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Officiant’s Kit
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Useful information for officiants at marriages or civil unions
 An officiant who performs a marriage or civil union acts as an officer of civil status, and is responsible for receiving the free and enlightened consent of the intended spouses. The officiant ensures that all the formalities prescribed by law are observed. Any departure from the prescribed rules and formalities could affect the validity of the marriage or civil union.
People who wish to marry or enter into a civil union must meet certain requirements and comply with certain conditions. If the intended spouses do not satisfy all the requirements and conditions, there is an impediment to the solemnization, in which case the officer of civil status cannot legally solemnize the marriage or civil union.
A marriage or civil union that is not solemnized in accordance with the prescriptions of the Civil Code of Québec and in compliance with the conditions necessary for its formation may be declared null (art. 380 or 521.10 CCQ  ).
Conditions regarding the spouses
Publication
Solemnization
After solemnization
Information
For more information
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Conditions regarding the spouses
In the case of a marriage, the officiant must verify:
- the identity of the intended spouses and whether they are at least 16 years of age, based on their birth certificates or a copy of their acts of birth;
- whether, if one of the intended spouses is between 16 and 18 years of age, written consent has been obtained from the person or persons having parental authority;
- whether, if one of the intended spouses has been declared incapable under a judgment ordering the institution of protective supervision, that spouse has since been released from protective supervision;
- whether the intended spouses are free from any previous bond of marriage or civil union. This is done by checking the death certificate or a copy of the act of death in the case of a widowed individual, the divorce certificate or the decree absolute of divorce in the case of a divorced individual, an authentic copy of the joint declaration of dissolution executed before a notary or a certified true copy of the judgment dissolving the civil union in the case of an individual whose previous civil union was dissolved, or a certified true copy of the judgment annulling the marriage or civil union of an individual whose previous marriage or civil union was annulled;
If the above documents cannot be obtained, any other proof may be accepted (e.g. a passport, record of marital status, or letter issued by a consulate) if it evidences the facts. A sworn statement (affidavit) may replace any document that cannot be obtained.
- whether the intended spouses are related to a degree that would prohibit marriage.
To verify this information, the officiant may ask the intended spouses to complete the optional form, Information on intended spouses.
The officiant retains a photocopy of the documents referred to above, to place in the file that will be forwarded to the authorities after the solemnization.
In the case of a civil union, the officiant must verify:
- the identity of the intended spouses and whether they are at least 18 years of age, based on their birth certificates or a copy of their acts of birth;
- whether, if one of the intended spouses was declared incapable under a judgment ordering the institution of protective supervision, that spouse has since been released from protective supervision;
- whether the intended spouses are free from any previous bond of marriage or civil union. This is done by checking the death certificate or a copy of the act of death in the case of a widowed individual, the divorce certificate or the decree absolute of divorce in the case of a divorced individual, an authentic copy of the joint declaration of dissolution executed before a notary or a certified true copy of the judgment dissolving the civil union in the case of an individual whose previous civil union was dissolved, or a certified true copy of the judgment annulling the marriage or civil union of an individual whose previous marriage or civil union was annulled;
If the above documents cannot be obtained, any other proof may be accepted (e.g. a passport, record of marital status, or letter issued by a consulate) if it evidences the facts. A sworn statement (affidavit) may replace any document that cannot be obtained.
- whether the intended spouses are related to a degree that would prohibit marriage.
To verify this information, the officiant may ask the intended spouses to complete the optional form, Information on intended spouses.
The officiant retains a photocopy of the documents referred to above, to place in the file that will be forwarded to the authorities after the solemnization.
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Publication
Marriages and civil unions are public, not private, ceremonies. That is why the law requires intended spouses announce their upcoming union by means of a posted notice (publication). The notice of marriage or civil union is very important and bypassing this obligation may result in the nullity of the marriage or civil union.
The notice must include the name, domicilary address and date and place of birth of each of the intended spouses. The accuracy of that information must be confirmed by witnesses of full age (or a single witness who knows both intended spouses). These witnesses must declare under oath (before a person authorized to administer oaths such as a commissioner for oaths, a justice of the peace, a notary, or a clerk of the court) that the information in the notice is accurate. A copy of the notice must be posted for 20 days before the date of the marriage or civil union, at the place where the ceremony is to be held and at the nearest courthouse.
An officiant may grant a dispensation from publication for a serious reason. The law leaves the decision as to what constitutes a serious reason to the discretion of the officiant, but it is acknowledged that the officiant must exercise that discretion with reserve, based on moral and humanitarian grounds, not pecuniary considerations. For example, dispensation has been granted in cases where one of the intended spouses was seriously ill and could not be expected to live long.
