How to get married in Portugal and how to have a marriage concluded abroad recognised
A guide for those who want to get married in Portugal or are already married and want a foreign marriage to be recognised by the Portuguese authorities. Below is what to do step by step, which documents are usually requested and where people most often get stuck.
First decide what exactly you need: registering a marriage in Portugal or transcribing an existing one
These are two different processes. If you are not married yet, you need to file an application for casamento at the Conservatória do Registo Civil (civil registry office), after which a date for the ceremony will be set.
If the marriage has already been concluded in another country, for many purposes a foreign marriage certificate with an apostille and a translation is enough. But if you need the marriage to appear in the Portuguese register, you need a transcrição de casamento at the Conservatória do Registo Civil (entering the marriage in the Portuguese register). This is especially important when you are planning tax, civil, family or inheritance procedures in Portugal later on.
“No. You need to get an apostille on the certificate. Get a certified translation. Then IRN accepts a translation certified by a notary/conservador/lawyer/solicitador or the consulate. If you specifically need the marriage to appear in the Portuguese register, rather than just presenting the document to some office, you need to go to the Conservatória do Registo Civil to register/transcribe the marriage.”
Translated from Russian; the original is at the linkRussosEmPortugal22.08.2026
If you are getting married in Portugal, first check the list of documents at your own Conservatória
Practice differs between registry offices. It is better to check in advance with the Conservatória do Registo Civil where you want to get married which documents are needed in your particular case: passports, birth certificates, certificates of marital status, translations, an interpreter and the choice of property regime.
Do not rely only on someone else's list: large and central registry offices are often stricter. If one of the spouses does not speak Portuguese, they may ask for an interpreter even when you submit the documents.
“At the big registry offices (for example the central one in lisbon) you need the marriage certificate with an apostille and an official translation, the birth certificate with an apostille and a translation, cartão de cidadão. We went as walk-ins in lisbon - it took about 5 hours in the queue.”
Translated from Russian; the original is at the linkru_Portugal_pt20.08.2024
Prepare your foreign documents: you usually need an apostille and a certified translation into Portuguese
For foreign documents, Portuguese authorities usually require an apostille, if the country issues one under the Hague Convention, and a translation into Portuguese. The translation itself must be done in a way that IRN (Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado, the Institute of Registries and Notaries) will accept: certified by a notary, a conservador, a lawyer, a solicitador or a consulate, depending on how it is done.
If the document comes from a country where an apostille is difficult or impossible to obtain, the matter is resolved under that country's rules and through alternative legalisation, if available. It is better to check this separately before applying, because this is the step where people lose the most time.
For a marriage in Portugal, discuss the property regime and a possible convenção antenupcial in advance
When registering the marriage you will be asked to choose a property regime: community of property, separation of property and other options provided for by law. Sometimes a convenção antenupcial (a prenuptial agreement on the property regime) is drawn up for this and then registered at the Conservatória.
If you do not speak Portuguese, they may insist on an interpreter to confirm that you understand which regime you are choosing and under which law you are marrying. This is not a formality: doubts on this point can halt the process and lead to requests for additional papers.
“You can make a prenuptial agreement listing the assets that belonged to you before the marriage. They are not subject to division.”
Translated from Russian; the original is at the linkRussosEmPortugal03.04.2026
Apply at the Conservatória do Registo Civil and wait for the registration date to be set
Usually they first accept the documents and open the process, and only then set the date of the ceremony itself. So it is often not a single visit where you ‘come in and get married’, but at least two stages.
After you apply, the registry office checks the documents, the translations, your marital status and that there are no impediments to the marriage. How long it takes depends on how busy the particular office is and on whether all your documents are in order.
If you married abroad and need a Portuguese record, apply for transcrição de casamento
For a transcription you usually go to the Conservatória do Registo Civil. The basic logic is this: you bring the foreign marriage certificate, its apostille/legalisation, the translation and the spouses' documents. Once the record is entered, the marriage appears in the Portuguese register, and local procedures become easier to deal with.
