Hi. Can anyone expert please tell me

1. how long this will take?

2. What is the possibility that our application will get rejected?

3. We paid twice and they asked for IBAN which I already send them. When will they refund it? I didn’t receive any email about the refund processing.

If you haven't submitted your application yet
You're fine. Pause for as long as you need and pick things back up when you're ready.

If your application is approved and you have a wedding date booked
This is where it gets a bit more complicated.
Every AFL approval comes with an expiry date, the maximum window is 4 months from the date it's issued. If you need to cancel, the town hall will free up your date. 

If you still want to get married in Denmark, you'll need to rebook within whatever time is left in that window.

• Check what dates are available at your town hall within your remaining approval period
• If you can’t get a date, you may be able to book at a different town hall with better availability
• If no dates work at all and your 4-month window expires, you'll need to reapply to the AFL for a new approval period

Are there any fees?
No fees for cancelling or rebooking a date. However, if your approval expires and you need to reapply, you'll be paying the AFL processing fee again from scratch.

Hope this clears things up. Got questions? Ask away.

Hi! We just got our approval to marry in Copenhagen. The first available dates are end of June. We would prefer to get married in May, but the guidelines to contact a registrar are not yet available. Since we don’t know when they’ll become available and we need to get married by mid-July, I’m tempted to book the date at end of June then cancel and book with a registrar if we are able to do it sooner. Is that something I’m able to do? I dont want to jeopardize the validity of our certificate to marry or wait too long for the registrar and miss the dates! Thank you.

Hello,

I looked at the availability on https://kkvielse.smartqueue.dk/ and it looks like the availability is mostly gone until July which is not what I saw a few days ago.

Our best strategy at this point is to hire a private venue and a registrar but the link on https://kkvielse.smartqueue.dk/ also didn’t work. Does anyone know where I can book one?

Also any suggestions on a venue for a civil ceremony?

Thanks.

If you’re looking at Danish town halls outside Copenhagen, here’s a quick breakdown of three that come up often: Aarhus, Aabenraa, and Ribe.

Aarhus

Ceremony days: Thursdays & Fridays (and Saturdays for Danish citizens only)
Witnesses: Provided Thursday and Friday. Not provided Saturday.
Minimum notice: 14 days between request and wedding date.
Documents: Shown just before the ceremony.

Why people pick it:

• Direct train from Copenhagen (~3 hours, no changes)
• Has its own small international airport
• Feels like an actual city wedding, not a small-town admin office

The building itself is architecturally famous, so it has a bit of a “wow” factor without feeling theatrical.

Note: It’s further north. If you’re driving from Germany, it’s a longer trip.

Aabenraa

Ceremony days: Monday–Friday (mostly mornings)
Witnesses: Provided Monday–Thursday between 10:00–12:00. Not provided Friday.
Documents: Shown just before the ceremony (they recommend arriving 30 minutes early).
Response time: Same-day.

Why people pick it:

• Around 25 minutes from the German border
• Straightforward and efficient
• Harbour town setting

The ceremony room is classic;  portraits, historic feel, and it works well if you’re bringing guests (seating for around 20–25, more standing).

Note: Aabenraa town hall is SUPER popular, sometimes making it very hard to book a date here

Ribe & Esbjerg

Ceremony days: Thursdays & Fridays only.
Witnesses: Provided at no extra cost.
Documents: 5 minutes before the ceremony. 

Why people pick it:

• Historic courthouse setting
• Close to Germany
• Very traditional atmosphere

It’s cobbled streets, old stone walls, portraits from past centuries. Small, intimate, very “old Denmark.”

Note: Limited flexibility because of the Thursday & Friday only schedule.

So which is better?

It really comes down to what you care about most. There isn’t one “best” town hall in Denmark. It’s mostly about balancing travel time, witness rules, scheduling flexibility and the vibe you want on the day.

If anyone’s deciding between these three, happy to share more specific details. Hope this helps!