The officiant keeps the original copy of the notice or dispensation, and adds it to the file that will be forwarded to the authorities after the solemnization.
The law suggests that intended spouses undergo a premarital medical examination (art. 368, second para., CCQ ). Although the examination is not mandatory, it is the officiant's duty to inform the intended spouses of the advisability of the examination.
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Solemnization
The basic rule governing the solemnization of marriages or civil unions is that the ceremony must be public and take place before an authorized officiant, in the presence of two witnesses. The witnesses do not necessarily have to be the same ones who confirmed the information in the notice of marriage or civil union. The role of the witnesses is to attest to the exchange of consent, not to the identity of the spouses. It is therefore not necessary to know the couple to be a witness to the solemnization.
A marriage or civil union can be solemnized at the place of residence of an intended spouse, if the spouse is mobility impaired, or in any other place agreed upon by the intended spouses, provided that the place is in keeping with the solemn nature of the ceremony and has a suitable layout.
A marriage or civil union may be solemnized, by a person specifically appointed for that purpose, between 9 a.m. and 10 p.m. any day of the year.
The officiant must comply with four legal requirements during the ceremony:
- In the presence of two witnesses, the officiant must read to the intended spouses articles 392 to 396 of the Civil Code of Québec in the case of a marriage (Schedule III of the rules), or articles 521.6 and 393 to 396 in the case of a civil union (Schedule IV of the rules). If the officiant is uniting two or more couples during the same ceremony, the relevant articles are read only once.
The text may be read in French or in English, as determined by the couple. If either intended spouse does not understand French or English, the couple must provide the services of an interpreter at their own expense.
- The officiant must receive the consent of each intended spouse in person (Schedule V for a marriage; Schedule VI for a civil union). Marriage or civil union by proxy is not recognized in Québec.
- The officiant must prepare the Declaration of Marriage (DEC-50) or the Declaration of Civil Union (DEC-55), have the spouses and witnesses sign it, and sign it himself or herself.
If a person is physically unable to sign the declaration, that fact should be indicated on the signature line of the declaration (e.g. “the spouse has consented to the marriage but is unable to sign”), and the file should state the reason why the person was unable to sign.
The officiant must send the Declaration of Marriage or Declaration of Civil Union to the Directeur de l’état civil without delay so that the act of marriage or civil union may be drawn up as quickly as possible. - Lastly, the officiant must complete form SP-2, Return of Marriage, incorporated into the Declaration of Marriage (DEC-50), or form SP-7, Return of Civil Union, incorporated into the Declaration of Civil Union (DEC-55), and send it to the Institut de la statistique du Québec within eight days following the solemnization.
The officiant keeps a photocopy of the Declaration of Marriage, Return of Marriage, Declaration of Civil Union or Return of Civil Union, to place in the file that will be forwarded to the authorities after the solemnization.
Important: the spouses must sign both the Declaration and the Return.
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After solemnization
As mentioned above, the officiant sends the original of the Declaration of Marriage to the Directeur de l’état civil and the original of the Return of Marriage to the Institut de la statistique in the envelopes supplied for that purpose.
Last, the officiant must forward the complete file to the clerk of the Superior Court in the judicial district where the ceremony took place. The file must contain
- the original of the notice of marriage or civil union, or the dispensation;
- a copy of the Declaration of Marriage or the Declaration of Civil Union;
- a copy of the Return of Marriage or the Return of Civil Union;
- a copy of any other document used to verify the accuracy of the information provided by the spouses (birth certificate or act of birth, consent given by the holder of parental authority, release from protective supervision, divorce certificate or decree absolute of divorce, death certificate or act of death, joint declaration or judgment dissolving or annulling the marriage or civil union, passport, civil status record, letter issued by a consulate or affidavit).
The clerk of the Superior Court will collect $52.25 in court office fees for the filing of these documents, in accordance with subparagraph 1 of the first paragraph of section 23 of the Tariff of Court Costs in Civil Matters and Court Office Fees; the amount of the fee is increased each year on January 1. Payment must be made in cash, by debit or credit card, or by certified cheque, bank order or postal money order made out to the Minister of Finance. Personal cheques are not accepted.
If the officiant cannot file the documents at the courthouse in person, they may be mailed as long as payment of the fees is enclosed. The spouses may also file the documents themselves in the office of the Superior Court.
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Information
For more information, call the Direction générale des services de justice at 418 644-7700, ext. 20165.
NOTE: Spouses in a civil union are not required to have the civil union dissolved before marrying, or to post a notice before their marriage.
Officiant's Kitt
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Persons authorized to solemnize civil unions and the obligations of officiants:
• Officiants
Conjugal institutions:
• Marriage
• Civil Unions
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Latest update: January 12, 2012
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