Important: do not confuse simply presenting a certificate to an authority with transcription itself. For AIMA, a bank or another authority a translated certificate is sometimes enough. But entering the marriage in the Portuguese register requires a separate process.
Check whether you are being asked for a ‘recent’ marriage certificate
This is one of the most variable points. Under more recent practice, migration and related procedures often require a marriage certificate issued no earlier than 6 months before the application. Previously this was not applied everywhere or always, but in 2026 the requirements have clearly become stricter.
Even if your document is old but the marriage itself has not changed, you may still be asked to obtain a new certificate in the country where the marriage was registered, and then get a new apostille and translation. It is best to check this right before applying to the relevant authority.
“Applied today in Madeira with my husband. The original application was through Barcelona. We got a very nice woman who took documents from both of us with jokes and banter and did it within an hour. The appointment was at 9:00 and they saw us exactly at that time. Documents she asked for: 1. Employment contract + letter from the employer 2. Payslips 3. Bank statement showing salary payments 4. Bank statement with savings 5. Rental contract 6. The latest recibo 7. Modelo 2 8. She took the landlord's declaration but said that when there's a rental contract, recibos and modelo 2 it isn't needed at all. 9. Forms,”
Translated from Russian; the original is at the linkdigitalnomadportugal16.07.2026
After registering the marriage or the transcription, order a Portuguese certidão if you need it later
Once the marriage has been registered in Portugal or entered in the Portuguese register, subsequent procedures usually use the certidão de casamento (the Portuguese marriage certificate/extract). It is often requested for visa, family, civil and tax matters.
If you are going on to arrange documents for a spouse or a child, apply for citizenship or change your details, it is easier to have an up-to-date certidão straight away and, if necessary, order a fresh one closer to the application date.
“I did this for my sister and a friend. A visitor visa. You start by booking. Grab a slot at the call centre. The website there also has the full list of documents and the invitation form that the person inviting signs. If your husband is making the invitation, you need the Portuguese marriage certificate and an explanation of why he's inviting rather than you. In free form. We didn't have it at first, the consulate asked for it later. With my sister they also asked for proof that we're related. If you're making the invitation yourself with a residence permit, you need proof of address, a certificate from the junta.”
Translated from Russian; the original is at the linkchatalgarve25.03.2025
“We did it differently))) went to the registo civil, I handed in all the documents (I'm Ukrainian on temporary protection, handed that in, the marriage certificate with a translation, a certificate from the junta that we live at the address and since what date, and the declaração from the maternity hospital.), after that they issued the birth certificate and right away, with the same officer, the citizenship. About 10-12 days later a letter with the codes arrived in the post box. With that letter I went and picked up the citizen card and immediately applied for a passport.”
Translated from Russian; the original is at the linkberemennost_portugal07.10.2025
If your surname changed after marriage, update your details separately with AIMA and other systems
After the marriage, or after a foreign marriage is recognised, you may need to update your surname and marital status with AIMA (Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo, the migration agency), Finanças (the tax office), your bank and other services.
For AIMA this is usually done through the Formulário de Contacto (online contact form), to which you attach your passport, your valid residence card and the document confirming the change of surname — for example, the marriage certificate with an apostille and a certified translation.
“This procedure is usually done through the online form ‘Formulário de Contacto’ on the AIMA website. Under the subject (‘Assunto’) you choose ‘Autorização de Residência’ and the subsection ‘Alteração de Dados’. You attach scans of your passport, your valid residence permit and the document confirming the change of surname (for example, the marriage certificate, the apostille and a certified translation). When filling in the form you need to state the reason for the change of surname (marriage or divorce certificate) and attach the required documents. AIMA will process the request and update the details in its system. Then a new Título/Cartão de Residência will be issued.”
