All fees and charges are non-refundable.
You must pay an application fee when you submit your application, unless you have applied for and received an exemption. An application is recorded as submitted on the date the application fee has been cleared by the department.
If your application is successful, you will need to pay the annual registration charge (or part thereof, depending on the timing of your registration). In limited circumstances, an exemption from the fees and charges may be granted.
Note: Applicants seeking an exemption from the application fee must first receive a granted exemption before submitting their application (Section 39D(1A) of the Act).
Assessing your application
You should be contactable at all times during the assessment process to ensure your application is processed as quickly as possible. Your application will not progress if it is missing any necessary material or information and you are not contactable. If you do not provide additional relevant information upon request, your application may be refused.
Section 39D(2) of the Marriage Act requires the Registrar to deal with applications in the order they are received. The department cannot fast track an application under any circumstances. Further, we cannot provide advice on the progress of individual applications. Once you have lodged your application, please wait for an officer to contact you.
A decision on your application must be made within six months of it being received. The time taken to assess an application depends on whether a complete application has been received and the total number of applications on hand. If further information is requested to assess your application you must provide the additional information by the requested date or your application will be considered incomplete and may be refused. The application fee will not be refunded to you.
If a decision has not been made within the six month period of a completed application being received a person can apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) for a review of the decision, see section 39J of the Marriage Act.
Outcome of the assessment of your application
You will be notified of the outcome of the Registrar’s decision on the assessment of your application by email. If the Registrar determines not to register you as a marriage celebrant you will be informed of the reasons for this decision (section 39D(7) of the Marriage Act).
If your application is unsuccessful, you are entitled to seek a review of the Registrar’s decision from the Administrative Review Tribunal (section 39J(1) of the Marriage Act). Information about the ART and its processes is available on the ART website.
Instructions on how to complete specific items in the Application for Registration as a Marriage Celebrant form
Date of birth
One of the criteria required for registration as a marriage celebrant is that the applicant is 18 years or over (section 39C(1)(a) of the Marriage Act). The department will use the date of birth evidence you provide in the Application and Informed Consent Form for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check to confirm your date of birth.
Email address
Please ensure your application includes a current email address on which you can be contacted. All correspondence from the department will be sent to this email address and it is your responsibility to monitor your email address.
Residential address
The department will use the evidence you provide in the Application and Informed Consent Form for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check to confirm your residential address.
Personal safety/security concerns
Under section 43(1A) of the Marriage Regulations 2017, certain details are not required to be entered in the public register if the Registrar considers it appropriate to not do so. List any personal or safety concerns here for consideration by the Registrar. Personal or private information should be excluded.
If you are currently authorised to solemnise marriages because you are a minister of religion of a recognised denomination or a state or territory officer, you are not eligible to become a Commonwealth registered marriage celebrant.
If you have previously been authorised to conduct marriage ceremonies in Australia you must provide your previous registration number and the circumstances under which you ceased to be authorised or registered.
This part of the form asks whether you are applying to perform civil or religious ceremonies. If you propose to conduct marriage ceremonies for an independent religious body or religious organisation, you will need to provide the following:
- the religious body or religious organisation’s written confirmation that you are permitted to conduct religious ceremonies on its behalf
- your undertaking that you will use the religious body or religious organisation’s marriage ceremony
The register of marriage celebrants lists the name, contact details and address of each Commonwealth registered marriage celebrant. It is published on the department’s website at the page List of Commonwealth Registered Celebrants and is available to the public.
Under section 43 of the Marriage Regulations 2017 you are required to provide the following information for publication on the register:
- title and full name
- suburb/town/locality and state/territory
- postcode.
This section of the form also asks you whether you agree to the publication of other optional personal information, such as the first and second lines of your street address, email address or phone number.
You cannot be registered as a marriage celebrant unless you have a Certificate IV in Celebrancy or a celebrancy qualification (however described) from a university or all the skills mentioned in section 39(4) of the Marriage Regulations 2017.
Qualification – Certificate IV in Celebrancy or an equivalent university qualification
You will need to provide a copy of your qualification (certificate and transcript). The certificate issued by the Registered Training Organisation for completion of the Certificate IV in Celebrancy must contain the following requirements:
- confirm that all units of competency mandatory for registration as a marriage celebrant have been successfully completed
- confirm that all required training materials were included in the delivery of the mandatory marriage celebrancy units, and
- include the following statement: ‘Units completed for this qualification meet the requirements of the Registrar of Marriage Celebrants, as set out in section 39 of the Marriage Regulations 2017’ (or words to this effect), or include a transcript of units completed as part of the qualification (including titles and national codes for each unit).
For further information on the Certificate IV in Celebrancy requirement see the Certificate IV in Celebrancy – Registrar’s requirements for marriage celebrancy units on the Become a marriage celebrant page.
