Getting married in Portugal without a birth certificate: what to know

By Rodrigo MaranhãoLawyer in Lisbon · Updated on 18 October 2026

Portuguese Bar Association (Ordem dos Advogados)Registration no. 60554L

Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) · PernambucoRegistration no. 22.372

Madrid Bar Association (ICAM) · SpainRegistration no. 144875

Getting married in Portugal without a birth certificate raises a specific document question: foreign nationals must present a birth certificate issued under the law of their country. If you cannot obtain yours, a lawyer can assess the documents you do have and the circumstances surrounding the missing certificate before you start the marriage process.

If you would rather have support from start to finish, see how I work as a marriage lawyer in Lisbon.

What the document requirement means

When a foreign national wants to marry in Portugal, the listed documents include identification, a birth certificate issued in accordance with the law of that person’s country, and a certificate of capacity to marry if the country issues one. The birth certificate is one of the documents to consider when preparing the marriage file, alongside the other requirements for the foreign partner. For a complete overview, read my legal guide to getting married in Portugal as a foreigner.

The stated rule for a certificate of capacity to marry includes a specific alternative: if the relevant country does not issue the certificate, the foreign partner must provide a declaration stating that it is not issued. This condition concerns the capacity certificate. If your birth certificate is unavailable, a lawyer can examine your documents and circumstances separately rather than assuming that this rule answers the birth-certificate question.

Start by identifying exactly which document you cannot obtain and why. For example, the problem may concern a record that has not been located or a difficulty obtaining a copy. Set out the facts accurately and gather the documents available to you, so a lawyer can assess the circumstances and explain how they relate to the requirements for a foreign partner.

Important: Do not assume that a document used for another purpose will satisfy the birth-certificate requirement. The practical concern is preparing your file around an assumption instead of having your available documents assessed. Before submitting the marriage declaration, ask a lawyer to review the documents and the circumstances behind the missing certificate.

Documents for a foreign partner

The foreign partner’s identification may be a passport or residence permit. The listed documents also include a birth certificate issued under the law of that partner’s country. A certificate of capacity to marry is required if the country of nationality issues one, and it must have been issued less than six months before it is presented.

The six-month period applies to the certificate of capacity to marry. It is not stated as a validity period for every document in the file. Check the issue date of the capacity certificate before submitting it. If the country does not issue that certificate, the stated alternative is a declaration saying that it is not issued.

The birth certificate must be legalised and translated into Portuguese if its original language is not Portuguese. Other certificates and documents also have a language requirement: documents not written in English, French or Spanish must be accompanied by a certified Portuguese translation. Review each document against the relevant rule instead of assuming one translation will cover the whole file. For EU documents, see when you may not need an apostille for marriage in Portugal.

Other documents may also be required if they are necessary to examine the marriage file. This means the listed items are not necessarily the only documents relevant to every application. A lawyer can review what you have, identify the requirements that apply to those documents and help you prepare the file for submission to the Civil Registry Office (Conservatória do Registo Civil).

If you cannot obtain a birth certificate

If your birth certificate is unavailable, explain the situation clearly and collect the documents you do have before seeking legal advice. For example, your circumstances may involve difficulty locating a record or obtaining a copy. These are practical descriptions, not a conclusion about what the registry will accept, so explain the facts without presenting an alternative as automatically sufficient.

The distinction between the birth certificate and the capacity certificate matters when you describe your file. The stated capacity-certificate rule provides for a declaration if the country does not issue that certificate. A lawyer can assess whether that rule is relevant to your circumstances and review the separate birth-certificate issue using the documents available to you.

You may have heard of a certificate of notoriety, an affidavit or a consular statement. Do not rely on the name of a document to conclude that it meets a marriage-file requirement. Its relevance depends on its contents and your circumstances, which is why a document-by-document legal assessment is more useful than treating any document as a ready-made substitute.

I would not build a marriage plan around an unreviewed assumption about a missing document. A lawyer can examine the available records, the reason the certificate cannot be obtained and the other documents in the file. That assessment helps you understand the issue before submitting the marriage declaration or making arrangements based on a particular document being accepted.

Who may marry in Portugal?