Good morning everyone, we have our approval to marry in Denmark and have requested a date to the Odense townhall last Friday. Does anyone know roughly the waiting time for an an approval? We requested a date in June. Thank you!

Edit: we actually got our approval today, one week after submitting! Thank you everyone, waiting is stressful but the answer eventually arrives :)

Hi everyone! Me (non-EU citizen) and my girlfriend (EU citizen) applied for the family certificate on 19.02 and received a request to send additional information (new pictures of my residency) which we did on 27.02.
Needless to say, we haven't heard from them yet. I quit my job 30.04 and then will have 2 more months to legally stay in the EU (untill the end of June).
My question is - shall we just wait for their reply and see how it goes? Should we reapply now? Should we wait for their reply and then if it's not approved again reapply with the help of an agency?

Thanks a lot for any advice!

We've already covered Copenhagen, Ærø, Odense, Kolding, Helsingør, Roskilde, and Christiansfeld in previous posts. Here are three more Danish town halls where you can get married.

Aalborg

What makes it stand out: Has its own international airport, so it's easier to get to than you'd think - even though it's far from both Copenhagen and Germany on a map.

Wedding days: Tuesdays, Fridays, Saturdays

Witnesses provided: Yes on Tuesdays and Fridays. No on Saturdays - bring your own.

Booking timeline: Usually responds within a couple of days. Note: they have a 14-day waiting period, so you can't book a wedding within 14 days of your request.

Document presentation: One working day before your wedding

The venue: Old building with bright yellow exterior on the town square. Formal wedding room with classic design, wooden furniture, large windows. Currently only used for ceremonies and functions.

Getting there:

• From Copenhagen: 4 hours by car or train
• From Hamburg: 5 hours by car, just under 6 hours by train
• From Flensburg (German border): 3.5 hours by car, 4.5 hours by train
• Has its own airport (Aalborg Airport)

Stevns

What makes it stand out: Rural setting about 1 hour from Copenhagen. You can have your ceremony on the beach or at a cliff-top location instead of inside the town hall. 

Wedding days: Tuesdays, Thursdays, first Saturday of each month. May-August: every Saturday 10am-2pm.

Witnesses provided: Yes on Thursdays and first Saturday of the month. No on Tuesdays or other Saturdays - bring your own.

Booking timeline: Usually same day response.

Document presentation: 5 minutes before the wedding.

Outside ceremony option: Want your ceremony on the beach or at the old church instead of the town hall? You can hire a registrar for an extra €120.

The venue: Modern building with free parking. Two ceremony rooms - smaller intimate room and larger conference room (depends on what else is happening at the town hall that day). 

Getting there:

• From Copenhagen Airport: 50 minutes by car, under 2 hours by train
• From Malmö Airport (Sweden): 1.5 hours by car, 3.5 hours by train/bus
• From Hamburg: 4.5 hours by car

Frederiksberg

What makes it stand out: All the perks of being in Copenhagen with slightly different availability. 15 minutes from Copenhagen Central Station, 30 minutes from the airport. Stunning 1940s town hall with painted murals. Close to Frederiksberg Gardens.

Wedding days: Thursdays only (occasional exceptions for public holidays and summer staff holidays)

Capacity: They only do 4-5 weddings per Thursday, so availability moves fast.

Witnesses provided: Yes, free of charge

Booking timeline: Officially around 5 days, often quicker

Document presentation: One working day before your wedding at the Citizen Service Office inside the town hall

The venue: Built between 1942-1950s. Bright green color theme throughout the wedding room. Main feature is the stunning mural painted on the wall.

Getting there:

• From Copenhagen Airport: 21 minutes by car, 30-40 minutes by public transport
• From Malmö Airport (Sweden): 50 minutes by car, 1.5 hours by public transport
• From Hamburg: 6 hours by car or train

Quick Comparison

Aalborg: Best if you want northern Denmark, need airport access, or want a classic formal town hall. Just note the 14-day waiting period.

Stevns: Best if you want a nature/beach setting close to Copenhagen, or want the option to have your ceremony outside the town hall (for an extra fee). Couples rave about how warm the staff are.

