Legal Facts
Getting Legally Married in Ontario: Did you know?
There are only three categories of people who can legally solemnize a wedding ceremony in Ontario: Religious Official, Ontario Municipal Clerk/Designate, Judge/Justice of the Peace.
There are two types of marriages in Ontario.
To ensure that your marriage is performed properly and legally, an authorized official needs to marry you. There are 2 types of marriage ceremonies performed in Ontario: Religious marriage (a recognized religious official marries you) and Civil marriage (a judge, justice of the peace, or authorized municipal clerk marries you, often at a local municipal office or city hall).
On your wedding day you only have a wedding themed party until the Officiant shows up.
The officiant is the only professional of the day you MUST have. No officiant, no wedding. There are people in Ontario acting fraudulently masquerading as Wedding Officiants. Always confirm that the officiant you have chosen has a licence to marry in the province.
Paperwork
On your wedding day, your Officiant will give you a signed Record of Solemnization of Marriage. This is not the same thing as a Marriage Certificate. A Marriage Certificate is the legal record of a marriage. It lists the date and place of the marriage, and names of the people who were married. A Marriage Certificate will not automatically be mailed to you by the marriage office; you are required to order one after you are married.
Before you can get a Marriage Certificate, a marriage needs to be registered. The official who performed the marriage will do this by sending your completed and signed Marriage License to Service Ontario. You can order a Marriage Certificate about 6-8 weeks after this happens.
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