Table of Contents
Wedding in Turkey
Legal marriages in Turkey are made through Turkish marriage bureaus. If you’re planning to get married in Turkey and have a wedding in Turkey, it’s mandatory to get in touch with the Turkish marriage bureaus.
Related Article: All You Need to Know About Marriage Bureaus in Turkey.
This is usually done to maintain compliance with Turkish marriage regulations and civil codes. As legal marriages are the only forms of marriage identified as binding in Turkey, they must be validated by a Turkish official. Once the legal marriage is approved, the candidates are free to hold any religious or cultural forms of a wedding if they want to. However, if you don’t want to have a wedding in Turkey, you’re free to do so, as long as you have a legal marriage in Turkey. Getting married legally without a wedding in Turkey can be made easy by Turkish marriage bureaus. However, if you have are about how the Turkish marriage bureaus work, let’s find out.
Turkish Marriage Bureaus
The Turkish marriage laws and regulations are followed by the Turkish marriage bureaus. Locally, these are known as; “Evlendirme Dairesi,” and are available in every mayoral district in Turkey. If you wish to get married, all you need to do is get yourself registered to a marriage bureau near you. Turkish marriage bureaus are extremely helpful for marriages without a wedding.
Additionally, marriage bureaus in Turkey offer matchmaking services you can get benefited from. You can upload your details onto their website and the Turkish marriage bureau will browse through their website for potential matches. The matches are available based on communities. Upon matching, meetings between candidates are set up by the marriage bureau. All legal marriages officiated by the Turkish marriage bureaus are subjected to Turkish civil codes.
As legal marriages are the only forms of marriages identified in Turkey, you must abide by Turkish wedding laws and regulations. Religious weddings are not held as standard forms of marriage, so it is not mandatory. You can legally get married without having a religious wedding in Turkey. The wedding must be supervised by a Turkish official holding office in the Turkish government. This is to make sure the Turkish marriage laws and regulations are followed as necessary. The official is usually appointed by the Turkish marriage bureau when you register yourself for the legal marriage and your documents are approved. It can also be supervised by a local marriage registrar or a census officer.
If you have already decided whether to have a religious wedding or to elope, the Turkish marriage bureau will be helpful along the way. To have a legal marriage in Turkey without a ceremonial wedding, you must keep in mind the following formalities:
- As of now, legal marriages in Turkey take place between a man and a woman. Same-sex marriages are not yet legal in the country, but hopefully, soon, Turkish marriage bureaus will officiate same-sex marriages legally.
- The legal age for a person to get married in Turkey is 18. Marriage involving minors is not permitted in Turkey. However, candidates who are at least 16 years of age can legally get married with consent from the parents or guardians of both parties.
- Marriages of consanguinity are prohibited in Turkey. So, relatives closely related by blood cannot be legally married in Turkey.
- As per the norms of Turkish society, polygamy is not allowed. So social marriages in Turkey cannot take place for candidates with existing marriages. Monogamy is an essential principle followed by Turkish family law. Candidates who wish to enter a marital bond for the second time can do so only after a waiting period of three hundred days from the day of termination of the previous marriage.
- The Turkish marriage bureau can restrict a wedding if any individual is found to be clinically insane. Individuals must submit a report of medical examinations. Ailments such as STDs (sexually transmitted diseases), hepatitis, and other contagious diseases can be deemed as grounds on which the Turkish marriage bureau can restrict a legal marriage.
Legal Marriage in Turkey Without a Wedding
If you have qualified the above criteria, we shall now move on to the details of the actual legal marriage, and how you can get married legally without a wedding in Turkey.
As mentioned before, get yourself registered to a Turkish marriage bureau. Turkish marriage bureau is available in every mayoral district, so they can be contacted conveniently. Since a medical examination is mandatory before the legal marriage is approved, the Turkish marriage bureau needs a medical report of the same. This can be done from clinics and pathological laboratories registered under the marriage bureau. The clinic will test your blood for STDs like Syphilis and HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), Hepatitis B and C, or other contagious diseases. If the marriage bureau in Turkey is satisfied with the results, they will approve your marriage. To get a legal marriage in Turkey, you will be required to furnish the following documents:
- A marriage petition (locally known as; “Evlenme Beyannamesi”) is issued from the Turkish municipality. This states the marital status of both the bride and the groom (whether single, divorced, or widowed).
- Health certificate that is issued by the clinic registered to the marriage bureau in Turkey.
- Certificate of Eligibility/Capacity to marry, also known as the Certificate of Celibacy. This is usually recorded in the municipality and can be used as proof of marriage. Foreigners need to provide the same along with the documents from the embassy of their country.
- Documents of identification or proof of age, such as; birth certificates. For foreigners getting married in Turkey, a passport can serve as a document of identification.
- For foreign individuals, the marriage bureau also asks for proof of accommodation. This is issued by the hotel you’re staying at (or where you reside if you own/rent a property).
- Passport size photographs of the bride and the groom (six each) for official records.
Turkey has always been a popular choice for getting married. The process may sound like a lot to take in, but getting legally married in Turkey is a cakewalk as long as you have the necessary documents. The Turkish marriage bureaus cater to your needs, making sure it’s easy for you to get married legally without a wedding in Turkey.
Our law firm in Turkey can help you with the entire process.
