If you want to get married in Germany as a foreign national, the requirements for marriage are determined by the law that applies in your home country.
This regulation is intended to prevent the marriage from being recognized in Germany but not in your home country. It is particularly important for future children that a marriage entered into in Germany is also recognized in the country of origin of the foreign parent.
You must therefore always submit a certificate of no impediment to marriage from your home country. This certificate of no impediment to marriage is issued by the competent authority in your home country and confirms that there is no impediment to marriage under the law of your home country.
If you have more than one nationality, the law of the country with which you are most closely connected will apply. If you also have German nationality, this takes precedence.
In individual cases, you can apply for an exemption from the obligation to present a certificate of no impediment to marriage. This is done at the President of the competent Higher Regional Court in whose district you have registered the marriage.
This is possible for you if you belong to one of the following groups of people:
- Nationals of countries whose authorities do not issue certificates of no impediment to marriage.
- Nationals of countries that issue certificates of no impediment to marriage, but where this is objectively impossible. This applies, among other things, to situations in which foreign law prohibits marriage for reasons that are incompatible with the constitutionally guaranteed freedom to marry, for example, if the foreign law prohibits remarriage after a divorce.
You do not require a certificate of no impediment to marriage or an exemption if you belong to the following group of people:
- Recognized persons entitled to asylum,
- foreign refugees,
- homeless foreign nationals and
- stateless persons with permanent residence in Germany.
Their status must be proven by a corresponding travel document.
If you apply for an exemption from the certificate of no impediment to marriage, the President of the Higher Regional Court will check instead of the foreign authority whether there is an impediment to marriage under the law of your home country or whether a requirement for marriage is missing. There must also be no impediment to marriage under German law. It may therefore be necessary to check whether any previous marriages have been effectively dissolved in this context.
The exemption is valid for a period of 6 months.