To get married in Colombia, you and your partner file paperwork at a notary office, wait through a short public-notice period called the edicto, and then sign the marriage deed at a civil ceremony officiated by the notary. Both Colombian citizens and foreign nationals can marry in the country. Foreigners have more documents to prepare, all of them apostilled and translated into Spanish, and the full process usually runs several weeks from filing to signing.
Who Can Legally Marry
Both parties must be at least 18. Colombia’s Constitutional Court, in ruling C-039 of 2025, struck down the Civil Code provisions that had allowed minors to marry with parental consent, so there are no longer any exceptions to the age rule.1Corte Constitucional de Colombia. Sentencia C-039 de 2025
Both people must be legally single. Anyone previously married needs proof the earlier marriage ended, either a divorce decree or a former spouse’s death certificate.2Ministerio de Justicia y del Derecho. Cual es el Tramite para Celebrar un Matrimonio Civil A marriage entered into while a prior one is still valid has no legal force and can be annulled.
Marriage between close relatives is prohibited, and a person who lacks legal capacity to consent cannot marry. Same-sex couples have the full right to marry on identical terms. The Constitutional Court recognized same-sex civil marriage in ruling SU-214 of 2016, holding that denying it violated constitutional guarantees of dignity, liberty, and equality, and notaries and judges are obligated to perform these marriages.3Corte Constitucional de Colombia. Sentencia SU-214 de 2016
Foreign nationals do not need to be Colombian residents, but they must have lawful immigration status in the country on the day of the ceremony.
Documents Colombian Citizens Need
If you are a Colombian citizen, bring:
- Your original Cédula de Ciudadanía.
- A recent copy of your civil birth registry. Notaries define “recent” differently, but copies issued within the prior three months are a safe bet.2Ministerio de Justicia y del Derecho. Cual es el Tramite para Celebrar un Matrimonio Civil
- If previously married, the civil registry of death of a former spouse, or the civil registries showing the earlier marriage ended along with the dissolution of the marital property partnership.2Ministerio de Justicia y del Derecho. Cual es el Tramite para Celebrar un Matrimonio Civil
Requirements vary slightly between notaries, so confirm the exact list with the office you plan to use.
Documents Foreign Nationals Need
Every document you bring from outside Colombia has to be authenticated and translated. Prepare:
- A valid passport, which the Cancillería treats as the identity document for a foreign spouse.4Cancillería. Marriage Certificate Civil Registration
- A certified long-form birth certificate, apostilled in the issuing country and translated into Spanish by an official translator.5U.S. Embassy in Colombia. Marriage in Colombia
- Proof of single status. Many countries issue a Certificate of No Impediment. The United States does not. U.S. citizens can go to the Embassy in Bogotá to have an Affidavit of Single Status notarized, though the Embassy verifies the signature rather than the truth of the contents. Some Colombian notaries also accept notarized letters from friends or family swearing you are unmarried, with translation and apostille.6U.S. Embassy in Colombia. Set an Appointment for Notarial Services5U.S. Embassy in Colombia. Marriage in Colombia
- A final divorce decree or death certificate of a former spouse, if applicable, apostilled and translated.
- A copy of your visa or entry stamp showing lawful status.
Apostilles must be obtained in the country that issued the document, before the document enters Colombia. Documents from non-Hague countries need consular legalization instead, which takes longer.
Proof of single status causes the most trouble because many countries do not issue the kind of certificate Colombian notaries expect. Contact the notary you plan to use early and ask specifically what they will accept. Different offices have different expectations, and sorting this out in advance is much easier than discovering a problem on filing day.
The Civil Marriage Process at the Notary
Civil marriages take place at a notary office and move through three distinct stages.
Filing the Application
You and your partner bring your documents and a completed application to the notary. The notary reviews everything to confirm both parties have capacity to marry and that all foreign documents meet authentication requirements. Anything missing or improperly formatted comes back to you to fix before the process continues.
