Civil Partnership

Information for same-sex couples about Civil Partnership.

What is a Civil Partnership?

A Civil Partnership is a legal union between two people of the same-sex. It gives a same sex couple the same rights as a married couple, such as pension and inheritance equality.

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How does partnership registration work?

Couples must attend a registration office within their local authority area to register their intent to apply for civil partnership registration. Identification documents will need to be produced and a legal form will be completed and signed by both parties and displayed publicly before the registration and optional ceremony can formally take place. This is called a 'Notice of Civil Partnership'.

All the Suffolk Registration Offices operate an appointment system to prepare a Notice of Partnership which last about 40 minutes.

What Documents will I need to show?

When you contact your local Registration Office you will be advised what documents you will need to bring. These may include some or all of the following depending on your circumstances:

change of name deed (registered with the Royal Court of Justice);
death certificate of former spouse;
decree absolute or partnership dissolution;
full birth certificate;
passport;
proof of residence, such as driving licence, council tax or utility bill.

Please note that all documents must be current and show your present address where applicable. (This is an important consideration if you have recently moved house). Photocopies of any document are not acceptable.

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Is a ceremony part of this process?

The ceremony is optional. The legal part of forming a civil partnership is the signing of the partnership schedule.

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Where can we hold our partnership registration or ceremony?

You can hold your partnership registration or ceremony at any Local Authority Ceremony Room, Register Office or at one of the licensed Approved Premises in England or Wales. An Approved Premise will be a public building such as a hotel or stately home or any other building the local authority feels is an appropriate place for a ceremony to be held.

You do not have to hold your partnership registration or ceremony in the area in which you live.

New legislation (effective 5 December 2011) permits religious buildings to apply for a licence to hold civil partnership registrations. The application fee for a 3 year licence is £900 and is subject to a number of conditions.
Please contact the licensing officer for more information on 01473 264380 or email susan.reeve2@suffolk.gov.uk

A complete listing of all:

It is also possible to hold a partnership registration or ceremony outside of England and Wales but different rules apply.

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When can I make a booking?

Ceremonies can be booked as far ahead as you wish or at the latest 17 days in advance.

Bookings made will be subject to a number of conditions:-

Deposit of £100 payable at the time of booking and totally non-refundable under any circumstances
Bookings must be for a specific ceremony venue and allocated time.
The couple must take responsibility for ensuring that they carry out the legal preliminaries to marriage/civil partnership within the legal timescales
Suffolk County Council cannot guarantee that the venues holding a ceremony licence now will continue to do so indefinitely. Venue Licences are renewable every 3 years and can they can also be revoked if the licence holder breaches any of the licence conditions.
The final fee for the ceremony will be the fee prevailing at the time and cannot always be guaranteed in advance. Fees have been set up to 31 March 2014 (see below)

To avoid disappointment we would encourage couples wishing to book registrars to make contact with us as soon as they can.

Bookings will be taken on a strictly first come first served basis either by telephone or in person.

How much will it cost?

Fees shown are for Partnership Registration and Optional Ceremony.

Ceremony	Cost
Local Authority ceremony rooms:- to 31 March 2012 Bury St Edmunds - The Abbeygate Suite Ipswich - The Neptune Suite Stowmarket - The John Milton Room Deben - The Sandlings Waveney - The Eastern Suite Sudbury - The Talbot Room	£140
Local Authority ceremony rooms (as above) 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013	£165
Local Authority ceremony rooms (as above) 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014	£175

Local Authority small ceremony rooms Bury St Edmunds - The Magna Carta Room Stowmarket - The Gipping Room Deben - The Deben Room Waveney - The Waveney Sudbury - The Charterhouse Room	£40
A £50 non-refundable deposit is required to secure a time slot for our ceremony rooms. Any changes to a ceremony booking will incur a £30 administration charge.

Approved venue ceremony (Monday to Saturday) to 31 March 2012	£350
Approved venue ceremony (Sunday & applicable bank holidays) to 31 March 2012	£450
Approved venue ceremony (Monday to Saturday) 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013	£375
Approved venue ceremony (Sunday & applicable bank holidays) 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013	£475
Approved venue ceremony (Monday to Saturday) 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014	£390
Approved venue ceremony (Sunday & applicable bank holidays) 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014	£495
A £100 non-refundable deposit is required to secure a time slot for Approved Venue bookings. Any changes to a ceremony booking will incur a £30 administration charge.

Ceremony at The Suffolk Register Office, Ipswich (small room)	£40
Each Copy of the civil partnership certificate (if purchased on the day)	£3.50
Certificates purchased after the ceremony	£7.00/£9.00
Commemorative certificate	£10
Notice of civil partnership fee per person	£33.50

Is there any way of arranging a civil partnership immediately?

There are some circumstances where it may be possible to reduce the standard waiting period of 17 days.

These are usually exceptional and could include situations such as:-

The serious illness of either partner from which they are not expected to recover.
The posting to a war zone of either partner as part of their duties of being a serving member of the armed forces.

If you think that your circumstances could warrant a waiver of the standard waiting period please contact your local Suffolk Registration Office without delay or email registrars@suffolk.gov.uk

In some cases an additional and non-refundable fee may be payable.

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Is there any alternative?

Yes, same sex couples are welcome to have a Commitment Ceremony. This is not a legal ceremony but is a ceremonial alternative to enable couples to formally declare their personal commitment to each other.

For full details please refer to our page dedicated to this service - commitment ceremonies

If you need more information on this subject please contact Suffolk Registration Offices or email registrars@suffolk.gov.uk