How to Get Married in Denmark: Step-by-Step Guide 2026

Short answer: Getting married in Denmark as an international couple takes two separate waits. First, Familieretshuset approves a complete application in about 5 working days (a general target, not a guarantee). Second, you book the ceremony date, and the wait depends on the dates your town hall has free. The path: gather documents, apply, get approved, book a date, travel and marry.

Who this guide is for: Couples who want the full step-by-step timeline from first contact to ceremony.

Key points

• Steps 1–2: check that you can marry and gather your documents (passport, proof of lawful entry and stay, proof of residence and civil status, a final divorce decree if previously married, birth certificates of any children you have together).
• Steps 3–4: submit the application; Familieretshuset reviews a complete application in about 5 working days — a target, not a guarantee.
• Step 5: book a ceremony date in Copenhagen, Aabenraa or Tønder; Copenhagen states waits of up to four months.
• Steps 6–7: travel and marry; the certificate is issued in five languages right after the ceremony, and an apostille for use abroad is optional.

The seven steps at a glance:

1. Check eligibility. Both partners are at least 18, legally single, hold valid passports and can enter and stay in Denmark lawfully.
2. Gather documents. Passport, proof of lawful entry and stay, proof of residence and civil status (DWS asks for these to be no older than 3 months), plus a final divorce decree if previously married and the birth certificates of any children you have together. Denmark does not require your own birth certificates, embassy appointments or a certificate of no impediment from your home country (in Germany: Ehefähigkeitszeugnis).
3. Submit the application — yourselves online, or via Denmark Wedding Services on your behalf.
4. Receive the Prøvelsesattest (certificate of marital status — the Danish approval to marry) from Familieretshuset, the Danish Agency of Family Law. It is valid for 4 months, or less if a passport, visa or residence permit expires earlier; for citizens of countries outside the EU/EEA the passport must stay valid for 3 months after you leave Denmark, so the approval can end sooner (see Step 4).
5. Book a ceremony date in Copenhagen, Aabenraa or Tønder.
6. Marry in a short civil ceremony of about 10–15 minutes.
7. Receive the marriage certificate immediately, issued in five languages. With an apostille it is authenticated for use in the member states of the Hague Apostille Convention, though recognition abroad depends on the destination country.

The Comfort Package is €799.00 fixed-price, covering the entire legal and administrative process including all Danish authority fees. For the rules that depend on your nationality — entry, apostille and translation — see our guide for foreigners marrying in Denmark: rules by nationality.

Step 1: Who can get married in Denmark?

Couples of any nationality can marry in Denmark, and there is no residency requirement. To get married in Denmark, you need:

• Both partners must be at least 18 years old
• Both partners must be legally single (not currently married)
• Both partners must be able to legally enter Denmark (valid passport + Schengen visa if required)

That's it. No citizenship, residency, or language requirements. If you and your partner come from different countries, our guide for binational couples marrying in Denmark covers the extra points to plan for.

Step 2: Which documents do you need?

The Danish Agency of Family Law (Familieretshuset) requires:

• Valid passports for both partners (colour photos of all pages, including covers and blank pages; EU/EEA citizens may use a national ID card)
• Proof of lawful entry and stay for a partner from outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland: a residence permit or EU registration certificate from Denmark, or a residence permit from another Schengen country; or a Schengen visa plus a printout of the data and result pages of the EU's EES short-stay calculator and your plane tickets or boarding passes; visa-free travellers submit the EES calculator printout plus plane tickets or boarding passes. If you have not entered the Schengen area yet, you submit the calculator printout for your planned stay instead, together with your visa if you need one (Familieretshuset — documentation of legal stay; Familieretshuset — legal residence for marriage)
• Proof of residence and civil status — which document fits depends on your nationality and where you live; DWS asks for these documents to be no older than 3 months
• Divorce decree (if previously married) — must be final and legally binding
• Death certificate (if widowed)
• Birth certificates of your joint children (if you have children together, one for each child; a certificate in a language other than Danish, English or German is submitted in the original together with an authorised translation into English or German)

Important: Denmark does not require your own birth certificates, embassy appointments, or a certificate of no impediment from your home country (in Germany: Ehefähigkeitszeugnis). Our complete document checklist for a Danish wedding breaks down every variation — divorce, widowhood, non-EU partners — in detail.