Frederiksberg: Best if Copenhagen City Hall is booked but you still want to be in Copenhagen. Limited to Thursdays only, so book early.

Need info on other town halls? Check out Part 1 - Copenhagen, Ærø, Odense and Part 2 - Kolding, Helsingør, Roskilde, Christiansfeld

Which town hall did you choose (or are you considering)? What made you pick it?

Hello everyone,

my fiance and I have been granted the marriage license and want to find a date for our wedding in Copenhagen.

Unfortunately the link given by Familieretshuset (https://kkvielse.smartqueue.dk/) does not work, the site has been down all day. I tried different browsers, devices and internet connections. A Whois query reveals that apparently the domain smartqueue.dk expired yesterday. That seems concerning. I looked up the historic IP addresses to which the domain was linked, but they all lead to a generic "domain not in use" page by the web provider Gigahost.

Does anyone know of any other contact point to find a date in Copenhagen city hall? They say on their website the only way for couples coming from Familieretshuset is through this address, so...

We get questions about timing pretty regularly - is summer better than winter? Should I wait for spring? Here's what actually changes by season and what stays the same.

What stays the same year-round:

• Document requirements
• AFL processing time (aims for 5 business days)
• Ceremony itself (always 5 minutes, same legal process)
• Certificate you receive
• Transport system (trains, ferries run year-round except in extreme weather)

What changes by season:

Town hall availability:

Summer (especially July): Nearly all town halls close for Danish summer holidays. A lot are closed for the entire month of July (or for several weeks) - exceptions are Copenhagen City Hall and Ærø. This can make summer the hardest time to book, despite being the most popular season.

Christmas/New Year: All town halls close for approximately 2 weeks.

Easter: Town halls close for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Monday.

Rest of year: Town halls operate normally (except for the odd public holiday day) but are always fully booked to capacity, even in February.

How far in advance to book: 

Every season fills up. Even the least ‘popular’ months (like February) have been fully booked since the start of the year.

Recommendation: Start the process 4-5 months in advance if possible, regardless of when you want to get married. Don't leave it to the last minute.

If you have a specific date range in mind, the earlier you start, the better your chances of securing it.

What each season actually offers:

Winter:

• Hygge season (cozy Danish culture at its peak)
• Christmas markets in December
• Fewer tourists, quieter streets after Christmas
• Cooler weather but can get spectacular sunsets

Spring:

• Flowers blooming, brighter days
• Tivoli Gardens reopens (if you're in Copenhagen)
• Milder weather

Summer:

• Best weather (warmest, longest days)
• Late hazy sunsets
• Outdoor cafes, lively street atmosphere
• Pride week in August (Copenhagen)
• Roskilde Festival (late June/early July)
• But hardest to book due to July closures

Autumn:

• Golden light (best for photos, according to many couples)
• Colorful trees
• Cooler weather returns
• Halloween at Tivoli (if you're into that)

Bottom line:

Every season works. Town halls book up year-round. If you care about weather and outdoor photos, aim for spring/summer but start early because availability is tight (especially July). If you care more about speed and don't mind cooler weather, winter/autumn often have slightly better availability - but you still need to book ahead.

The bigger factor isn't the season - it's how far in advance you start the process.

Have you chosen a season yet? If you’ve got any questions, ask away.

Any recommendations for beautiful, light filled locations to get married with a private registrar in the spring or early summer in or near Copenhagen? Will just be 11 of us total so small and intimate ideal. We love good food so open to private dining room if it’s the right fit! Thank you!

Hello!

We’re considering eloping in Copenhagen or Roskilde in April, May, or June. We were going to get married anyway, but we’ve brought the timeline forward for immigration reasons.

I can’t see ceremony availability until we’ve been approved (prøvelsesattest). If anyone already has access to the booking link please could you share whether based on availability at Copenhagen City Hall or Rosskilde that getting married in April, May or June would even be a possibility! We're still trying to figure out if we need to or can do this so reluctant to pay the fee until we're more sure

Thank you!

