Registration services - Terms and conditions
Ceremony bookings
You may make bookings up to three years before the ceremony date, but please note that these terms and conditions are subject to change and the current version is available on the fees page of our website.
Your ceremony booking is accepted subject to the following Terms and Conditions:-
1. Conditions prior to booking
1.1. The non-refundable Save the Date fee paid will reserve any time and date for 14 days
1.2. All information provided during the booking process is accurate and true.
2. Provisional booking and ceremony deposit
2.1. The provisional date and time and date of the ceremony will be deemed confirmed three working days after booking. If the date or time is no longer available or requires amendment you will be contacted within three working days to arrange a further mutually agreeable date.
2.2. A deposit is required to be paid within 14 days of the date your booking is made. If the deposit is not paid within 14 days, unless we have been notified and agreed to an extension to the save the date period, the booking will automatically be removed from the diary.
2.3. Once you have paid your deposit, you will have 14 days during which you may cancel your booking (without giving any reason) or (subject to availability) you may change the date, time and venue of your booking by paying a further save the date fee. If you cancel on or within the 14 days you will receive a full refund of the deposit paid. The cancellation period will expire once the 14 days has expired. Cancellations after this date are explained in clause 5.
2.4. After the 14 days referred to in clause 2.3 above any changes to the ceremony date, time or venue will incur a reschedule fee as set out in clause 4. Pembrokeshire County Council will try to accommodate any required changes provided reasonable notice is given and staff are available to attend.
2.5. Any provisional booking is held subject to the required formal statutory Notice being given of the marriage or civil partnership no more than 12 months nor less than 28 clear days before the ceremony date. The giving of the Notice is a legal statement to the Superintendent Registrar of the district where you reside confirming your personal details and declaring that you are free to marry or form a civil partnership. This must be done in person at your local Register office. You should note that if you change any of the agreed terms and you have already given Notice, a new Notice of marriage or civil partnership (and notice fee) may also be required.
2.6. You are advised to give notice no later than 6 months before your ceremony. If you have booked your ceremony less than six months in advance, you should give your notice as soon as possible. The current fee for giving notice is £42.00, whichever venue is chosen. Other statutory fees may be payable if either party is not a UK citizen, or if other requirements apply. You will be advised of these by your Register Office, if applicable, at the time of booking your notice appointment.
3. Final fee
3.1. Pembrokeshire County Council reserve the right to review ceremony fees on an annual basis and will be based on the July CPI rate in the year the fee is reviewed.
3.2. The final fee payable is the fee chargeable at the time of your ceremony date. The final fee will be advised no less than six months before the date of your ceremony.
3.3. This Final Fee will be available on our website at https://www.pembrokeshire.gov.uk/marriages-and-civil-partnerships/marriage-civil-partnership-how-much-will-it-cost.
3.4. The final fee will be added to your payments on the ceremony portal a minimum of six months prior to your ceremony.
3.5. The Final Fee will be payable no later than 12 weeks before the date of your ceremony.
4. Change of Date, Time or Venue
4.1. If a change in the date, time or venue is requested within the first 28 days booking, a Reschedule Fee of £33.00 fee must be paid.
4.2. If a change in the date, time or venue is requested (or any other changes are required for any reason) more than 28 days after of booking and more than 6 months prior to the ceremony date, an Additional Fee of £55.50 is payable, if the request can be accommodated.
4.3. A change to the date, time or venue within six months of the ceremony will be treated as a cancellation and new booking and the relevant fees apply.
5. Cancelling a ceremony
5.1. Cancellations must be made in writing by one of the parties to the marriage or civil partnership, preferably, but not necessarily, by e-mail to ceremonies@pembrokeshire.gov.uk or to Pembrokeshire Registration Service, Pembrokeshire Archives, Prendergast, Haverfordwest, SA61 2PE.
5.2. Either party to the marriage/civil partnership may cancel the ceremony at any time.
5.3. Cancellations within 28 days of booking will be granted a full refund of the ceremony deposit.
5.4. Cancellations after the initial 28 days of making the booking but prior to the date being 6 months before the ceremony date and Statutory Notice not being given shall incur a cancellation fee of £84.00.
5.5. Cancellations within 6 months of the Ceremony Date or after the statutory Notice has been given shall incur a cancellation fee of £157.00 or the full fee, whichever is the less amount.
5.6. A refund for any sums paid in excess of the cancellation fees as set out in clauses 5.4 and 5.6 shall be actioned within 28 days of the cancellation date.
5.7. Cancellations within 8 weeks of the ceremony shall not receive any refund and if any sums are outstanding they must be paid directly.
