Information about Catholic Marriages in Florence
Marriage is a beautiful sacrament and it is important to delve into the mystery of it. Thousands of couples choose to get married abroad, so there is no need to stress!
Both your local diocese and the diocese of Italy are typically very efficient when handling the documentation. Listed below are the main steps that your local priest and diocese will help you through. This checklist is meant to facilitate the practical details so that you can focus on the ceremony.
1. Speak to the parish priest of your residency.
2. Complete the official Prenuptial Inquiry with your local parish priest, which includes a one on one meeting with each individual.
3. Make sure to have copies of your:
- Certificate of Baptism
- Certificate of Confirmation
- Documents of Identity
4. Complete a Pre-Marriage Course (Pre-Cana) with your local parish. Make sure to receive a certificate of completion.
5. Receive a delegation letter from your local parish priest stating that you can be married in Italy.
6. If the priest officiating the marriage is not the parish priest of the Church where you will be married, he needs a specific delegation from the parish priest (even by word of mouth) to celebrate the wedding.
7. Highly recommended you have a civil marriage prior to your destination wedding: it can also be done in Italy through the Embassy/Consulate but it is challenging.
8. There must be Canonical and Civil Publications that you are planning on getting married (only if you live in Italy and complete the canonical and civil process in Italy).
9. Complete and send in the Marriage Witness Form so that the parish in Italy can fill out the registry.
10 . Plan for three virtual or in-person meetings with the priest that will perform the Wedding Ceremony in Italy:
- Review the following items in these meetings:
- The Wedding Booklet
- Songs
- Scripture Readings https://www.foryourmarriage.org/readings/
11. Set up a Marriage Rehearsal date and time
12. It is recommended to make one donation to the Church and one to the priest. Typically donations range between 200-500€.
13. Marriage Ceremony
14. Sign the Marriage Registry at the end of the Ceremony