Getting married in Argentina as a foreigner: the legal steps, city by province

A legal marriage in Argentina is a civil act performed by an officer of the Registro Civil, and foreigners on a tourist stay can do it too: the Ciudad de Buenos Aires runs a dedicated procedure for couples who are both "in transit", with the ceremony held at its central office within days of approval. Everything else a destination wedding usually involves — the estancia, the winery, the vows under a tree — is a celebration with no legal effect of its own. This guide sets out the legal route first, then how couples combine it with the party.

Who can marry, and where

The national rules are short. Under the Código Civil y Comercial a couple marries before the Registro Civil of either spouse's domicile, in front of two witnesses in the office and four outside it. Every province runs its own Registro on top of that, and each writes its own procedure for people who have no Argentine address. The one written for tourists is in the capital.

The Buenos Aires route for tourists

The city's in-transit procedure is the one most foreign couples use. Both spouses send a sworn marriage form and a copy of each passport by email, and an operator replies with anything missing. Three items do most of the work:

1. A notarial act. An escribano público of the city certifies your temporary address in Buenos Aires and how long you are staying, which in practice means a hotel or rental address and a notary appointment after you land.
2. Two witnesses with an Argentine DNI. Each must be over 18 and carry a DNI with an address in Argentina. Friends flying in from abroad cannot fill this role, so couples usually ask a local contact, a planner or the venue.
3. A translator if needed. If either of you does not understand Spanish, a traductor público has to take part, and the translator's details go on the sworn form.

Once the file is complete the city sends a date by email, no more than 5 business days away, at the Sede Central on Avenida Uruguay 753. The procedure is listed as free under the current Ley Tarifaria. On the day you bring the originals: passports, the notarial act, and the property-regime and statistics forms.

A ceremony at a private address or at one of the city's 16 emblematic places works differently. At least one spouse needs a DNI showing a city address, four witnesses are required, and slots appear between 20 and 45 business days before the date. The landmark ceremonies cap the room at 40 people, couple and witnesses included, and both landmark and private-venue ceremonies carry a fee set by the Ley Tarifaria, ARS 472,690 at the time of checking. That route suits a foreigner marrying an Argentine resident far better than two tourists.

Outside the capital

Provincial Registros are written for residents first. The Provincia de Buenos Aires asks for the appointment 20 business days ahead at the office of either spouse's domicile and the papers up to 14 days before; when the officer travels to another place, the province itself calls that act symbolic. Mendoza books between 7 and 30 days ahead, asks two foreign spouses for four witnesses instead of two, and celebrates for free in its offices. Río Negro, the province of Bariloche, takes requests 15 to 30 days ahead depending on where the ceremony will be, and both spouses must attend the request in person. Before planning a legal wedding in a province, write to its Registro with your passports and dates and get the answer in writing.

Documents from home: apostille and translation

Argentina is party to the 1961 Hague Convention, approved by Ley 23.458, so a public document from another member country is accepted with an apostille from the issuing country instead of consular legalisation. Ask for the apostille at home, before you travel, on anything the Registro may ask for. Three cases come up most:

• Previously married or divorced abroad. Buenos Aires City requires a separate authorisation before either ceremony type, and Mendoza asks for the earlier marriage record with the divorce noted, apostilled, plus an opinion from the Registro's legal office before it gives you a date.
• Documents not in Spanish. Plan on a traductor público translation of each one, and confirm the format with the Registro before paying for it.
• Names that differ between documents. Bring a birth certificate as well; mismatches are the most common reason a file comes back.

Same-sex couples

Argentina opened civil marriage to same-sex couples with Ley 26.618, sanctioned on 15 July 2010, which says marriage has the same requirements and effects whether the spouses are of the same or of different sex. The in-transit procedure, the witnesses and the documents above are identical for every couple.

Legal at the Registro, celebration elsewhere

Most foreign couples end up with one of three plans:

A symbolic ceremony can be held anywhere the venue allows, with any officiant and any number of guests, because it creates no legal record. Whether your home country recognises an Argentine marriage, and how you register it there, is a question for your own consulate or civil registry before you book flights.

Next step

Read what a full day costs in the Buenos Aires wedding price guide, see the vineyard option in the Mendoza winery guide, browse Buenos Aires, Mendoza and Bariloche, or send your date and tell us whether the Registro is part of the plan.