Step 3: How do you submit the application?

With Denmark Wedding Services, you don't need to navigate Danish bureaucracy alone. Here's how it works:

• Fill out our free Denmark wedding checklist with your personal details
• We review your answers and send you a personalized document list
• After your answers, we send you three pre-filled documents to sign by hand: the service contract, the power of attorney and the declaration of truth
• We prepare and submit your complete application to Familieretshuset

You can also apply yourselves online, even if you don't live in Denmark — with MitID if you have it, otherwise by creating a user profile with your email. A representative is optional and needs a power of attorney with both partners' original signatures. Both partners must submit their part of the application within 14 days of starting it; otherwise Familieretshuset closes the case, and you have to reapply and pay the fee again (Familieretshuset processing time).

Step 4: Wait for approval (about 5 working days)

Familieretshuset generally processes complete applications with no missing information in about 5 working days, counted from when it has both partners' applications, the fee and all documents — this is a general target, not a guarantee (Familieretshuset processing time). If Familieretshuset has to ask for more information, the case leaves this 5-day track and waits in a separate queue. Once approved, you receive a Prøvelsesattest (certificate of marital status — the Danish approval to marry). This certificate is valid for 4 months from issue — shorter if your passport, visa or residence permit expires earlier. For citizens of countries outside the EU/EEA, the passport must stay valid for at least 3 months after you leave Denmark, so the approval can end earlier: in Life in Denmark's example, a passport that is valid for only 5 more months when the certificate is issued gives an approval of just 2 months (Life in Denmark). How the agency works and what it checks is explained in our guide to Familieretshuset, the Danish Agency of Family Law.

Step 5: Book your ceremony date

After approval, you choose your preferred ceremony date and location:

• Copenhagen — Denmark's capital with its historic City Hall; see getting married in Copenhagen
• Aabenraa — calm Southern Denmark; the municipality releases wedding dates 60 days in advance; see getting married in Aabenraa
• Tønder — near the German border, ideal for couples travelling by car; see getting married in Tønder

Torn between the two border towns? Compare them in Tønder or Aabenraa: choosing a town hall near the German border.

Copenhagen City Hall states that, because of high demand, the wait for a date can be up to four months (City of Copenhagen). Ceremonies are conducted in English, German, or Danish. Still deciding when to marry? See the best time of year to get married in Denmark.

Step 6: Travel to Denmark and get married

On ceremony day:

• Arrive at the town hall with your passports
• Two witnesses: with the Comfort Package we provide two legal witnesses; you can also bring your own
• The ceremony itself is short — about 10–15 minutes (Copenhagen states about 10; Aabenraa allows about 20 minutes for the whole appointment, including signing and receiving the certificate)
• You receive your marriage certificate immediately — issued in five languages

Step 7: After the wedding

Your Danish marriage certificate is valid under Danish law. For use abroad, our Apostille Service (€100) arranges the apostille from the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which authenticates the certificate for the member states of the Hague Apostille Convention — though authentication is not automatic recognition, and whether the marriage is recognised depends on the destination country. Read our Danish marriage apostille guide for which countries need it and how the process works.

Total timeline: how long does the whole process take?

The whole process has three variable stretches: your documents, Familieretshuset's review and the wait for a free ceremony date.

Total: document preparation + about 5 working days + the wait for a free ceremony date. The ceremony date is booked after the approval and is not part of the 5 working days. For most couples the longest stretch is either gathering documents or waiting for a free date; the approval in between is the short part. Aabenraa states that its free dates are about two months ahead, while Copenhagen states waits of up to four months. Sources: Familieretshuset processing time, City of Copenhagen, Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The final week before your ceremony, day by day

The last seven days of preparation matter more than people think. Here's what we recommend:

• 7 days before — Confirm flight times and hotel booking. Check both passport expiry dates (for citizens of countries outside the EU/EEA: issued within the last 10 years, valid at least 3 months beyond your planned departure from the Schengen area, and with at least 2 blank pages).
• 5 days before — Print your Prøvelsesattest, your ceremony booking confirmation, your hotel confirmation and your return ticket, and carry them as a paper backup.
• 3 days before — Pack your wedding outfit with backup. Copenhagen weather can shift from 22°C and sun to rain in an hour.
• 1 day before — Travel to your ceremony city. Many couples arrive in Aabenraa or Tønder by car the evening before; couples marrying in Copenhagen often fly in the night before or on the day itself.
• Ceremony day — Arrive 10–15 minutes before your booked time. The ceremony takes about 10–15 minutes. You leave with a signed marriage certificate and head to dinner, photos, or the airport.

