Copenhagen City Hall wedding: everything you need to know

Why choose a Copenhagen City Hall wedding?

A Copenhagen City Hall wedding combines a fully legal civil marriage with one of the most beautiful public buildings in Scandinavia. It is the place most international couples choose when they marry in Denmark, and for good reason: the process is clear, the registrars are used to couples from abroad, and the city outside is made for wedding photos.

The building itself opened in 1905. Its architect, Martin Nyrop, drew on the national romantic style, so the red-brick façade, the tall tower and the interiors are full of carved wood, painted ceilings and stone stairs. It feels ceremonial without being stiff.

There is a practical side too. Ceremonies run all year, the location is in the centre of Copenhagen, and a short ceremony leaves the rest of the day free. You can marry in the morning and be on a canal boat by lunchtime.

If you are still deciding between settings, our venues page compares City Hall with open-air ceremonies, smaller town halls and portrait spots across Denmark.

Who can get married at Copenhagen City Hall?

Any adult couple who is not already married and is lawfully present in Denmark can have a Copenhagen City Hall wedding once Familieretshuset has approved them. Neither of you needs to be Danish, and you do not need to live in Denmark. There is no residency period, so a short stay is enough.

Lawful presence means a visa-free stay, a Schengen visa or a residence permit, depending on your passport. Same-sex couples marry here on exactly the same terms: same-sex marriage has been legal in Denmark since 2012, and Denmark created the world's first registered partnership back in 1989.

The documents you need depend on your nationalities and personal history. Usually that means valid passports, plus a final divorce decree or death certificate if either of you has been married before. Your signed declaration in the application covers your marital status. Our guide to the documents needed to marry in Denmark explains the general picture, and your personal checklist confirms exactly what applies to you.

How do you book a Copenhagen City Hall wedding?

You book a Copenhagen City Hall wedding in two stages: first approval, then the date. Familieretshuset, the Danish Agency of Family Law, reviews your application. When it approves, the Copenhagen wedding office can confirm your ceremony. This is the same route for every couple from abroad, and it is set out in three steps on our how it works page.

1. Tell us your nationalities and preferred dates; your personal document checklist arrives within 24 hours.
2. Gather your documents and send them to us for a careful pre-check.
3. We submit the application to Familieretshuset, where the €282 AFL fee applies.
4. Approval can take as little as five business days when everything is correct first time.
5. We request your preferred date and time with the wedding office as soon as approval arrives.
6. You receive a confirmed time, travel to Copenhagen and meet us on the day.

What it costs

Every price includes tax and 25% Danish VAT, with no hidden fees. You can see every inclusion on our packages page, and our cost guide covers travel and extras.

Which days and times can you marry at City Hall?

Copenhagen City Hall holds weddings six days a week, all year round. On weekdays, Monday to Friday, ceremony times run from 9:10 in the morning to 15:50 in the afternoon. On Saturdays the window is shorter, from 10:00 to 12:40, so weekend slots go quickly. Because the ceremony is indoors, the weather never decides your date.

You can ask for a morning or an afternoon slot, and we request the time that fits your travel. The wedding office confirms the exact time after your documents are approved. Saturdays and summer dates are the most popular, so a little flexibility helps if you have a fixed week in mind.

Our guide to the best time to get married in Denmark looks at each season in more depth. If Copenhagen is fully booked on your dates, town halls elsewhere in Denmark can sometimes offer an earlier slot.

What is the wedding hall at Copenhagen City Hall like?

The wedding hall is an elegant, intimate room inside City Hall, decorated in the same national romantic spirit as the rest of the building. Guests sit facing the front, while you stand with the registrar and your two witnesses. It feels formal enough to mark the moment and small enough to feel personal.

On the way there you pass through some of the finest interiors in Copenhagen. The main hall has a glass roof that fills the space with daylight, the staircases are made of granite, and the corridors are lined with carvings, busts and painted details. Many couples are surprised by how much there is to see before the ceremony even starts.

Because the building is a working city hall, you share it with everyday municipal life. That is part of its charm: you walk through the same rooms as Copenhageners, then step into a hall reserved for the moment you become married.

What happens during a Copenhagen City Hall wedding ceremony?

The ceremony is short, warm and the same in legal form for everyone. It takes about fifteen minutes and is led by a registrar from the Copenhagen wedding office in English, German or Danish; you pick the language when the date is booked. Danish law requires that both of you understand what the registrar says. If you would rather hear it in another language, you bring your own interpreter, as the city does not supply one. Here is the usual order.

1. The registrar greets you, your witnesses and your guests.
2. A short text about marriage under Danish law is read.
3. Each of you is asked the legal question and answers yes.
4. You exchange rings if you wish, and you may kiss.
5. You, your witnesses and the registrar sign the register.
6. You receive your Danish marriage certificate.

If you would like to add personal vows, tell us in advance. We help you prepare words that sit naturally alongside the registrar's text and fit the time available.

Photos and film are welcome during the ceremony as long as they do not disturb the registrar. Before you leave the hall you are handed two copies of your marriage certificate. Each copy is multilingual, with the same text in Danish, English, German, French and Spanish on one document, and the wedding office can issue extra copies later if an authority asks for more. For what to do with it afterwards, and how to take a new surname, read our guides to the next steps after your wedding and changing your name after marrying in Denmark.