In general, people over 18 may marry if they are not relatives in the prohibited degree and have no other legal impediment. Marriage is also possible from age 16 with parental or guardian authorisation, or if that authorisation is dispensed with at the Civil Registry Office. Marriage is not permitted below that age.

The same marriage rules apply to a Portuguese national marrying a foreign national as to two Portuguese nationals. The foreign partner must prove that they can marry, including through a certificate of capacity to marry when their country issues one. The certificate must be less than six months old when presented. I also explain the residence card for a spouse of an EU citizen in Portugal.

Before the ceremony, the registry examines whether there are impediments to the marriage. If it concludes that there are none, the marriage is authorised. Anyone who knows of an impediment may report it to the registry before the wedding, so the examination is a distinct stage in the process, not a formality to assume has already been completed.

Marriage and a de facto union are different ways of formalising a relationship. A de facto union is recognised through the parish council (junta de freguesia) where the couple lives, and the stated conditions include living together as a couple for more than two years. If you are considering marriage, you can review the legal assistance available for marriage in Portugal.

Starting the marriage file

The marriage process begins with a declaration that the couple wishes to marry. In that declaration, the couple states the form of marriage, the intended place and the matrimonial property regime. The process can be started at any Civil Registry Office, and the couple should organise it at least one month before the date they have chosen. For what happens after a wedding abroad, see how to register a foreign marriage in Portugal.

The process may be started by the couple, by proxies with special powers, or by a priest or minister of a religious community established in Portugal through a signed request. These are different ways to begin the process. If you plan to use a proxy, the document must meet the stated requirements for representation, and the file must still include the documents relevant to each partner.

The couple and the registrar agree on the date, time and location of the ceremony. A civil wedding can take place at a registry office during its usual opening hours. If you want a different venue or a time outside those hours, including a weekend or public holiday, agree the date and time with the registrar in advance.

After examining the file, the registry authorises the marriage if it finds no impediments. If it does not authorise the marriage, the couple is notified personally or by registered letter. Submitting the declaration is therefore a step in the process, while authorisation follows the registry’s examination of the file. If your marriage documents are rejected in Portugal, I explain the next steps after a rejection.

Authorisation, dates and the ceremony

The marriage must take place within six months of authorisation. This period starts when the marriage is authorised, not when the couple first begins preparing the file. The couple should plan the document preparation, requested date and ceremony arrangements together, while allowing for the steps involved in the registry’s examination.

The couple should organise the process at least one month before the chosen date. This is the stated period for organising the file in advance; the separate six-month period applies after authorisation. If a birth certificate is unavailable, seek legal advice about the documents you have before making plans that depend on how the registry will assess the file.

On the day of the civil ceremony, both partners must attend, or one partner may attend with the other’s proxy. Between two and four witnesses may take part, but witnesses are not compulsory. Anyone may attend the ceremony. These attendance rules help you plan who will be present, but they do not replace the documents required for the marriage process.

If the foreign partner does not know Portuguese and the registry employee does not know that partner’s language, an interpreter is appointed. This concerns communication during the registry process. It is separate from the written-document rules, which require certified Portuguese translations for documents not written in English, French or Spanish.

Important: A date requested by the couple is not the same as an authorised marriage. The registry must examine the file and authorise the marriage before the ceremony. If your birth certificate is unavailable, get legal advice on the documents you have before treating the date as settled or making arrangements that depend on a particular document being accepted.

Proxy marriage and representation

If one partner cannot attend the ceremony, the other partner may attend with that person’s proxy. The power of attorney may be made through an authenticated document, a public instrument prepared by a notary or a Portuguese consular officer, or a document signed by the represented partner with the signature formally acknowledged in person.

The power of attorney must identify the other partner by name, age, place of birth, habitual residence and parentage. It must also state the matrimonial property regime and the form of marriage, such as civil, Catholic or civil in religious form. Reviewing the wording before signature can help you check that the document contains the required information.

Representation concerns who may act for the absent partner and the choices stated in the power of attorney. The birth certificate is a separate document listed for foreign nationals. If one partner cannot attend and a birth certificate is also unavailable, have both matters reviewed together rather than assuming that the proxy resolves the document question.