5.8. The Notice Fee, or any other statutory fees paid where the service has been delivered, cannot in any circumstances be refunded.
5.9. Any fees paid for a registration at a religious building or a simple marriage or civil partner registration will be refunded in full.
5.10. Pembrokeshire County Council reserves the right to cancel the ceremony if:-
5.10.1. any legal impediment to the marriage or civil partnership exist,
5.10.2. legal preliminaries are not completed within necessary timescales including but not limited to the failure to give legal Notice of your intention to marry or form a civil partnership within the necessary statutory time limits
5.10.3. any divorce or dissolution papers are not provided within sufficient time for the Registrar to consider and/ or are not acceptable to the Registrar. Divorce or dissolution papers must be given to the Registrar at the time of giving Notice of Marriage or Civil Partnership. Foreign divorce / dissolution papers may require authorisation by the General Register Office and consideration of the additional time this will incur should be considered by the parties when arranging their notice.
5.10.4. Home Office clearance has not been granted in time or the Home Office has declined clearance.
5.10.5. any required fees have not been paid within the required timescales as set in these Terms and Conditions or as set out on the Booking Form.5.10.6. there is any force majeure event, which is any event, circumstance or cause beyond the reasonable control of the parties such as, but not limited to, adverse weather conditions, any acts of God, flood, drought, earthquake or other natural disaster; epidemic or pandemic; terrorist attack, civil war, civil commotion or riots, war, threat of or preparation for war, armed conflict, imposition of sanctions, embargo; nuclear, chemical or biological contamination, or any law quota or prohibition, or failing to grant a necessary licence or consent; collapse of buildings, fire, explosion or accident; and any labour or trade dispute, strikes, industrial action or lockouts; interruption or failure of utility service and in such circumstances it will be reasonable for Pembrokeshire County Council to endeavour to re-arrange the ceremony to another mutually convenient date and or time or if this is not possible or cannot be agreed Pembrokeshire County Council may cancel and there shall be no refund of fees.
6. Venue is not available
6.1. If a Pembrokeshire County Council managed venue is not available for any reason and an alternative venue cannot be arranged or is not acceptable to you Pembrokeshire County Council may cancel and will provide a full refund of all fees paid (such a refund will not include any interest on any such fees). A minimum notice of 8 weeks will be given in any such event or as soon as possible where the venue becomes unavailable in less than 8 weeks.
6.2. If the venue is not a Pembrokeshire County Council venue and for any reason is not available then the cancellation provisions set out in clause 5.1 – 5.9 (inclusive) will be applicable.
7. Lateness
7.1. Couples need to ensure that they attend the venue at least 20 minutes before the Ceremony start time as they will need to be interviewed by the registrar prior to the Ceremony. If the parties wish to remain separate prior to the ceremony, one party must attend 20 minutes before the Ceremony start time and the second party must attend 10 minutes before the Ceremony start time. The couple’s guests should be asked to be present in the relevant ceremony venue room at least 15 minutes before the ceremony start time.
7.2. If the ceremony start time is delayed for any reason and through no fault of Pembrokeshire County Council then the Registrar on behalf of Pembrokeshire County Council reserves the right to shorten the ceremony to avoid impacting on subsequent ceremonies.
7.3. If the Ceremony is not ready to commence within 15 minutes of the scheduled start time and through no fault of Pembrokeshire County Council, then the Registrar on behalf of Pembrokeshire County Council reserves the right to cancel or defer the ceremony.
7.4. Where the ceremony is cancelled or deferred as a result of any delay (through no fault of Pembrokeshire County Council) any fees paid or due shall not be refunded.
7.5. If the ceremony is delayed and Pembrokeshire County Council in its absolute discretion are able to continue behind schedule Pembrokeshire County Council reserves the right to charge an Additional Fee up to the amount of the full Final Fee if the ceremony takes place later than planned to cover additional staff costs.
7.6. Where any delay is caused by Pembrokeshire County Council the Registrar will endeavour to either proceed with the ceremony where this is possible or to re-arrange to a mutually agreeable time and date. If this cannot be agreed a full refund will be provided (unless the cause is a force majeure event as set out in clause 5.10.6 when no refund will be payable).
