Marriage

You may meet someone in the Netherlands who you want to marry or decide to marry your partner. If so, you can decide to get married or enter into a registered partnership. You and your partner will then have certain rights and obligations towards each other. Alternatively, you can have a cohabitation agreement drawn up to arrange, for example, how possessions and costs are divided between you.

Making it official

Your marriage can be as intimate as you want it to be. Religious ceremonies are also possible to seal your marriage, but the municipality ceremony makes it official for the law. To connect with religious institutions where you can marry, check out our page on religion.

To arrange your marriage, you will need to go through some basic steps. Please note: this could differ depending on the municipality to marrying in, so please go to the website of your municipality for detailed information. 

1. You will have to sign a declaration of no impediment, declaring that you are currently not married to anyone else in or outside of the Netherlands.
2. To get married, you will need to go to the municipality to register for your marriage ceremony.
3. Once you have notified the municipality, there will be various matters you need to plan. You will have the opportunity to pick which civil servant you would like to do the marriage ceremony at city hall. Generally, a standard ceremony will last approximately 45 minutes.
4. There are several locations across the city where you can get married. The municipality will be able to inform you more about these choices. Please note that you will have to marry in a wedding venue and cannot have the ceremony in other locations.

Read more about marrying in...

• The Hague
• Delft (in Dutch)
• Rijswijk (in Dutch)
• Leidschendam-Voorburg (in Dutch)

Unmarried partnership

You may not care for a traditional marriage, but still want a way to seal your bond, or be registered partner for practical reasons. Making your relationship official for the law can be a very practical decision when you want to have children, or when you want to purchase a house together.

• Read more about unmarried partnership in The Hague.
• Read more on how to convert an unmarried partnership into marriage in The Hague.
• Read more on how to register your new surname when you get married in The Hague.

Questions on marriage in the Netherlands, answered by the government

• What do I need to consider if I decide to marry or enter into a registered partnership?
• What kind of property arrangements are possible in marriage and registered partnerships?
• What do I need to consider if I decide to get married or enter into a registered partnership outside the Netherlands?
• What are my rights and obligations within marriage and registered partnership?
• What do I need to consider if I decide to enter into a cohabitation agreement?
• Will cohabitation affect the tax I pay?
• What do I need to consider if I want to marry a foreign national in the Netherlands?