{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/registration-of-marriages-amendment-regulations-1996/regulation-2",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/registration-of-marriages-amendment-regulations-1996/regulation-2.json",
  "legislation": "uksi/1996/2558",
  "legislation_title": "The Registration of Marriages (Amendment) Regulations 1996",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/registration-of-marriages-amendment-regulations-1996",
  "path": "regulation/2",
  "kind": "regulation",
  "number": "2",
  "heading": "Amendment of the Registration of Marriages Regulations 1986",
  "text": "In the Registration of Marriages Regulations 1986, in form 12 in Schedule 1 (instructions for the solemnization of a marriage in a registered building without the presence of a registrar), after paragraph 5 there shall be inserted the following paragraph—\n“5A If the marriage is solemnized on or after 1st February 1997, as an alternative to the declaration set out in paragraph 5, the persons contracting the marriage may make the declaration—\n(a) by saying “I declare that I know of no legal reason why I [name] may not be joined in marriage to [name]”; or\n(b) by replying “I am” to the question put to them successively “Are you [name] free lawfully to marry [name] ?”\nand as an alternative to the words of contract set out in paragraph 5, the persons to be married may say to each other “I [name] take you [or thee] [name] to be my wedded wife [or husband]”.”.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f1",
      "text": "S.I. 1986/1442, as amended by S.I. 1995/744."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f2",
      "text": "The Marriage Ceremony (Prescribed Words) Act 1996 comes into force on that date. See the Marriage Ceremony (Prescribed Words) Act 1996 Commencement Order 1996 S.I. 1996/2506 (C. 67)."
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1996/2558/regulation/2",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T12:34:20.311537+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}