Civil Partnerships
..continuedWhere can civil partnership registrations take place?
The registration can take place at a register office or approved venue. All the licensed venues have been approved for civil
partnership and marriage on their premises so you will need to contact them to check which service they will be offering.
If you choose an approved venue you will need to contact the venue to make a provisional arrangement, then you must contact
the register office of the district in which the premises are located to ensure the registrars can attend your civil partnership
registration on the date of your choice. There is an additional fee for a civil partnership registration taking place at approved venues.
How does civil partnership differ from marriage?
Civil partnerships is a completely new legal relationship, exclusively for same sex couples, distinct from marriage.
The Government has sought to give civil partnerships parity of treatment with spouses, as far as is possible,
in the rights and responsibilities that flow from forming a civil partnership. There are a small number of differences
between civil partnership and marriage, for example, a civil partnership is formed when the second civil partner signs
the relevant document. A civil marriage is formed when the couple exchange spoken words. Opposite sex couples can
opt for a religious or civil marriage ceremony, whereas formation of a civil partnership will be an exclusively civil procedure.