Translated from Russian; the original is at the linkRussosEmPortugal17.05.2026
For taxes and other local procedures, check in advance whether you need a Portuguese marriage record specifically
In practice people often assume that a foreign certificate is enough everywhere, but that is not always the case. For some procedures a translation and an apostille are enough, while for others it is more convenient, or strictly necessary, for the marriage to already be in the Portuguese register.
This applies especially to joint family matters in Portugal: taxes, invitations, children's documents and sometimes migration procedures. If you are planning such steps, it is better not to put off the transcription.
What it costs, according to community conversations
| Certificate/paperwork in a complicated case for a same-sex couple | a couple of hundred euros or more | source |
| residence permit application | €21 | source |
What to bring
- Passport or cartão de cidadão (citizen card), if you have one
- Foreign marriage certificate, if the marriage has already been concluded
- Birth certificate, if your Conservatória requires it
- Apostille on foreign documents, if applicable
- Certified translation of the documents into Portuguese
- Documents on marital status/divorce/death of a previous spouse, if applicable
- Details for choosing the property regime
- An interpreter, if one of the spouses does not speak Portuguese and the registry office requires it
- Portuguese certidão de casamento, if the marriage has already been registered or transcribed and you need the document later
Where people most often trip up
- People confuse a simple translation of the certificate with transcrição de casamento: they are not the same thing.
- They do not check the requirements of their own Conservatória in advance — and these differ between cities and even between staff.
- They bring an old marriage certificate when the authority requires one no older than 6 months.
- They get the apostille but have the translation done in a form that IRN then does not accept.
- They do not think the property regime through in advance, and the process stalls because of it.
- They come without an interpreter, although the officer believes that informed consent cannot be confirmed without one.
- They think that after the marriage all systems will update by themselves — usually the surname and details have to be changed separately.
How it went for people
A Georgian certificate was accepted for a DN visa
The couple booked a DN visa appointment for 5 April, submitted the documents on 15 April, got approval on 9 July and the visas on 15 July. For the accompanying spouse, a Georgian marriage certificate issued just over a year earlier was accepted without further questions. Before that the couple spent more than a year looking for a slot in Serbia and tried applying through Turkey and other countries; the whole journey took 3.5 years and 5 countries.
An old certificate was accepted after being checked at the consulate
The spouses submitted their documents in Madeira after originally applying through Barcelona. They were seen at exactly 9:00 and the documents for both of them were processed within an hour. The marriage certificate from June 2025 was accepted: the officer explained that it had already been shown as current at the consulate in Barcelona.
Marrying after the birth did not confirm paternity
The parents applied in Portugal for Russian citizenship and a passport for their child. The Portuguese marriage certificate was not accepted because the parents married after the child was born. The other documents were accepted, the passport cost €14 paid by card, and either parent was allowed to collect it about a week later without the child.
A wife cannot interpret for her husband — she is an interested party
The couple went to the Conservatória do Registo Civil (civil registry office) in Vila Real with their residence permits and papers from the maternity hospital. The wife speaks a little Portuguese, the husband none at all — and they were asked for a translated marriage certificate and the documents of an official interpreter: the wife cannot interpret for her husband because she is an interested party. They found an interpreter, brought everything, heard ‘we'll call you back and set an appointment’ — and then a week of silence.
The marriage certificate ‘hadn't loaded’ — a manual check helped
The couple married at a consulate in December. When they needed a duplicate certificate from the Russian civil registry office to get an apostille, they were told the data had not loaded yet and might appear within a year. Appeals to the consulate, the registry archive and the consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs got nowhere, and the couple were already planning to go and register the marriage in Georgia. Advice from the chat helped: on the Gosuslugi portal, in the section on family and children, you can enter the certificate details manually, ignoring the warning that only certificates obtained in Russia can be entered, and click ‘request a check with the registry office’. She entered the details on a Saturday, ‘certificate not found’ stayed all weekend, and on Monday, after a repeat request, the certificate was found.
Retold in our own words from messages in open chats. The link leads to the full original message.