I would have the power of attorney reviewed before it is signed, especially when one partner is outside Portugal. The document needs to identify the other partner and state the property regime and form of marriage. Legal assistance can also assess the available birth-certificate documents and help you prepare the distinct parts of the file.

Fees and matrimonial property

The standard fee for the marriage process and registration is €120. A non-urgent ceremony outside the registry office costs €200, as does a non-urgent ceremony at the registry office outside normal hours or on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday. A marriage considered urgent under the law costs €120.

When the registrar must travel to the ceremony venue, the couple must provide transport or pay the travel costs. A matrimonial property agreement can add another charge. The amount depends on whether the couple chooses a regime provided for in the Civil Code or defines a different regime within the limits of the law.

The table separates the main process and registration charge from additional costs for the ceremony or a property agreement. It does not include transport for the registrar. Check which ceremony arrangements and property choices apply to you when considering the cost of the marriage process.

The matrimonial property regime sets the rules for which assets are shared and which belong to each spouse. If the couple does not choose a different regime, the marriage is subject to the community of acquisitions regime. A prenuptial agreement can be made at a Civil Registry Office or by public deed at a notary’s office.

The couple states the chosen regime in the marriage declaration. If you are considering a regime other than community of acquisitions, legal advice can help you understand the agreement and the applicable charge before you submit the declaration. This is a separate decision from resolving the birth-certificate issue, even though both may be addressed while preparing the file.

Two situations to consider

Imagine a British national and a Portuguese national planning a civil wedding in Lisbon. The foreign partner’s listed documents include identification, a birth certificate issued under the law of that partner’s country and a certificate of capacity to marry if the country issues one. If presented, the capacity certificate must have been issued less than six months earlier.

If the foreign partner’s country does not issue a certificate of capacity to marry, the stated requirement is a declaration that the certificate is not issued. That declaration relates to the capacity certificate. If the birth certificate is unavailable too, a lawyer can assess the circumstances and the documents the partner does have, without assuming the declaration addresses both documents.

The couple then submits the marriage declaration, stating the form of marriage, intended place and matrimonial property regime, and agrees on the date and time with the registrar. The standard process and registration charge is €120. A non-urgent ceremony outside the registry or outside normal hours costs €200, and transport for the registrar is handled separately.

Now imagine two foreign nationals planning to marry in Portugal. Each partner’s listed documents include identification, a birth certificate issued under their country’s law and a certificate of capacity to marry if their country issues one. If a partner’s country does not issue the capacity certificate, that partner needs the specified declaration for that document.

For either couple, the process should be organised at least one month before the chosen date, and the marriage must take place within six months after authorisation. These are separate points in the timeline: one concerns organising the file, while the other starts after authorisation. If a birth certificate is unavailable, legal review can assess that issue alongside the remaining documents.

Prepare your documents before proceeding

If you are a foreigner who cannot get a birth certificate, begin with a clear account of why it is unavailable and a complete view of the documents you do have. The listed requirement for foreign nationals includes a birth certificate issued under the law of their country. The stated declaration for a country that does not issue a capacity certificate concerns that separate document.

A lawyer can review your circumstances, the available documents and the formalities that apply to them. The assessment can also cover the capacity certificate, translations, legalisation, representation by proxy and the matrimonial property regime. These are separate elements of the marriage process, and reviewing them together can help you prepare the file before submitting the declaration.

The Civil Registry Office examines the marriage file and authorises the marriage if it finds no impediments. Legal assistance can help you assess your documents and prepare the process, without promising that a particular document will be accepted or that the marriage will be authorised. You can hire legal support for your marriage in Portugal to review your circumstances and accompany the process.

About the author

Rodrigo Maranhão

I am a lawyer admitted to practise in Brazil, Portugal and Spain. At Vilanova Maranhão Advogados, in Lisbon, I help people from abroad who want to live in Portugal or Spain. I also know this reality as an immigrant: I have lived in Europe for almost ten years.

• Portuguese Bar Association (Ordem dos Advogados) · Registration no. 60554L
• Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) · Pernambuco · Registration no. 22.372
• Madrid Bar Association (ICAM) · Spain · Registration no. 144875