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Formalities and documents

Wedding formalities in the Czech Republic.

What to arrange at the registry office, which documents to present, how much to pay and what changes after the wedding. Based on the Czech Registry Act, Civil Code and administrative fee schedule in force in October 2026.

Read the guideTry your details

Default example: two Czech citizens, both permanently resident in the Czech Republic, no previous marriage, civil ceremony in the ceremony hall.

Who is getting married
Permanent residence in the Czech Republic
Previous marriage
Ceremony

Default example

Bring
4 items
Fees
free
Deadlines
2 deadlines

Start with this

Date and questionnaire at the registry office

Check the date and complete the marriage questionnaire at the registry office responsible for the ceremony location (Section 32 of the Czech Registry Act).

In the document checklist

Nearest deadline

Enter the wedding date

Enter a date to see which deadline comes first.

All deadlines

Only this browser remembers the wedding date, completed tasks and your figures. Nothing is sent.

Your documents

What to bring to the registry office for your situation.

The list, fees and deadlines based on your answers at the start of the page. Every item includes the legal provision it follows from.

Default example: two Czech citizens, both permanently resident in the Czech Republic, no previous marriage, civil ceremony in the ceremony hall. Change responses

What to prepare for the registry office

  • Marriage questionnaire. Obtain it at the registry office and complete the first part with the registrar (Section 32 of the Czech Registry Act).
  • Both partners' valid identity documents: identity card or passport.
  • Two witnesses' details: first name, last name and Czech birth number, or date and place of birth for a foreign national without a birth number. They present identity documents at the ceremony.
  • Oba občané ČR: rodný list, doklad o občanství a výpisy o pobytu a osobním stavu si matrika obvykle ověří sama z registrů (§ 33 a § 81a zákona o matrikách (e-Sbírka, opens in a new window)). Rodný list mějte po ruce.

Administrative fees

Marriage ceremony, both partners permanently resident in the Czech Republic
free
Total
free

Only one partner pays the fee (Act No. 634/2004 Coll., fee schedule, item 12).

The municipality may charge separately for ceremony-related services, such as music, alongside the administrative fee.

Deadlines

  • Questionnaire and documents: no statutory deadline; the registry office sets the date.
  • A Czech identity card with marital status or an old surname: valid for 45 days after the wedding; apply for a replacement within 15 days afterwards. Issue is free (Sections 34 and 11 of Act No. 269/2021 Coll.).

Based on legislation as of 5. 10. 2026. The registry office responsible for the ceremony location confirms the list for your case. Nothing is sent.

Steps

Formalities, step by step.

The deadlines shown here are set by Czech law. The registry office sets other dates under its own rules.

Your steps first. Change responses

  1. Choose a date and venue, then call the registry office

    Find the office responsible for the ceremony location and check availability, ceremony days and conditions for ceremonies outside the ceremony hall. Some municipalities open bookings for the following year on a specific day. Only then pay the venue deposit.

  2. Questionnaire and documents

    Fill in the questionnaire at the registry office or bring it partly completed. Take both partners' valid identity documents, witness details and documents requested by the office. Check identity cards will still be valid on the wedding day.

  3. Choose your surname

    A shared surname, each keeping their own, or a shared surname with one partner's previous surname added. If you each keep your surname, also choose the surname of future children you have together (Sections 660 and 661 of the Civil Code). A woman may request that her surname be registered in its masculine form (Section 69 of the Registry Act).

  4. Ceremony day

    Valid identity documents for the partners and witnesses. The marriage record is signed after the ceremony. If your surname changes or your Czech identity card records marital status, a corner is cut off.

  5. After the wedding

    The registry office issues the marriage certificate; agree beforehand when and how to collect it. A Czech identity card whose surname changes or which records marital status remains valid for 45 days after the wedding. Apply for a replacement no later than 15 days afterwards; issue is free (Sections 34 and 11 of Act No. 269/2021 Coll.). Anyone changing their surname also applies for a new passport if needed, and tells their bank, employer, health insurer and other institutions.

More 3 steps for other situationsOutside the ceremony hall, Religious marriage, A foreign partner

  1. Outside the ceremony hall: an application

    You may marry at a farm, in a garden or meadow if the registry office authorizes it on application (Section 12 of the Registry Act). The fee is 3,000 CZK. On private land, you need the owner's consent. Agree a backup location for rain too.

  2. Religious marriage: registry office certificate

    Apply at the registry office responsible for the ceremony district, with the same documents as for a civil marriage. It costs 500 CZK, and no more than six months may pass from issue to ceremony. Give it to the officiant.

  3. A foreign partner: allow time for documents

    Find the foreign national's document list above under Czech citizen and foreign national. Allow time: foreign documents require an official Czech translation and authentication unless waived by an international treaty or EU rule. The legal capacity certificate must be no more than six months old on the wedding day; police residence confirmation, if required, no more than seven working days old (Section 35 of the Registry Act).

What to watch for

When to ask the registry office directly.

In these cases, a general guide is not enough; your specific circumstances matter.

The general guide covers your situation. The registry office should still confirm your checklist.

Other situationsMarrying a foreign national, Permanent residence outside the Czech Republic, Divorced and widowed partners, Marrying abroad

  • Marrying a foreign national

    The document list depends on the country and personal status. The registry office may waive authentication or a document if obtaining it involves an obstacle that is difficult to overcome. Start as soon as you choose the date; foreign translations and authentication take time.

  • Permanent residence outside the Czech Republic

    The fee follows permanent residence, not citizenship: two Czech citizens without permanent residence in the Czech Republic pay 5,000 CZK. A citizen living abroad proves permanent residence and personal status with documents from their country of residence (Section 34 of the Registry Act).

