We pride ourselves on giving you the best of beginnings, by helping you prepare carefully for your Marriage Service, and by trying to meet your needs as best we can.

Who may marry in our parish churches?

You may only be married in the parish church in which either the bride or groom live or in a parish church in which at least one attends. Therefore in order to be married in church either one or both of you usually must be resident in either the Parish of St Columba, Arbory or St Mary's on the Harbour, Castletown and you  can be married in either Castletown or Arbory Churches. 

If you do not live in either parish but you wish to be married in one of the churches you may do so if you have a 'Qualifying Connection' . Recent legislation allows you to be married in a different church from where you reside providing you can fulfill one of the following connections

1. You have attended the church previously for more than 6 months or you were baptised there.

2. You have been resident in the parish at some point in your life for at least 6 months.

3. Your parents still live in the parish

4. Your parents or grandparents were baptised or married at the church 

5. Your parents attend the church and are on the Electoral Roll 

If you have such a connection you will be asked to complete a form with the details

You may also marry in the Parish Church if this is your usual place of worship and you are on the electoral roll of the parish. This means that one or both of you must have been attending church for at least 6 months before applying to be on the roll and booking your wedding.

If you are unable to meet these requirements you may be able to be married by Common Licence, for which there is an additional fee of £110. For this one of you must be resident in the parish for at least 15days prior to the wedding.

It may still be possible to marry in the Parish Church by means of a Special Licence issued by the Bishop of Sodor and Man providing you can meet the required criteria. Details of this can be discussed with you personally when you enquire.The cost of a Special Licence is £270  

If you would like to discuss getting married in Church  then please contact the Vicar, Rev Irene Cowell on 823509 or email irene.cowell@sodorandman.im

What if one or both parties have been married and divorced?

There are guidelines that allow Clergy to marry people who have been divorced in Church. You will need to be prepared to discuss with the Vicar the circumstances of the breakdown of the first marriage and to supply a copy of your decree absolute. The decision to offer marriage under these circumstances is at the discretion of the Vicar.