Experiences · Paperwork & admin
Getting Married in Belgium
Asha MenonCommunity desk
Brussels · Belgium · 30 May 2024 · 3 min read
Getting married here is not one process, it is four or five document journeys running in parallel — each with the same three stages of issue, legalise, translate. Once you see that pattern the whole thing becomes manageable. Before that, it is a lot of trips to the commune.
Start at your own commune
Requirements vary by commune and by personal situation, and your commune’s list is the only one that binds. Ask them for it first, then use this guide to understand what each item on that list actually involves.
At a glance
Who may marry here
Belgian law asks for four things of the couple: both at least 18, both consenting freely, not related, and neither already married. Same-sex marriage has been legal in Belgium since June 2003.
For the marriage to take place in Belgium at all, one of you must either be Belgian at the time of the marriage, or have been living in Belgium for more than three months with proof of it.
The pattern every document follows
This is the part worth internalising. Almost every document goes through the same three stages, and knowing which stage a paper is at tells you what to do with it next.
| Document | Where it comes from | Then | Finally |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birth certificate | Your actual place of birth in India | Apostille in India | Translate in Belgium |
| Bachelorhood | Affidavit in India | Apostille in India, then legalise in Belgium | Translate |
| Certificate of nationality | Indian Embassy, Brussels | Legalise in Belgium | Translate |
| Certificate of coutume | Indian Embassy, Brussels | Legalise in Belgium | Translate |
| Divorce decree (if applicable) | Issuing court | Apostille | Translate |
Apostilled in India means not legalised again here. That is the point of the apostille, and it saves an appointment per document. Documents issued in Belgium — including the ones the Indian Embassy in Brussels gives you — still need Belgian legalisation. Contacts for the Indian side are in our apostille guide.
The three stages in practice
Issue
Indian civil documents come from the place of the event, not from wherever you live now — a birth certificate for someone born in Moradabad is issued in Moradabad. Embassy documents (nationality, coutume) are requested at the Indian Embassy in Brussels using the miscellaneous application form with your passport copy and a photograph. Expect roughly a week before they call you to collect.
Legalise
For anything not already apostilled abroad, book a legalisation appointment with Belgian Foreign Affairs. It is a genuinely quick appointment — about ten minutes — but it must be booked, and each document needs its own slot in the queue.
Translate
Everything ends up in Dutch or French depending on your commune, done by a sworn translator. Note the order: translate last. A document translated before it is legalised has to be translated again afterwards, because the legalisation stamp is itself part of the document.
After you submit
- The commune assigns you a marriage date.
- If neither of you speaks the commune’s language, you must arrange a sworn interpreter for the ceremony itself.
- Both of you return to sign a final declaration 15 days before the date.
Submit as you go, not all at once
Hand each document in as it is ready rather than saving them for one visit. The commune will spot a wrong issuing office or a missing stamp immediately — and finding that out on one document costs you a re-issue, whereas finding out about all of them at the end costs you the whole timeline.
Written in 2024 from one couple’s experience, and it is general guidance rather than the source of truth — your commune’s list governs. Sworn translators and apostille agents are listed in the Namaste Community app.
From our desk, not official advice
Written by the Namaste Community desk under our standing byline, from the questions this community asks most often — not a single person's own account. Rules change and offices differ — check anything that matters with the people who decide it.
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