Most couples decide to hold a symbolic celebration abroad in lieu of a legal ceremony in your destination. Symbolic ceremonies allow you to exchange vows in paradise and take care of the legal formalities at home (either before or after your trip).
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If you want your marriage to become official while you and your sweetheart are in the Dominican Republic, you’ll need to take into account these basic requirements:
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Meet the minimum age limit (16 for men and 15 for women)
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The original passport and copies of the passport bio-page
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Copies of last entries stamps;
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Proof of Dominican residence (if not a resident of the Dominican Republic, an additional fee applies and tourist card must be presented);
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Sworn declaration before a notary public, of being single and eligible to marry; the sworn declaration then needs to be legalized at the Offices of Procuraduría General de La República. If the Sworn declaration is done before a U.S. notary, it then needs to be legalized at the closest Dominican Consulate in the U.S. (In the past, the U.S. Embassy allowed U.S. citizens to swear such an affidavit of eligibility to marry before a U.S. consular officer. The Embassy discontinued this practice several years ago, however, because local officials were interpreting these documents as meaning that the Embassy had actually verified the content of the citizens’ statements, when in fact the consular officer was merely attesting to the fact that the individual in question had made the statement. U.S. citizens needing to comply with this requirement should instead present themselves to a Dominican notary –as specified above-.)
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Copy of foreign birth certificate and a legal translation of the certificate; central authorities in both the United States and the Dominican Republic now authenticate their own public documents, such as birth, death or marriage certificates, with a certificate of apostille (name of the authentication stamp). You can get your document apostille at the office of Vital Records in your state, or visit www.italiamerica.org/vital_records.htm.
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If divorced, copy of the divorce certificate and legal translation of the certificate;
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2 witnesses (not family).
Additionally, Dominican law requires that notice of the intended marriage must be published prior to the ceremony!
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FEES
Celebration of marriages outside the Civil Registry Office (if the Civil Registry Officer goes somewhere else than the “Oficialia Civil” to celebrate the marriage):
Both the bride and groom are foreigners not residents of the Dominican Republic – RD $20,000.00 (around USD 350)
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Types of Marriages
Marriages in the Dominican Republic fall generally into one of two categories:
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“Civil” marriages are those in which the parties themselves register the marriage with the Dominican government. The person officiating at the wedding ceremony is a government official, usually a Notary Public. It is the couple’s choice whether or not to hold a separate religious ceremony.
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“Canonical” marriages are those performed by a Roman Catholic priest. Following the ceremony, the church takes responsibility for registering the marriage with the appropriate Dominican government offices.
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Marriages in religious denominations other than Roman Catholicism are fully legal and permitted. However, only the Roman Catholic Church has the ability to register marriages on the couple’s behalf. In the case of wedding ceremonies in other denominations, both members of the couple must present themselves to the governmental registrar’s office to legalize the marriage. Details on this procedure follow below in the section under “Civil Marriages”.
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