  • Divorced and widowed partners

    The registry office may request a final divorce judgment or the previous spouse's death certificate. A foreign divorce judgment involving a Czech citizen is recognized by a Supreme Court decision unless an EU rule or international treaty provides otherwise.

  • Marrying abroad

    A Czech citizen needs a certificate of legal capacity to marry from the registry office for their permanent residence; it is valid for six months and costs 500 CZK. After the wedding, apply to register the marriage in the special registry in Brno, which issues a Czech marriage certificate.

Overview

Registry office, questionnaire and documents.

Kam jít. Formality vyřizujete na matričním úřadě, do jehož obvodu patří místo obřadu, ne podle bydliště. Nejdřív si předběžně vyberte místo a datum, pak se na matriku obraťte; poradí vám, co přinést, a domluvíte termín. U církevního sňatku jdete na matriku pro osvědčení a obřad řešíte s církví.

DetailsKam jít, Dotazník k uzavření manželství, Doklady, Správní poplatky

Kam jít. Formality vyřizujete na matričním úřadě, do jehož obvodu patří místo obřadu, ne podle bydliště. Nejdřív si předběžně vyberte místo a datum, pak se na matriku obraťte; poradí vám, co přinést, a domluvíte termín. U církevního sňatku jdete na matriku pro osvědčení a obřad řešíte s církví.

Dotazník k uzavření manželství. Dostanete ho na kterémkoli matričním úřadě, některé ho mají i ke stažení. První část vyplníte s matrikářem, druhou vyplní matrikář. Lhůtu pro odevzdání zákon nestanoví; termín určí matrika.

Doklady. Záleží na občanství, trvalém pobytu a předchozím manželství; seznam pro svou situaci máte výše. Co si matrika ověří sama z matričních knih nebo základních registrů, už nedokládáte (§ 81a zákona o matrikách (e-Sbírka, opens in a new window)). Občanům ČR s trvalým pobytem v Česku proto často stačí platné občanské průkazy nebo pasy a vyplněný dotazník. Rodný list mějte po ruce; některé matriky ho chtějí vidět.

Správní poplatky. Závisí na trvalém pobytu snoubenců a na místě a čase obřadu. Poplatek platí jen jeden ze snoubenců (zákon č. 634/2004 Sb. (e-Sbírka, opens in a new window), sazebník, položka 12).

Registry office, questionnaire and documents.
SituationFee
Both partners have permanent residence in the Czech Republic and marry at the place and time designated by the municipalityfree
Ceremony outside the place or time designated by the municipality; people with severe disabilities are exempt3,000 CZK
Only one partner has permanent residence in the Czech Republic3,000 CZK
Neither partner has permanent residence in the Czech Republic5,000 CZK
Registrar attendance in a municipality without a registry office, if neither partner has permanent residence there and you are not already paying for a different place or time1,000 CZK
Certificate for a religious marriage500 CZK
Certificate of legal capacity to marry abroad or to a foreign national500 CZK

Some official websites show older amounts; the current fee schedule applies. A municipality may also charge for ceremony-related services, such as music. Each municipality has its own price list.

Sources

What the guide is based on.

Current Czech legislation in e-Sbírka and pages from the Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Public Administration Portal. Where an official page differs from the law, the law applies. The registry office confirms your specific document list.

Updated

Show 10 sources

Formalities in the Kruspin app

Formalities as tasks with deadlines.

Turn this guide's steps into tasks for a specific wedding in Kruspin: with a deadline, responsible person and a setting for whether the client sees them.

  • A deadline relative to the wedding date

    Set “Registry office certificate: 3 months before” in the task template. A date is calculated for each new wedding.

  • A client task

    The questionnaire, documents and witness details are the couple's work. Make them client tasks so the couple sees them and checks them off.

  • An internal check

    The team tracks authorization for a ceremony outside the ceremony hall in an internal task the client cannot see.

  • Upcoming deadlines

    Tasks with the nearest deadlines appear in the wedding overview. A task past its deadline is labeled “Overdue”.

What you will find in the app

  • A deadline relative to the wedding date

    Set “Registry office certificate: 3 months before” in the task template. A date is calculated for each new wedding.

  • A client task

    The questionnaire, documents and witness details are the couple's work. Make them client tasks so the couple sees them and checks them off.

  • An internal check

    The team tracks authorization for a ceremony outside the ceremony hall in an internal task the client cannot see.

  • Upcoming deadlines

    Tasks with the nearest deadlines appear in the wedding overview. A task past its deadline is labeled “Overdue”.

Continue planning

Finally, the wedding day hour by hour.

Guide · The day's timeline

Wedding day timeline

The day around fixed points: ceremony, meals and when music ends, with buffers between them.

Coordinator directoryWedding coordinatorsSearch by region or wedding venue and send one inquiry to your selection.

Planning your own wedding? Your coordinator or wedding venue invites you to the app.

Tracking formalities for your clients? Kruspin for wedding coordinators

Frequently asked questions

Questions about formalities.

Did not find an answer? Write to us through the page support.

Is a religious wedding legally recognized?

Yes, if a person authorized by a church entitled to conduct marriages officiates, and the couple presents the registry office certificate beforehand. The officiant delivers the marriage record to the registry office within three working days, and the office registers the marriage.

Does the same procedure apply to a partnership?

Under Section 655(2) of the Czech Civil Code, a partnership between two people of the same sex is entered into in the same way as marriage. The registry office procedure is therefore similar; the office confirms the specific documents.