Where one member of a couple is a resident overseas and applying to immigrate to Australia on a fiancé (Prospective Spouse) visa, once you have lodged your NOIM (essentially your ‘licence to marry’) we are able to provide you with the legal required confirmation documentation for your Visa paperwork. This is often referred to as a Letter of Support.
All Commonwealth Registered Marriage Celebrants at Melbourne Private Marriage Registry are authorised by the Commonwealth of Australia. It is their aim to do everything they can to make this part of the NOIM lodgement process, and obtaining the Letter of Support documenation as simple for you as possible. However, please note that all of out team are unable to provide any official legal advice on immigration information. This should be obtained from a Registered Migration Agent or a Migration Lawyer. What we can do is to advise you how to go about lodging your intent to marry in Australia and what we can provide you with that will get the immigration ball rolling.
Your first step is to lodge your Notice of Intention to Marry form with us. This is essentially your ‘marriage licence’ which allows you to get married one month after it is signed, witnessed and lodged with us. As with all lodgements, there will be a non-refundable lodgement fee for the Notice of Intended Marriage form. That fee is $175 as at November 2025.
To make sure that we can fill out all of your paperwork correctly you will need to bring your identification documentation with you. If you were born in Australia, please ensure that you bring either your passport or an original copy of your birth certificate (along with additional driver’s licence or proof of age card). If you were born outside Australia, please bring along a copy of your overseas birth certificate or passport. If you have been married previously, we will also need to sight an official copy of your divorce certificate or death certificate of your late spouse. Please also bring a copy of your fiance’s documents (these can initially be photocopies or scans – which we will only view during your appointment and not keep on file – although the celebrant will need to sight the originals of these documents prior to the legal marriage taking place, and prior to you signing the Statutory Declaration – ‘Form 14’).If any of these documents are in a language other than English they will need to be translated by a government approved translator. Visit www.naati.com.au to find a translator near you. Talk to us if you hold a refugee status and we can assist also.
Once the initial paperwork is lodged with our Commonwealth Registered Marriage Celebrants, the couple can book in a suitable wedding date of their choice – at any legal and suitable time. This booking may be made from a month’s time – right up to 18 months time from the date of the lodgement of the Notice of Intended Marriage forms, for a wedding at the Melbourne Marriage Registry – Victoria.
If this process sounds confusing or if this all sounds hard to work out, please feel free to give us a call on (03) 9820 1119 or if the administration offices are unattended – please call 0424 77 88 00 and let our friendly award-winning service team help you through the process. We can help you complete the NOIM form in order to commence the lodgement process – and for your convenience, our registered celebrants can also assist with a legal video witnessing on page 4 of the NOIM for the section requiring an authorised witness.
We are expert at partner visa marriages in Victoria. Get in touch today