I’m Rachel, an American living in Beijing with my British husband. After we got engaged in October 2023, we jumped into researching how to get married as two foreigners in China.
Which led to the big question: can two foreigners get married in China?
Can Two Foreigners Get Married in China?
No, two foreigners can no longer get married in China with the China Civil Affairs office.
According to the China Civil Affairs office, as of April 1, 2019, two foreigners are not allowed to register their marriage at Civil Affairs offices in China (marriages between a foreigner and Chinese national are still permitted.) This means that two foreigners can no longer obtain a Chinese marriage certificate. This new regulation was published on March 29, 2019, and went into effect nationwide as of then.
However – this does not mean it’s hopeless! Here are other options for two foreigners living in China looking to get married.
Option 1 : Get Married at Your Embassy in China (if they offer this service)
Some foreign embassies, like the UK’s, facilitate marriages. Check with your embassy online or email them to see if it’s possible.
So my husband, a British citizen, and I were officially married at the Beijing UK Embassy. Sadly the US Embassy does not offer this service as of now. There is a list of required documents we needed to provide, read more here: How Expats Can Get Married at the UK Embassy in China
So on September 18, 2024, Nathan and I officially got married at the British Embassy in Beijing. It was a beautiful sunny day shared with four of our close friends, followed by an amazing trip to the Great Wall.
Read more: We Got Married! Our Ceremony at the British Embassy in Beijing
Option 2: Get Married Online
Many couples have virtual ceremonies through Utah’s online wedding services, which became especially popular during the COVID era. Several of our friends did this.
Option 3: Get Married in Hong Kong
Some of our other friends who are expat couples have also opted to go to Hong Kong to get married, as there is no residential requirement to register a marriage in Hong Kong. Read more here.
Why Get Married in China?
Since both of us live and work in China, it’s actually surprisingly less complicated for us to get married in China than in one of our home countries. This is a challenge many couples from two different countries but living in a third country face.
Some of the biggest challenges is logistically having the time off of work to be able to go and stay in one our home countries to officially “give notice.”
In the UK for example, you must sign a legal statement at your local register office to say you intend to get married or form a civil partnership. This is known as ‘giving notice’. You must give notice at least 29 days before your ceremony. You usually need to make an appointment to give notice at your local register office. You must have lived in that registration district for the past 7 days. Which means we would need to be spending at least 36 days in the UK before our ceremony. I would also need to apply for a a Marriage Visitor visa in advance.
If we were to get married in the US, my fiance would need a K-1 fiancé(e) visa, a nonimmigrant visa that allows foreign nationals who are engaged to US citizens to come to the US to get married within 90 days. In 2024, the processing timeline to get a fiancé visa averages 6 months.
In China, since we are working residents that live here, the UK Embassy in Beijing requires that we just need to provide proof of our residence in China (if you are a visitor, this could be stamps in your passport or Entry and Exit record issued by Public Security Bureau; if you are a long term resident, this could be your foreign registration form issued by the Public Security Bureau, rent agreements, contracts with local employers etc.)
Two Wedding Celebrations
We decided to double the fun by having two wedding celebrations, as our friends and family are scattered all around the world. China isn’t the easiest country to visit – with visa applications, flight times, travel expenses, and language and cultural barriers, it’s quite a hurdle to get here and we want to be mindful of these things.
Since we were legally married in China though, we still wanted to celebrate our special day with friends here in Beijing, which is where we met and have both called home for 5 years.
We decided to have one other celebration in the UK in Nathan’s hometown of Yorkshire in July 2025. With many of our friends and families residing in the US or Europe, we felt it was the perfect opportunity to bring everyone together as a special chance for all our loved ones to meet, connect, and celebrate our union in a global gathering.
Two Foreigners Getting Married in China
With those big questions sorted, we also then had to figure out the next round of questions:
- Where should we get married in Beijing?
- What’s our budget?
- What does a China wedding look like? What’s included?
- What kind of dress should I get, and should I have one dress for two weddings? Should I buy or rent?
As an American bride-to-be living in Beijing, it’s been fascinating to learn more about China’s wedding traditions, venue options, wedding dress styles, and more. Follow along with my blog series, “Two Foreigners Getting Married in China,” as we navigate the highs and lows of planning our big day in this dynamic and culturally rich environment.
