Weddings

To get married legally in French Polynesia the couple must reside in the country for one month before the ceremony and must allow 10 days for the marriage banns (notice of impending marriage) to be published.

The following documents must be translated into French and provided to the city's (or municipality) town hall where the wedding will take place: birth certificates certified within the past three months and translated into French by an official translator; a prenuptial medical certificate less than two months old; a passport providing at least one month's continuous residency; a copy of a notarized marriage contract, if one exists; birth certificates of children to be made legitimate; identification of adult witnesses, including their profession and address (parents cannot be witnesses); a certificate of singleness; and wedding (or marriage) banns publication certificate from the place of foreign residency. Check with your hotel or wedding planner to make sure your paperwork is in order and nothing is missing before leaving.

U.S. and Canadian nationals are entitled to a one-month stay without a visa, so they should contact the French Embassy in their country to inquire about visa extensions so they can stay longer and quality for a legal civil wedding.

If a civil wedding is not possible, there are many traditional ceremonies that can be arranged by wedding planners at hotels. Many people get married in their home country and then have a Polynesian ceremony during their honeymoon. The traditional weddings are quite elaborate and usually take place on the beach. They can involve singers and dancers, and often the groom arrives by outrigger canoe and the couple is wrapped in a wedding quilt called a tifaifal.