PAPERWORK REQUIREMENTS FOR U.S. CITIZENS IN ITALY

US CITIZENS planning to marry in Italy must present certain documents and comply with specific requirements in order to obtain a marriage license. The documents required and the procedure to follow are described below :

Passport for a civilian, birth certificate and permission to marry issued by the Commander in case the bride or the groom is serving a Military Corp.

If applicable, evidence of the termination of any previous marriage such as final divorce decree, annulment decree or death certificate. Sworn Statement by parents or legal guardian consenting to the marriage if the person is under 18.

TO BE DONE IN ITALY: Declaration, sworn to by the US citizen at US Consulate stating that there is no legal impediment to his/her obstacle. Your legal status must be such that you can legally marry another person under Italian and US Law. After obtaining the declaration from the Consulate, it must be taken to the Prefecture to be authenticated (legalized), as described in the following paragraph. TO BE DONE IN ITALY: Authentication (legalization) of the aforesaid declaration must be done by the Legalization office of the Prefecture. Usual office hours are from 10am to 1pm Monday through Saturday. The required legalization can be obtained at any Prefecture. There is one in every provincial capital.

THESE TWO ABOVE STEPS ONLY TAKE A FEW MINUTES AND CAN BE ARRANGED FOR THE SAME MORNING OR AFTERNOON IN ONE OF THE 5 CONSULATES THROUGHOUT ITALY.

OUR STAFF ACCOMPANIES YOU THROUGHOUT.

ATTO NOTORIO. This is a declaration, in addition to the sworn statement described under point 4 stating that according to the laws to which the citizen is subject in the United states there is no obstacle to his/her marriage. This declaration is to be sworn to by two witnesses (a witness may be if any nationality, but must be over 18, with proper identification), before an Italian Consul outside of Italy, or in Italy before a Court official. US citizens coming to Italy to get married are urged to obtain this declaration for a Consul of Italy, before leaving the United States. In Italy an appointment should be arranged in advance. A fee of Eur. 50,00 is charged.

A woman whose previous was terminated within the last 300 days must obtain a waver from the Procura della Repubblica (District Attorney), which is issued on presentation of a medical certificate that she is not pregnant.

BANNS AND MARRIAGE CEREMONY

However banns are automatically waived if neither party of the marriage is an Italian citizen or a resident in Italy.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

It is also emphasized that the documentation listed at the beginning of the information sheet should be procured in the order in which it appears.

All documents originating outside Italy (Birth Certificate, Divorce Decree, etc...) MUST BE TRANSLATED INTO ITALIAN. Both the original documents and the translations MUST BE LEGALIZED for use in Italy with so-called "APOSTILLE" stamp, in accordance with the Hague Convention on the legalization of foreign public documents. In the USA, the "Apostille" stamp is placed by the Secretary of State in the State where the document was issued.

Under Italian law, all public documents - regardless of their origin, are considered to be VALID FOR ONLY 6 MONTHS from the date of issue. Americans are therefore advised to make sure that all documents to be submitted to Italian authorities have not been issued more than six months ahead of the marriage.