I know how hard although very exciting it can be when you are planning your wedding and choosing your venue, but there are so many things for you to consider so, you start to think why so many venues talk about licensed ceremony rooms? Or do you just want to understand more about the term “licensed wedding venue”.

Do you start to think you have found perfect venue but you can’t have a ceremony there, because they are not licensed, that can be so heart-breaking can’t it?, however, this really is not the case, there is a solution? Many couples planning their wedding ask me what a licensed venue is and whether it’s essential for their wedding ceremony or not? 

Simply put a licensed venue is a venue that is allowed to hold a legal binding wedding ceremony.

Below I will discuss this and inform you exactly what a licensed venue is and why and how you can have a wedding ceremony in an unlicensed venue or outdoors, now you ask why would I want a wedding ceremony at an unlicensed venue? The answer is you have so much more freedom of choice and there are other reasons too.

Currently Celebrant ceremonies are not legal but they offer the most ceremony options and lots of freedom of choice and basically anything goes; there are no limits on the content of your ceremony or the location of it. When you want it and at a time you want it, whereas the registrar will tell you where and what time!

As my couples said “the registry office bit is just signing a bit of paper, legalities, our proper wedding ceremony is with you and in front of all our family and friends”. You can get married on a farm, in your garden, in a woodland setting, on a beach, under the stars at night or in the hours of sun set or sun rise, in you favourite restaurant, sporting stadium, in a zoo or theme park, the options are limitless. 

You want to your ceremony on a certain day, date or time? and can’t find a venue or maybe you want to splash out on a really great personalised or themed wedding event exactly as you want.

Because we are very flexible. most couples contact a Celebrant to plan their ceremony and have a registry office wedding either before or after their wedding ceremony but sometimes on the same day. I as a Celebrant can advise on this aspect, my website has advice on your registry office wedding. See here about the legal aspects and process.

If the venue you choose is licensed, you can legally get wed there, but if you book a registrar to do your ceremony at your licensed venue, it will be the same ceremony you would have been given in the registry office. If you opt for this, it is at a much higher price and all the same legalities and restrictions of ceremony content apply.

In my experience most if not all registrars will not allow the Celebrant do the main ceremony and arrange to come in at the legal part of it. All the registrars I have dealt with will request you to go into a back room before or after the ceremony.

Many couples these days will have their standard legal ceremony at the registry office on a weekday because it is the least expensive time and they then will splash out on their personalised celebrant ceremony. They have the ceremony when it is most convenient for them and their guests, at the venue or location of their choice, whether it be licensed or unlicensed, therefore, they have total freedom of choice in all aspects!

Now the big question – what does it cost?

Great question! Celebrants charge different rates and often have a range of ceremony prices.  However, because I love working with you and supporting your wedding goals, most celebrants offer at least one type of ceremony for a similar price as having a registrar ceremony at your venue. 

Below are some examples where you can have you wedding

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