8. Liability
8.1. Any decision to delay or cancel the ceremony is at the discretion of the registration staff attending on the day. Pembrokeshire County Council will not accept liability for any loss or delay as a result of:-
8.1.1. any cancellation of the ceremony or if the registration is stopped from proceeding because:-
8.1.1.1. it would be void if it went ahead
8.1.1.2. it would result in an offence under the Marriage or Civil Partnership Acts or any other statutory provisions
8.1.1.3. it would be against the public interest
8.1.1.4. unacceptable conduct or anti-social behaviour of anyone involved in the ceremony or any invited or uninvited guest
8.1.2. your lateness or non-arrival
8.1.3. the failure of any registration staff to attend because of a force majeure event as detailed in clause 5.10.6
8.1.4. any request by either one of you to delay or cancel the ceremony
8.1.4.1. the failure or neglect of any licensed venue which you have chosen (please note that the approval of any venue by Pembrokeshire County Council is only provided insofar as it is accepted as a licenced venue to hold civil ceremonies and Pembrokeshire County Council do not accept any liability in the event of any shortcomings of such a venue.
9. Room Capacity
9.1. For fire regulations safety and comfort the number of guests may not exceed the number agreed with the venue by Pembrokeshire County Council at the time of licensing. Numbers include both parties, witnesses, guests and all other attendees such as photographers and musicians. Where the ceremony will be held at Pembrokeshire County Council premises the permitted number of attendees (in addition to the couple) will be
Simple registration 2
Simple ceremony 8
Enhanced ceremony 30 (Wednesday – Friday) or 60 (Saturday)
9.2. Where the ceremony is to be held at a venue which is not a Pembrokeshire County Council venue such numbers should be checked with the Licensed Venue in advance.
9.3. Pembrokeshire County Council may refuse entry where arriving guests exceed the permitted number.
10. Witnesses
10.1. It is the couple’s responsibility to ensure that they have two credible witnesses at the ceremony. The witnesses must attend the whole of the ceremony, sign the register and must understand the nature and purport of the ceremony.
11. Ceremony Booking & Content when Ceremony is at Pembrokeshire County Council venue or at an approved Licenced Venue
11.1. Pembrokeshire County Council will conduct the Ceremony at the Pembrokeshire County Council venue or at an Approved Licenced Venue. The Ceremony booking will be for a standard ceremony unless you require a bespoke ceremony or split ceremony which must be agreed with your ceremony registrar. The ceremony registrar will advise of any additional costs for these services.
11.2. All standard ceremony scripts, music and readings included in the Ceremony must be agreed with the Pembrokeshire County Council Registration Service staff no later than 7 days prior to the ceremony. What is deemed acceptable will be at the absolute discretion of the ceremony registrar and all ceremonies will be delivered with a view to respecting the solemnity of the occasion and to ensuring all legal formalities are met.
12. Photographs
12.1. A limited number of photographs may be taken within or outside the venue provided that they do not cause any unnecessary nuisance or delays either to the ceremony or any subsequent ceremony which is to take place at the same venue. Photographers and anyone filming the ceremony must meet with the ceremony registrar at the venue prior to the commencement of the ceremony to discuss and agree arrangements and must comply with any request of the ceremony registrar at all times. Any equipment must be quiet so as not to distract from the ceremony or to cause a Health and Safety risk.
13. Animals
13.1. Only guide dogs or assistance animals are permitted at ceremonies at Pembrokeshire County Council premises.
14. Signing of the marriage or civil partnership schedule
14.1. It will be your responsibility to check that all of the information is correct before signing the Schedule of marriage or civil partnership. Please ensure in particular the spelling of names and addresses as well as dates. Any subsequent changes will incur a statutory fee set by the General Register Office and will be subject to approval by the Registrar General.
15. Certificate Orders
15.1. The certificate fee is a statutory General Register Office marriage or civil partnership certificate fee and any increase in this fee must be paid prior to issue of the certificate.
15.2. The certificate fee is included in the full ceremony fee.
15.3. Additional certificates may be ordered after the ceremony has taken place either online or by telephoning 01437 775826.
16. Outside ceremonies
16.1. Where an outside ceremony has been agreed, then the ceremony registrar on behalf of Pembrokeshire County Council reserves the right to determine where the ceremony will be held should there be adverse weather conditions.
16.2. The Registrar is the final arbiter in such matters and no refunds will be given should the ceremony not take place in the agreed location.
17. Celebrant led ceremonies at venues not approved for marriage or civil partnerships (including dual ceremonies)
17.1. Where a ceremony booked is at a venue not already approved for the delivery of marriages or civil partnerships, a risk assessment of the venue will be required. Where such an assessment is required there will be an additional fee charged.
17.2. The venue and both parties must adhere to any of the risk mitigations identified in the risk assessment.
17.3. Failure to adhere to the mitigations set out in the risk assessment will result in the cancellation of the ceremony and any fees paid or due shall not be refunded.