The Edicto
Once the application is accepted, the notary publishes an edicto, a public notice announcing the intended marriage. It stays posted at the notary office for several business days so that anyone with a legal objection can come forward. If no valid objection appears, the notary sets a date for the ceremony.
The Ceremony
The notary officiates. Both parties declare their consent in front of two adult witnesses with valid identification, and notaries generally require that witnesses not be close relatives. The couple, witnesses, and notary all sign the Escritura Pública de Matrimonio, the official public deed that records the marriage.
Expect the whole process to take several weeks. Foreign nationals gathering apostilles and translations should add more weeks of preparation before they even walk into the notary’s office.
Religious Ceremonies
Colombia recognizes religious marriages, but the ceremony alone does not create a civil marriage. To carry legal weight, a religious marriage must be registered with the civil registry office in the municipality where the ceremony took place, within 30 days, under Decreto 1260 of 1970. Registration happens when an authentic copy of the church’s marriage record is presented to the registry.7Department of Justice. Interim Decision 2710 – Matter of Ceballos
Catholic marriages fall under the Concordat between Colombia and the Holy See, which requires the church to furnish the authentic copy to the registry. Other recognized faiths can gain civil recognition through the same registration path. Once registered, a religious marriage has the same legal validity as a notary ceremony.8Law Library of Congress. Colombia – Validity of Marriage and Divorce An unregistered religious marriage exists only within the faith community and has no legal standing for property rights, inheritance, or immigration purposes. This is the step couples most commonly miss.
Marital Property and Prenuptial Agreements
Marrying in Colombia automatically creates a community property partnership, the sociedad conyugal. Under Article 180 of the Civil Code, the act of marrying triggers joint ownership of assets acquired during the marriage.9WIPO. Civil Code (as Amended up to Law No. 1453 of 2011), Colombia Assets each spouse owned before the wedding generally remain separate. Anything earned or bought afterward is shared.
Couples who want a different arrangement sign capitulaciones matrimoniales, a prenuptial agreement executed before the marriage as a public deed and registered in the appropriate public registry. Capitulaciones can establish a separation-of-assets regime and can address spousal support, business interests, and inheritance rights.
Foreign nationals should pay close attention here. Colombian law presumes that couples who married abroad and later settle in Colombia are under separation of assets, unless the law of the country where they married imposed a different arrangement.9WIPO. Civil Code (as Amended up to Law No. 1453 of 2011), Colombia If you own or plan to buy property in Colombia, getting legal advice about your property regime before the wedding is far cheaper than sorting it out later.
Registration and Using the Certificate Abroad
After the ceremony, the marriage is entered into the national civil registry. The notary who officiated submits the public deed to the Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil, which generates the Registro Civil de Matrimonio, the definitive legal proof of the union. You can obtain certified copies from the Registraduría.
To use the certificate outside Colombia, you need an apostille. Colombia has been a Hague Apostille Convention member since 2001, so an apostille from the Cancillería authenticates the document for use in any other member country without further legalization. The apostille can be processed online through the Cancillería.10Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores. Guia Apostilla y Legalizacion de Registros Civiles The fee for an apostille processed within Colombia is 32,700 COP, and apostilles obtained through consulates abroad cost more.11Cancillería. How Much Does an Apostille or Legalization Cost For non-Hague countries, the certificate must go through consular legalization instead.
Spouse Visa for Foreign Nationals
Getting married in Colombia does not give a foreign spouse immigration status. The visa is a separate application filed after the marriage is registered, and couples who assume the wedding solves the immigration question sometimes run out their tourist stay while waiting.
A foreign national married to a Colombian citizen can apply for a temporary visa as the spouse of a Colombian national. The application requires a Colombian civil marriage record issued within the three months before filing, a copy of the Colombian spouse’s cédula, and an authenticated letter from the Colombian spouse requesting the visa. You also need valid health insurance covering your stay, a police clearance certificate from your country of nationality or residence, and proof of financial means. The visa study fee is USD 50 and the visa itself is USD 160.12Cancillería. Temporary Visa of Spouse or Permanent Partner of a Colombian National The Cancillería may also require a personal interview with one or both spouses.