Marriage Act 1949 (c. 76)

Part II U.K. Marriage according to Rites of the Church of England

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 Pt. II applied by Sharing of Church Buildings Act 1969 (c. 38), s. 6(2)

Preliminary E+W

5 Methods of authorising marriages. E+W

A marriage according to the rites of the Church of England may be solemnized—

(a) after the publication of banns of matrimony;

(b) on the authority of a special licence of marriage granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury or any other person by virtue of the M1 Ecclesiastical Licences Act, 1533 (in this Act referred to as a “special licence”);

(c) on the authority of a licence of marriage (other than a special licence) granted by an ecclesiastical authority having power to grant such a licence (in this Act referred to as a “common licence”); or

(d) on the authority of [F1 certificates] issued by a superintendent registrar under Part III of this Act

[F2 except that paragraph (a) of this section shall not apply in relation to the solemnization of any marriage mentioned in subsection (2) of section 1 of this Act.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 5(d) substituted (1.1.2001) by 1999 c. 33, s. 169(1), Sch. 14 paras. 3, 5; S.I. 2000/2698, art. 2

F2 Words added by Marriage (Prohibited Degrees of Relationship) Act 1986 (c. 16, SIF 49:1), s. 1(4)(6), Sch. 1 para. 3

Marginal Citations

M1 1533 c. 21.

[F3 5A Marriages between certain persons related by affinity. E+W

No clergyman shall be obliged—

(a) to solemnize a marriage which, apart from the Marriage (Prohibited Degrees of Relationship) Act 1986 [F4 or the Marriage Act 1949 (Remedial) Order 2007], would have been void by reason of the relationship of the persons to be married; or

(b) to permit such a marriage to be solemnized in the church or chapel of which he is the minister.]

Textual Amendments

F3 S. 5A inserted by Marriage (Prohibited Degrees of Relationship) Act 1986 (c. 16, SIF 49:1), s. 3

F4 Words in s. 5A inserted (1.3.2007) by The Marriage Act 1949 (Remedial) Order 2007 (S.I. 2007/438), arts. 1(1), 2(b) (with art. 1(2))

[F5 5B Marriages involving person of acquired gender E+W

(1) A clergyman is not obliged to solemnise the marriage of a person if the clergyman reasonably believes that the person’s gender has become the acquired gender under the Gender Recognition Act 2004.

(2) A clerk in Holy Orders of the Church in Wales is not obliged to permit the marriage of a person to be solemnised in the church or chapel of which the clerk is the minister if the clerk reasonably believes that the person’s gender has become the acquired gender under that Act.]

Textual Amendments

F5 S. 5B inserted (4.4.2005) by Gender Recognition Act 2004 (c. 7), s. 26, Sch. 4 para. 3; S.I. 2005/54, art. 2