Marry at Home, Celebrate in Europe: How It Works, Step by Step
The short answer: All of our Europe eloping couples get married this way: You give your celebrant a Notice of Intended Marriage at least one month before your legal ceremony. You have a short legal ceremony in Australia with two witnesses. Your celebrant registers it, and you order your marriage certificate. Then you fly to Italy, France or anywhere in Europe and have the most beautiful symbolic ceremony, with no foreign paperwork. The legal ceremony can also happen after you get home.
Step 1: Book your celebrant
Choose a celebrant authorised in Australia. With Lovefool, that's Izzy. She does your legal ceremony at home, then runs your symbolic ceremony in Europe.
Step 2: Fill in the Notice of Intended Marriage
This is the form that tells the government you plan to marry. It's often called a NOIM.
Timing: it has to reach your celebrant at least one month before your legal ceremony, and no more than 18 months before.
What you'll need:
Proof of where and when you were born: a birth certificate, or a current passport.
Photo ID, like a driver's licence or passport.
If you've been married before: proof it ended, like a divorce certificate or a death certificate.
Who can witness you signing it in Australia: an authorised celebrant, a justice of the peace, a lawyer, a doctor, or a police officer. Since June 2024 this can be done over video call if you're both in Australia.
Tip: lodge it when you book. It stays valid for 18 months, so there's no reason to wait.
Step 3: Have your legal ceremony in Australia
This is the part that makes you legally married. It can be very short.
What has to happen:
Your celebrant is there.
Two witnesses aged 18 or over are there.
Your celebrant says certain words required by law.
You each say certain words required by law.
Everyone signs the paperwork.
What doesn't have to happen: a dress, guests, a venue, or anything that looks like a wedding. Plenty of couples do it in a lounge room, a park or a cafe.
When: most couples do it a few weeks before they fly, so the certificate has time to arrive. It can also happen after you get home. Both work with Lovefool.
What it looked like for one of our 2026 couples: they booked an Airbnb in Lake Macquarie and invited their parents for a weekend away. Emily and Izzy spent an hour and a half with them, doing the legal ceremony and some photos. Two months later we met them again in the south of France for the ceremony they'd planned.
Where, with Lovefool: anywhere in NSW, Izzy comes to you. If you live outside NSW, we'll help you find a local celebrant to do your legal ceremony, and you get a discount on your Lovefool package. Izzy still runs your ceremony in Europe.
Step 4: Get your marriage certificate
Your celebrant registers the marriage with Births, Deaths and Marriages. They have 14 days.
The certificate you sign on the day is a keepsake. For official things like changing your name, you'll need the official certificate from Births, Deaths and Marriages.
In NSW, you can order it online. Standard is $68 and takes up to 3 weeks. Priority is $101 and takes up to 2 weeks. Allow 5 to 7 days for postage.
Other states have their own fees and times.
Step 5: Change your name, if you want to
With an Australian marriage certificate, you can update your name with the usual places.
Before the trip, don't change the name on your passport. Your flights need to be booked in the name on your passport. Change it once you're home.
Step 6: Fly to Europe and have your ceremony
This is the ceremony that feels like your wedding. Because the legal part happens at home:
You can say your vows anywhere you're allowed to be: a villa terrace, a boat, a cliff top, a quiet street at sunrise.
Your vows can say whatever you want. There's no required wording.
You don't need local witnesses, interpreters, or a town hall appointment, whichever country you choose.
It can be just the two of you, or your people.
Is a symbolic ceremony a real wedding?
It's the one your family watches, the one in the photos, and the one where you say the vows you wrote. The legal part happens at home, before or after. Most couples say the ceremony overseas is the one that felt like their wedding.
Timeline at a glance
When you book: lodge the Notice of Intended Marriage.
At least 1 month later: the legal ceremony in Australia can happen.
Up to 14 days after: your celebrant registers your marriage.
Straight after registration: order your official certificate.
Before you fly: check passports. Don't change your passport name.
Your date: your ceremony in Europe. Lovefool's set dates are Lake Como from late August to early September 2027 and Sicily in mid-September 2027.
Doing the legal ceremony after the trip? Swap the order: ceremony in Europe first, then the legal ceremony at home, at least one month after lodging your Notice.
For real dates worked backwards from 2027, read Your Legal Wedding Timeline for a European Elopement.
Frequently asked questions
Can we do the legal ceremony after we get back?
Yes. Some couples prefer to have the legal ceremony after the trip, and that's completely fine with us. The Notice of Intended Marriage still has to be lodged at least one month before the legal ceremony. You just won't be legally married until that ceremony happens.
Do we need guests at the legal ceremony?
You need two witnesses aged 18 or over. That's all. With Lovefool, Emily can be one of them.
We don't live in NSW. Can we still do this with Lovefool?
Yes. We'll help you find a celebrant near you for the legal ceremony, and you get a discount on your Lovefool package. Izzy runs your ceremony in Europe.
Can we lodge the Notice of Intended Marriage if we're not in Newcastle?
Yes. Since June 2024 it can be witnessed over video call, as long as you're in Australia.
Is our ceremony overseas legally binding?
No, it's symbolic. The legal ceremony in Australia is the one that makes you married.
Will we get an Australian marriage certificate?
Yes. That's one of the main reasons couples choose this option. A marriage done overseas can't be registered in Australia.
About the author
Izzy is an authorised Australian marriage celebrant (Hitched by Hazell) and one half of Lovefool Elopements in Newcastle, NSW. She handles the legal ceremony at home and the ceremony in Europe for Lovefool couples. Izzy and Emily have worked together for years and have married many couples.