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Legal Requirements for Civil Weddings in Mexico
In Mexico the only marriage that is legally valid is the civil ceremony, which is performed by an officer of the Registro Civil, the Mexican equivalent of the Registrar General's Office. By planning ahead and getting a few documents together, filling in a few forms and paying a few fees, your Puerto Vallarta wedding ceremony will be completely legal in your home country.
Listed below are the required documents needed for foreign citizens who wish to be legally married in Mexico. All documents must be translated by an authorized translator in Puerto Vallarta, which is included in the service we provide. You should acquire these documents and send them to your Adventure Wedding coordinator at least one month before the ceremony to allow time for translation.
It is very important once you arrive in Puerto Vallarta that you take care of your blood work in order to insure the requirements needed below. That part of the process must be done at least 2-3 days prior to the legal ceremony. Legal weddings in Puerto Vallarta currently cost $595 USD. [Rate is subject to change.] The wedding ceremony is performed in Spanish, and a translator is included in the price.
Due to the location of Las Caletas, and the municipality it falls under, we are not permitted to perform legal ceremonies outside of the judge's quarters. Therefore, all of our civil ceremonies are performed at our garden offices in Nuevo Vallarta, Nayarit. It is a separate ceremony from your Las Caletas vow exchange, and it will be an intimate affair involving you, your spouse, your witnesses and the judge.
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Documents required by Mexican Law & the Civil office in the State of Nayarit
[You must present the originals, so make two copies of every document]- Application for Wedding License (provided by Adventure Weddings) Application must be fully completed, with witness names and all spouse and family information.
- Original Birth Certificates: Official copies of your birth certificates will first need to be sent to our wedding coordinator, preferably 3 months before your wedding date. You must also bring the originals with you to Mexico.
- Photocopies and originals of the couple´s valid tourist cards (FMTs/visas, which are given to you on your flight to Puerto Vallarta) and valid passports. If you do not have a passport, your apostilized birth certificate and a valid driver's license (with photo) will suffice.
- Death certificate of spouse, if applicable: If you are widowed, one full year must elapse from date of the death of previous spouse and a certified copy of spouse's death certificate must be presented.
- Divorce papers, if applicable: If you are divorced, one full year must elapse from date of the divorce from the previous spouse, and the final dissolution of marriage must be verified with a certified copy of the divorce decree.
- A blood test must be taken once you arrive in Puerto Vallarta [These tests must be taken no more than 14 days before wedding date.] Tests must include STDs, blood type, and Rh factor. If you go in early in the day, the tests will usually be ready the same afternoon. The blood tests currently cost about $100 USD per couple, but prices are subject to change.
- Four witnesses, age 18 or older. They can be either Mexican or foreign citizens, as long as they bring valid identification (passport or, in the case of Mexican citizen, valid voter registration card.) However, if the witnesses are foreign, they must bring the original as well as copies of their valid tourist card/visa. The parents of the couple may not serve as witnesses to the marriage.
Please note that we are working in the state of Nayarit for our legal marriage requirements. We do not perform the legal marriages in the state of Jalisco, due to the extra steps and details needed to complete the process.
Also, these marriage requirements are for two foreign citizens. If one of the people to be married is a Mexican citizen, the process is lengthy and you will need to present your papers to the Instituto Nacional de Migración in advance. We recommend applying through the Guadalajara immigration office. The foreign citizen must apply to request permission to marry the Mexican citizen, and if permission is granted, the wedding must take place within 30 days.
In order to marry a Mexican citizen, you will need to submit the following paperwork to immigration:- Completed permission form
- Original and copy of your valid tourist card (FMT) or visa
- Original and copies of each page of your valid passport
- Original and two copies of the payment for processing (see the IMS for paperwork needed to place the payment)
- Letter signed by both bride and groom, stating their intention to marry.
- Original and copy of identification of the Mexican citizen, accrediting his/her nationality as such
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