Marriage in Mexico

Marriage in Mexico is locally (State) regulated. However, marriage requirements prevailing in the thirty-one States of Mexico are in general very similar to those of the Federal District (Mexico City):

1.           Submit to the appropriate Oficina del Registro Civil (Civil Registry) valid passports, proper visae issued by a Mexican Consulate (these must be requested with at least 4 weeks in advance, as it is a lengthy procedure to obtain the respective authorization from the Instituto Nacional de Migración); filled out applications; statements opting for either joint or separate marital property; a copy of birth certificates authenticated and translated into Spanish, plus a pre-marital health certificates from a physician in Mexico.

2.            All documents from abroad, except for the valid passports, must be authenticated by the authority in the country where they were issued or be duly apostilled.

3.            In Mexico religious marriage does not replace in any way civil marriage. Therefore, a religious ceremony can be organized by the bride and groom after civil marriage has been performed.

4.            The marriages procedure can be followed at the premises of the Registro Civil without any charge. However, if performed somewhere else, a fee determined by the local Civil Registry must be paid.

5.             Persons previously married must present proof of the termination of that marriage in the form of a divorce decree or a death certificate. If the divorce or death took place outside Mexico, it must be authenticated and translated as stated above. Divorcees can marry in Mexico one year after the termination of their previous marriage.

6.            Persons under the age of eighteen cannot be married without the consent of both their parents or legal guardian. If the parents or guardian cannot be present at the marriage, they must grant a power of attorney to another individual to exercise the parental consent at the ceremony. This power of attorney must be authenticated and translated in accordance with the instructions given in paragraph 1. Under no circumstances can males under the age of sixteen, or females under the age of fourteen, be married in Mexico.

7.              A certified copy of the marriage certificate (Acta de Matrimonio) prepared by the “Registro Civil” should be obtained from that office after the marriage has been performed. It is desirable to have the document authenticated and apostilled by the corresponding Mexican authority to make it valid abroad.

The Mexico City Civil Registry is located at:

Dirección General del Registro Civil

Arcos de Belén  s/n esquina Doctor Andrade

06720 México, D. F.

Tel. (011-52-55) 5709-6105/ 5709-1290

on the web at http://www.df.gob.mx/tramites/consultaFichaTyS2003.html?id_t_s=148&tipo=T