Skills
This section should only be completed by those who are submitting their application on the basis of skills in an Australian Indigenous language and who wish to be appointed as a marriage celebrant to serve Indigenous communities.
For more information on the skills required to satisfy the ‘Skills’ criteria, please email the department at marriagecelebrantssection@ag.gov.au.
If your application relies upon the ‘Skills’ in an Australian Indigenous language, you do not need to complete the ‘Qualification’ section.
In determining whether you are a fit and proper person to become a marriage celebrant, the Registrar must take into account whether you have a conviction for an offence, punishable by imprisonment for one year or longer under a Commonwealth, state or territory law (see section 39C(2)(d) of the Marriage Act).
Unless the spent convictions process applies, this means that if you were ever convicted of an offence carrying a possible prison sentence of one year or longer, you must answer yes to this question, even if you were not imprisoned.
The Disclosable Outcomes Guidelines are available on the Become a marriage celebrant page. The guidelines assist in providing transparency to potential applicants to make an informed decision in respect of their own criminal history record and the possible impact it may have on their application.
As part of your application, you must also complete an Application and Informed Consent Form for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check. The form includes instructions to assist you to complete it, including a list of acceptable documents. Once completed, you will need to attach that form to your application form along with the required documents.
Please ensure all documents are current. Expiration of your documents during the application process may result in delays.
You need to provide two independent referee reports to support your claims in the application form. The referee reports should comply with the following requirements:
- they are originally signed and dated (typed initials/signatures will not be accepted)
- contain contact details for your referees, including a day time phone number
- are not simply a generic or character reference, and
- are not simply copies of each other signed by different people
- the content of the referee reports must accurately and honestly reflect the opinions of the individuals providing them.
Choosing your referees
In choosing your referees, please consider the following important factors:
- each referee must have known you for at least two years
- your referees should not be members of your family (including your spouse and including those who are related to you by marriage/de facto relationship)
- you should not ask a couple to make a joint referee report, and
- your referees should be willing to be contacted by phone to discuss the report they have provided.
- your referees must complete the report independently
Guidance for your referees in completing their reports
It is your responsibility to ensure that each of your referees addresses the following topics:
- The length and nature of the referee’s relationship with you.
- Your commitment to the central importance of the institution of marriage in society.
- Your knowledge of the availability of relationship support services in your region.
- Your commitment to advising all prospective couples about these relationship support services in your region.
- Your standing in the community (including your involvement in the community through professional or volunteer activities).
- Your personal integrity and ethical standards (responses should provide examples of how you demonstrate these standards.
- Your referee’s knowledge of any other qualities or attributes that would support your application for registration as a marriage celebrant.
It may be necessary for you to discuss one or more of these topics with your proposed referees to ensure they are sufficiently aware of your knowledge or commitment in each area. Your referees should complete their reports using the department’s Referee Report Template.
Provide a copy of your most recent CV/resume.
Conflict of interest and benefit to business
Prior to completing this section of the form, you must read the Guidelines on conflict of interest and benefit to business for Commonwealth-registered marriage celebrants.
In determining whether you are a fit and proper person to become a marriage celebrant, the Registrar must take into account whether you have an actual or potential conflict of interest between your proposed practice as a marriage celebrant and your business interests or other interests (section 39C(2)(e) of the Marriage Act). The Registrar must also take into account whether your registration as a marriage celebrant would be likely to result in you gaining a benefit in respect of another business that you own, control or carry out (section 39C(2)(f) of the Marriage Act).
Actual or potential conflict of interest issues may arise in relation to your:
- business interests
- community work
- hobbies, or
- recreation activities
The most important factor to consider is the effect your business or other interests would have on your capacity to fulfil your duties and functions as a marriage celebrant. These include:
- conducting your practice as a marriage celebrant professionally and providing a high standard of service
- advising couples of the availability of relationship support services and informing couples of the range of information and services available to them
- recognising the social, cultural and legal significance of marriage and family relationships in the Australian community, and
- providing couples with information and guidance to choose a marriage ceremony that will meet their needs and expectations
Examples of situations that may give rise to a possible conflict of interest or benefit to a business may result from an applicant who:
- is a migration agent, or
- who is employed/contracted by a business that offers wedding ceremonies (i.e. an in-house celebrant for a hotel or other venue)
Note: Whether a conflict or benefit is listed under ‘generally acceptable’ does not change the requirement for applicants to declare such interests.
It is important that you have a good understanding of the law relating to the solemnisation of marriages by marriage celebrants. The department’s website provides useful resources to assist marriage celebrants to carry out their role, including fact sheets and different mock versions of completed Notices of Intended Marriage. Please visit the Resources for marriage celebrants webpage on the department’s website to access this information and check back regularly for updates.