Before you leave, run through this quick checklist:

• Travel insurance covering Schengen → check.
• Both partners' passports → check, and packed in carry-on.
• Wedding attire → backup outfit for rain.
• Phones charged → for photos and our app.
• Witnesses confirmed (ours with the Comfort Package, or your own) → confirmed.
• Payment card or some cash for local transport to the town hall → ready.
• A celebratory plan for after the ceremony → restaurant booking helps if you're staying overnight.

Common stumbles by step — and how to avoid them

The same six issues come up again and again:

1. Step 2 (documents): renewing a passport mid-process. Familieretshuset works with the passport details from your application, so a new passport number mid-process has to be reported. If you can, don't renew until after the wedding — but remember the approval is shortened if your passport expires earlier.
2. Step 3 (application): typos in transliterated names. Russian, Chinese, and Arabic names need consistent transliteration across passport, divorce decree, and application. We catch these.
3. Step 4 (approval): a passport, visa or permitted stay that ends too soon. The Prøvelsesattest is shortened if your passport, visa or residence permit expires before the usual 4 months. With a passport from outside the EU/EEA, the approval is limited so that the passport is still valid 3 months after you leave Denmark — a passport valid for 5 more months gives an approval of only 2 months. Visa-free visitors from outside the EU are limited too: at most 90 days in any 180-day period in the Schengen area (European Commission — short-stay calculator). Plan the ceremony well inside your permitted stay, with a buffer of at least 5 days.
4. Step 5 (booking): expecting an early date in Copenhagen. Copenhagen City Hall states waits of up to four months because of high demand. Aabenraa releases dates 60 days in advance and Tønder marries couples from abroad on Tuesdays and Thursdays — free dates always depend on the town hall.
5. Step 6 (ceremony day): arriving at the last minute. Copenhagen asks couples to be there 10–15 minutes before the booked time. With the Comfort Package your two witnesses are provided; if you prefer your own, let us know in advance.
6. Step 7 (post-wedding): not requesting Apostille right away. The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs states 5–7 working days for documents received by post or courier (longer in busy periods). Order it the same week as the ceremony — see our Danish marriage apostille guide for the full process.

How fast can you marry when time is short?

Couples with tight deadlines (visa expiring, work relocation, family event) can compress the paperwork into the first few days — the rest depends on Familieretshuset and the town hall:

• Day 1 — Fill in the checklist and the application questions.
• Day 2 — We send your personalized document list and the three pre-filled forms; you sign them by hand, scan your documents and upload everything.
• Day 3–4 — Once everything is complete and checked, we submit the application to Familieretshuset.
• Following days — Familieretshuset reviews the application (about 5 working days for a complete application, counted from when it has both applications, the fee and all documents; a target, not a guarantee — there is no express track).
• After approval — You book the earliest free date your town hall has, travel to Denmark and marry.

The pace is set by Familieretshuset's processing and the town hall's free dates, not by us. Aabenraa (dates released 60 days in advance) and Tønder (Tuesdays and Thursdays for couples from abroad) are the usual alternatives to Copenhagen.

Your next steps

For a complete cost picture before you commit, see our transparent 2026 wedding cost breakdown. Couples who book the Comfort Package also get our wedding planning app, with a wedding-day checklist and hand-picked local vendors. Do you need a wedding planner in Denmark, or can you apply yourselves? Our comparison of agency, wedding planner or DIY helps you decide.

Ready to begin? Start your free checklist with Denmark Wedding Services today.

Related guide: Visa requirements for getting married in Denmark

Already approved on your own and cannot get a date? If you applied yourself, hold your Familieretshuset approval and still have an unused booking link, our Date Reservation Service takes the booking over for a fixed €499.00 — we watch your kommune around the clock and reserve the first date that appears. It is not needed with the Comfort Package, which already includes your ceremony booking.