Marriage Licences

Marriage ceremonies

Did you know that the Township of Southwold can conduct marriage ceremonies? We are able to perform them either at the Township office during regular business hours, or at an off-site location.

Marriage licences

To apply for a marriage licence, please complete the Marriage Licence Application and book an appointment by telephone at 519-769-2010 or email. Appointments are required to issue marriage licences.

The application is available for pick-up at the Township Office, during regular business hours.

Both parties getting married will need to fill out and sign the application.

Fee

The fee for a resident of Southwold, including a parent of the applicant, is $100.00. The fee for non-residents of Southwold is $110.00. You can pay by debit, credit card, cheque or cash at the Township Office.

The fee for a marriage ceremony at the Township office is $250.00. For off-site ceremonies, the fee is $350.00 plus mileage.

Eligibility

Both parties need to bring 2 forms of valid identification and, if one of you cannot attend, the other person can bring both sets of ID.

We can only accept certain valid photo identification, including:

Bring your ID (BYID) or Age of majority card;
Birth certificate;
Canadian Citizenship card;
Canadian Government Refugee Travel document;
Driver's Licence;
Ontario Photo card;
Passport;
Permanent Residency card;
United States Green card

A full list of Valid ID can be found here.

Additional requirements

Please review these additional requirements before you apply for a marriage licence.

Divorce documentation

You must bring an original or certified true copy of your Certificate of Divorce, if you have been divorced. We cannot accept a Divorce Judgement. We need special approval from the Registrar General, if the divorce happened outside of Canada.

Minors

We need a signed consent form from a parent, if an applicant is under the age of 17 years old. You can get the form at the Township office, by contacting the CAO/Clerk by email, or by calling 519-769-2010.

Changing your name

Please visit a Service Ontario location with your Marriage Certificate to change you name on your identification.

You have three (3) options for changing your name in Ontario:

Legally changing your name after marriage;
Legally changing back your previous name after divorce;
Assuming your spouse's name after marriage

Your name does not change on your Ontario Birth Registration when you assume your spouse's name. You can change your name on documents such as your health card, driver's licence, and Ontario photo card at no cost.