Easy Home Affairs CertificatesUnabridged marriage certificate
The unabridged marriage certificate is the full computerised record of your marriage from the Department of Home Affairs — both spouses' ID numbers, the date and place of marriage, and the marriage officer. It is the only version foreign governments accept, and it is almost never the certificate you were handed on your wedding day.
- Our fee
- R2,750application to collection
- Typical turnaround
- ~2 weeksHome Affairs controls the clock
- Older marriages (archive)
- R3,450often 6–12 weeks
Which marriage certificate do you actually have?
South Africa issues several marriage documents, and only one of them is accepted internationally. Knowing the difference saves you a rejected application.
Unabridged marriage certificate — the one you need
The unabridged certificate is the full computerised record from Home Affairs. It carries both spouses' ID numbers and particulars, the marriage date, and the officiant's details. This is the version foreign authorities expect for spousal visas, immigration and registering a foreign marriage — and the version DIRCO and the High Court will apostille.
Handwritten or abridged certificate — usually rejected
The certificate completed by hand at the wedding (form BI-27), or the small abridged BI-30 slip, is a summary record. Foreign embassies and immigration departments treat it as insufficient. If that is all you have, the computerised unabridged certificate must be ordered from Home Affairs first — the step we handle.
Not sure which one you have? The unabridged certificate is a printed, computer-generated document headed "Unabridged Marriage Certificate" with both ID numbers on it. A handwritten certificate or the small abridged slip is the wedding-day version. WhatsApp us a photo and we will confirm before you spend anything.
What it costs
| Item | Price | Timeline | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unabridged marriage certificate | R2,750 | ~2 weeks | Standard reprint from the live register |
| Unabridged marriage certificate — with archive retrieval | R3,450 | often 6–12 weeks | When Home Affairs must pull the record from the archive |
| Apostille (DIRCO or High Court) | R1,650 | ~1 week / 2–3 days | Only if the certificate is going abroad |
| Sworn translation | R1,000 | per page | Only for non-English destinations |
| Local courier | R250 | 1–2 days | Anywhere in South Africa |
| International courier | R800–R1,300 | 3–14 days | By destination zone |
No VAT is added. A typical certificate-plus-apostille job lands at R4,400 before courier. Couples emigrating together usually need their unabridged birth certificates in the same run — that service is here.
Older marriages: the archive route
If your marriage was registered many years ago — or the record simply is not on the Home Affairs live population register — Home Affairs must retrieve the original register entry from its archive before it can issue the unabridged certificate. That is the "with archive" version at R3,450, and it is slower: the older the marriage, the longer the retrieval, commonly six to twelve weeks.
You need the archive route when a standard application comes back "no record found", when the marriage predates the computerised register, or when a foreign authority specifically asks for the archived record. We check which route your record needs before you pay for either. If what you actually need is a certified copy of the original register entry itself — common for ancestry citizenship claims — see vault copies.
What people need it for
- Spousal and partner visas — proving a valid marriage for a partner or dependant visa in the UK, Australia, Canada and beyond.
- Immigration and residency — family-based residency applications almost always require the full certificate, apostilled.
- Registering a foreign marriage — some countries require your South African marriage to be recognised and recorded locally.
- Name change abroad — updating a passport, bank or government record in your married name in another country.
- Joint property and finance — establishing marital status for overseas mortgages, accounts or estates.
- Citizenship and family reunification — supporting a citizenship or family-reunion application based on marriage.
Going abroad? Do the apostille in the same run
For the 125+ Hague Convention countries your certificate must carry an apostille — R1,650, added while the document is already with us. For non-Hague destinations such as the UAE and Qatar it needs embassy attestation instead, which we also arrange. Tell us the destination country when you start and we will confirm which applies.
Frequently asked questions
Is the handwritten certificate from my wedding accepted abroad?
No. The handwritten BI-27 or the abridged BI-30 slip handed over on the wedding day is treated as insufficient by foreign authorities. They require the computerised unabridged marriage certificate from Home Affairs — which we obtain for you.
How long does it take?
A standard reprint typically takes around two weeks. If the record must be pulled from the archive — common for older marriages — plan for six to twelve weeks. Home Affairs controls the clock in both cases; we follow up until it is issued and tell you the moment anything changes.
What is the "with archive" version and why does it cost more?
When your marriage record is not on the live population register, Home Affairs must physically retrieve the original register entry from its archive before issuing the certificate. The archive retrieval step is why it costs R3,450 rather than R2,750, and why it takes longer.
We're both applying for visas — what else do we need?
Most spousal-visa applications also require each spouse's unabridged birth certificate, apostilled. We run all the documents as one batch so everything arrives together — ask us for a single quote for the pack.
I'm overseas. Can you still do this?
Yes. Email us both spouses' details and a copy of an ID or passport, and we handle the South African end — application, follow-up, collection, apostille if needed — and courier the certificate to any address worldwide.