Licences & Registrations

Marriages

You must have a marriage licence before you can be legally married in the Province of Ontario. You can apply for a marriage licence online through Service Ontario. To apply for a civil marriage solemnization please contact the Town of South Bruce Peninsula municipal office. Marriage certificates and name changes are issued by the Province of Ontario.

Marriage Licences

Marriage Certificates

You can access a Marriage Certificate Application through Service Ontario for a marriage that is registered in the Province of Ontario.

Change Your Name

You can assume your spouse’s name. Once you are married, you can use your spouses name or you can hyphenate your name to use as your surname. When you assume a spouse’s last name after marriage, it does not change the name on your Ontario birth registration (and birth certificate). You should change all of your identification documents to reflect the new last name. Note: some places will not accept your assumption and will require documentation which shows that you are legally married to the person whose name you have assumed.

You may want to legally change your surname. To do this, a Change of Name form must be filed with the Office of the Registrar General. If filed within 90 days after your marriage there is no fee. When you legally change your name, you will no longer be known by your former name.

For further information please visit Service Ontario.

Civil Marriage Solemnization

The Town of South Bruce Peninsula is pleased to offer Civil Marriage Solemnization services for applicants who want to have a ceremony without religious references. Below you will find guidelines which will help you to decide if a civil ceremony is right for you. Please make sure that you read the guidelines carefully.

We ask that you particularly note that if you want to book one of our Solemnizers:

• first, contact a Solemnizer to see if they are available on the date and at the time you want to get married. You will need to give them a proposed ceremony location so that they can decide if they are able to perform your ceremony.
• if you are going to contact more than one Solemnizer to see who you would prefer, please tell each one that you contact that you are contacting others. This helps the Solemnizers to schedule their time.
• complete the required application form and submit it to Town Hall along with the payment at least five days before the ceremony. Ideally, you would submit the form and fee giving as much notice as possible – you won’t be able to work with a Solemnizer on your ceremony until payment and the completed form have been received and accepted at Town Hall.

Service Ontario reminds those getting married to make sure that the person performing the ceremony is legally authorized to do so.

Civil Marriage Solemnization Guidelines and Application

Weddings on Municipal Property

Please contact the Town Parks, Recreation and Culture Department to inquire about renting Town property.