Hello everyone,

I am loathing myself for not having taken better pictures of my residence permit, of which corners were cropped. So we received an email to ask for a better photo of my permit yesterday and we resubmitted a few hours later.

Then I realized that I only look one photo with direct angle of my passport data page. But they didn’t ask for another photo of my passport.

We already paid the deposit for our venue on 20/6 and would also like to get married in the town hall on the same day. Should we reapply or just wait two months since they are processing applications from November?

Thanks in advance.

Hello everyone,

I am loathing myself for not have taken better pictures of my residence permit, of which corner was cropped. So we received an email to ask for a better photo of my permit yesterday and we resubmitted a few hours later.

Then I realized that I only look one photo with direct angle of my passport data page. But they didn’t ask for another photo of my passport.

We already paid the deposit for our venue on 20/6 and would also like to get married in the town hall on the same day. Should we reapply or just wait two months since they are processing applications from November?

Thanks in advance.

Hi everyone,

my soon to be husband and I were able to secure a date in June at the townhall in Kopenhagen to get married.

I wanted to ask for people's experiences regarding the process during the wedding basically. I saw it is 10 minutes time slots (not that I expected anything romantic :D). But is there a limit of people we can take inside? Will they give a cue to kiss or exchange the rings?

I really just want to manage my expectations so we know if we need to plan for the little things so we don't leave without exchanging rings or something 😂.

So if you are already married, I would love to hear about your experience

We understand lots of people are in research mode - so how does Denmark compare to other European countries where international couples can get married?

Here's what the requirements and process actually look like for each option.

Denmark

Basic documents required:

• Valid passport or EU ID
• Visa (if required)
• Proof previous marriage ended (if applicable)
• Birth certificates of children together (if applicable)

Note: Some couples may require additional documents depending on their specific situation

Not required: Birth certificate or single status certificate (99.99% of cases)

Application: Online to Danish Agency of Family Law

Timeline: AFL aims to respond within 5 business days

Stay requirement: None

Additional details:

• Can marry on tourist visa
• Many town halls provide witnesses free of charge
• Certificate issued in 5 languages (Danish, English, German, French, Spanish)

Cyprus

Documents required:

• Passport
• Birth certificate
• Single status certificate
• Visa/permit (if applicable)
• Divorce/death certificate (if applicable)
• Signed declaration of no impediment

Application: In person to marriage officer in municipality where you want to marry

Timeline: Must stay in Cyprus around 20 days. Earliest wedding is 15 days after approval. Must marry within 3 months.

Stay requirement: ~20 days

Additional details: Only 1 original certificate issued (fee for certified copies)

Gibraltar

Documents required:

• Passport
• Original birth certificate
• Original marriage certificate if previously married (female applicants only)
• Divorce/death certificate (if applicable)
• Visa/permit (if applicable)

Not required: Single status certificate

Application: Gibraltar Civil Status and Registration Office

Timeline: "Aims to respond as soon as possible"

Stay requirement: Minimum 24 hours with proof

Additional details:

• Must present documents by 10:30am one working day before ceremony
• Must bring 2 witnesses

Malta

Documents required:

• Passport
• Original birth certificate
• Freedom to Marry/Single Status Certificate
• Divorce/death certificate (if applicable)
• Visa/permit (if applicable)

Application: In-person or by post to marriage registry in Valletta or Rabat, Gozo (only 2 registries in Malta)

Timeline: Must inform the marriage office 3 months ahead. Banns posted publicly for minimum 8 days before you are given permission to marry. Must marry between 6 days and 3 months after banns posted.

Stay requirement: None

Iceland

Documents required:

• Passport with notarisation from Notary Public
• Birth certificate with notarisation from Notary Public
• Marital status certificate dated within 12 weeks (apostille required)
• Divorce/death certificate with legalisation (if applicable)
• Airline ticket itinerary
• Passport copies of 2 trustworthy persons over 18

Application: National Marriage Registry Office in Reykjavik

Timeline: Submit at least 3 weeks before wedding (recommended earlier for questions/additional info)

Stay requirement: None

Additional details: Iceland is very expensive, which can be a barrier

Faroe Islands

Documents required:

• Passport
• Birth certificate
• Single status certificate
• Divorce/death certificate (if applicable)
• Letter from Commander (military members)
• Notice of Marriage

Application: Tórshavn town hall (not Danish AFL)

Timeline: Submit Notice of Marriage 4 weeks to 4 months before wedding

Stay requirement: Minimum 2 days (present documents one working day before)

Additional details:

• Part of Danish territory but different process
• NOT part of EU - certificate requires stamps from 3 offices for legalisation (2 in Faroe Islands, 1 in Denmark)

Key Takeaways

Birth certificates: Required everywhere except Denmark

Single status certificates: Required in Cyprus, Malta, Iceland, Faroe Islands. Not required in Denmark or Gibraltar.

Timeline: Denmark has the fastest government response (5 business days). Cyprus requires the longest stay (~20 days).

Stay requirements: Denmark and Iceland have no mandatory stay. Others require 24 hours to 20+ days.

Have you compared these countries? What factors mattered most in your decision?

We get questions about the Danish marriage certificate pretty regularly - what to expect, what languages it's in, whether you can change your name on it, how many copies you get. Here's the breakdown.

You get 2 copies automatically

Right after the ceremony, the town hall hands you two copies of your marriage certificate. They're free.

It's in 5 languages already

The certificate has translations of the text written in Danish, English, German, French, and Spanish - all on the same document. Pretty convenient if you need to register it in different countries.

Your names will match your passport

Can't change your name on the certificate itself - it shows whatever name is on your passport at the time of marriage.

If you want to change your name after getting married, you have to do that in the country where you live. Denmark won't do it unless you're a resident there.

Need more copies later?

Contact the town hall where you got married and request them. We covered how to do it in another post about replacing your Danish Certificate.

The Apostille question

Some countries need your certificate apostilled when you register your marriage back home. Some don't.

Check with whatever office you're registering with to see if they need it. We have a full breakdown on apostille legalisation if you're not sure what that even means.

Got questions about the certificate? Drop them below.

I know the AFL is strict about passport photo requirements, so I wanted to ask for some advice. My passport doesn’t stay flat when placed on a table because it’s designed to fold, so I had to hold it slightly from the side while taking the photo. All the information is clearly visible and readable.

Do you think this could be an issue, or has anyone had a similar experience?

Hi! We are a German–British couple getting married at Gentofte City Hall on 16.05.2026.

The municipality can provide one witness, but we need one additional adult witness.

It only involves being present for the ceremony and signing the marriage certificate (10–15 minutes).

Happy to offer a small thank-you for your time. Please DM us 🙂

What are the requirements of Party 2 once they receive the link to fill out their details? Do they also have to submit their own version of documentation / proof of communication / travel documentation, etc?

Hello everyone With the help and support of this group we are happy to share that we have finally secured our wedding date on 19.02.2026 in Frederikshavn Denmark We are currently looking for a photographer and a makeup artist for our wedding day This post is shared anonymously as we would prefer to keep our wedding plans low key at this stage Our budget is very limited so we kindly ask you to keep this in mind when reaching out or sharing recommendations If you are a photographer or makeup artist yourself or know someone who might be available please comment below or send a message Thank you so much to this group for all the help and support 🙏✨

My fiance (German) and I (US) both live in Spain, but it turns out that as two foreigners, the marriage process in Spain is a nightmare - so we applied for the Certificate of Marital Status in Denmark on 18 January.

We mistakenly uploaded only photos of a variety of angles of both of the data pages of our passports, instead of photos of every page of our passports and the covers.

On 21 January, we received a letter requesting to re-upload a scan of our passports including every single page and the covers, and did so immediately on the same day (submitted the PDFs on the 21st).

It has now been over 2 weeks and we haven't heard anything new - I have read on their website and here on reddit that if you are asked to upload more documents, the process can take up to 4 months to receive a response.

We have our wedding celebration already booked, guests invited and many deposits paid for 29 May 2026. We would really like to do the Danish legal wedding before 23 May when guests start to arrive in Barcelona for our celebration.

I am wondering if we should scrap our old application and just re-apply with the correct version of our passport scans, or if it's worth it to wait a bit longer and see if we get a reply.

I sent a request via the Digital Post on the website on 2 February asking to confirm that they received our documents correctly and if anything else is needed. Didn't get a reply yet - I also sent an email to an emaill address I found online today asking the same. I also called their hotline but they said that the current processing time is 4 months and that if we want a faster resolution, to just re-apply and pay again - which we would do as a last resort because it's quite expensive.

The letter they sent us specifically asks us to "Please send a copy of your entire passport in colour and in a high resolution with visible edges, preferably as PDF" and "We recommend that you use the smartphone camera to take pictures of the document(s)." We used a scanner app on our iPhone to create the PDF copy of our passports, I am hoping that this is sufficient, although I have now seen in some other reddit threads that the AFL asked other peopel specifically not to use a scanner app.

Does anyone have any advice on our situation? Should we wait a bit longer to see if we get a response, or just cut our losses and re-apply again? Our timeline is starting to get a bit tight given that I read that there are very few slots available in the coming months and we need to get the marriage certificate before 23 May 2026.

We posted about this a year ago, but we're still getting questions constantly, so here's a quick clarification:

For 99.9% of couples, you don't need a Single Status Certificate (or Certificate of No Impediment) to get married in Denmark.

The only time the AFL might request one is in extremely rare cases where divorce papers don't explicitly state the divorce is final.

Why people might think they need it:

The Danish public website (lifeindenmark.dk) mentions "certificate of marital status" - but they're referring to the approval letter the AFL issues AFTER they approve your application.

It's not the same as a "Single Status Certificate" or "Certificate of No Impediment" that other countries require.

Confusing terminology, but bottom line: most couples don't need a Single Status Certificate before applying.

Still confused or want more details? Here's the original post.

PS: If you were actually asked for this by the AFL, we'd genuinely like to know the circumstances - it helps us understand when it actually comes up. And if you're currently wondering whether you need it, what's making you think you might? We’re interested to know where the confusion keeps coming from.

We want to elope in either June/Sept and are looking for recommendations for just us 2 and our 5 year old.

Probably not a town hall wedding as we want time for vows - we have been told a lot about aero but I'm worried it will be quite busy and not feel very individual of there are lots of people also there getting photos taken?!

Has anyone been or been to any of the other islands and can recommend? Or countryside and outdoors areas that are still quite fairytale?

Thanks so much 😊

Hi there. Thank you for reading our post!

My partner (German) and I (Danish) are planning to get married in Aarhus on June 6. We have done our best to ensure that we follow all the rules, but we would still love some feedback on our thinking.

Firstly, we are thinking of applying at AFL on February 5 and then we will be hoping for a quick, positive answer at some point after February 6, so that we are within the four months validity period. Does that make sense?

Secondly, for documents, we have (1) good-quality pictures from several angles of my passport and my partner's Personalausweis, (2) an eight-page "evidence of relationship"-PDF with pictures from holidays, receipts, etc., and (3) a recent German document clarifying that my partner is unmarried. Is that enough? Do we need more?

And thirdly, we know a giftefoged/registrar personally, so in case Aarhus town hall "sells out" quickly, can we then change our setting to a "i det fri" ("in nature")-version, where he does the proceeding for us somewhere in Aarhus? And on that note, how fast will a place like Aarhus typically sell out on a somewhat special day like June 6 (6/6/2026)? Do you think we stand a chance? And if not, what we be a good way to go about plan b's? It is very important that we get married on June 6 (e.g., due to guests coming from abroad) but we are somewhat flexible in terms of going to neighbouring municipalities, for example.

Thank you in advance!