How many guests can come, and who are the witnesses?

Up to 75 people can join you in the wedding hall. That number counts everyone in the room, so children, your photographer and anyone filming are part of it. For most couples who travel to Denmark it is far more space than they need, but if you plan a big group, keep the total in mind before you send invitations. Our team’s favourite wedding photographer is Sla Karvounis Photography.

Every marriage needs two witnesses, but you do not have to bring them. The City of Copenhagen always has two official witnesses ready, so a couple travelling alone is fully covered. If you would like two of your own guests to sign instead, simply tell the registrar before the signing begins. Your witnesses do not have to show any ID. Our article on wedding witnesses in Denmark covers the rules across the country.

Planning a celebration with more people? Our guide to a small wedding with guests in Copenhagen explains how to organise travel, timing and a dinner for a group.

What ID do you need if you have no Danish or Nordic personal number?

If both of you hold a CPR number, or a personal identity number from Norway, Sweden, Finland or Iceland, you do not need to bring ID to the ceremony at all. Most international couples have no such number, and then City Hall checks your identity in person before the wedding day. Your booking receipt explains the steps; this is how it works.

• A valid passport or national ID card for each of you.
• Where it applies, your visa or residence permit for a Schengen country.
• If you are both a citizen and a resident of a country outside the Schengen area: the boarding pass or ticket for your latest entry into the Schengen area, printed or on your phone.

You hand these in at the small service desk inside the shop, just past the main entrance of City Hall, between 09:00 and 13:45 on a weekday. The window opens five working days before your wedding and closes one working day before it. The wedding day itself is too late, so if you marry on a Monday or a Saturday, the Friday before is your last chance.

The desk keeps your documents for about two hours, and you collect them in person the same day, no later than 15:45. Both steps must be done by you: a partner, relative or friend cannot drop off or pick up the papers for you. Plan your flights so you are in Copenhagen at least one weekday before the ceremony.

What does the wedding day look like, hour by hour?

A late-morning ceremony is a popular choice because it leaves the afternoon free for portraits and a celebration. This is a typical plan, which we adjust to your confirmed time.

Getting to City Hall

City Hall stands at Rådhuspladsen 1, 1550 Copenhagen V, in the very centre of Copenhagen. Copenhagen Central Station is a short walk away, the square has its own metro stop, and taxis can drop you right outside. Many couples staying nearby simply walk, which makes a lovely first set of photos on the way.

If you are arriving with guests, agree one meeting point outside the main entrance and a time that is earlier than you think you need. A group of eight takes longer to gather than a couple, and the wedding office keeps a steady rhythm through the day.

Finding the wedding hall

Inside the main entrance, look down: a trail of hearts on the floor leads you through the Great Hall to the waiting area. There is no desk to report to and no need to announce yourselves. Just wait there with your guests, and when your turn comes a member of staff walks you up to the wedding hall on the first floor. Ceremonies follow each other closely, so a short wait of a few minutes is normal.

Practical tips

• Be at City Hall 10 to 15 minutes before your booked time, and allow a few minutes for small delays.
• Bring your rings, and the ID you were asked for if you have no Nordic personal number.
• Flowers are welcome, but rice and confetti are not allowed inside or on the front steps; throw them on the square instead.
• Helium balloons cannot come inside, and only service dogs are allowed in the building.
• Short or block heels make the stone stairs and the cobbles outside much easier.
• Give one guest the job of holding bags, tissues and the certificate folder.

Is Copenhagen City Hall accessible, and where can you park?

The wedding hall is on the first floor and there is no lift up to it. If you, your partner or one of your guests cannot manage the stairs, the ceremony can be moved down to the Great Hall and held beside Bertel Thorvaldsen's statue of Jason. Ask the wedding office at least a week before your date so they can arrange it.

Wheelchair users can reach the Great Hall without steps through the small side door next to the statue of Hans Christian Andersen. Prams and buggies cannot go up to the wedding hall either; they can be parked by the main entrance, at your own risk.

There is no parking in front of or behind City Hall. Use one of the public car parks or street spaces in the surrounding streets, or arrive by metro, train or taxi as described above. For questions about your booking, the wedding office (Vielseskontoret) is at Rådhuspladsen 1, 1550 Copenhagen V, phone +45 33 66 33 66. Planning a few days in the city around the wedding? See where to stay in Copenhagen.

Where should you go after a City Hall wedding?

Step outside and the celebration starts immediately. Rådhuspladsen, the City Hall square, has the old dragon fountain and the bronze statue of Hans Christian Andersen, both favourite spots for first photos as a married couple. Tivoli Gardens is just across the road.

From the square, Strøget leads into the medieval centre with its cobbled lanes and quiet courtyards. Nyhavn is about twenty minutes on foot, or around ten minutes by bike or taxi, and its painted harbour houses are the classic Copenhagen backdrop. See our Nyhavn venue page for the best route and light.

Other couples prefer the gardens around Rosenborg, a canal boat tour, or a train north to Kronborg for a castle by the sea. Our guide to the best wedding photo spots in Copenhagen lists ideas for every style, and ways to celebrate after your ceremony covers the rest of the day.

Ready to book your Copenhagen City Hall wedding?

Your first step is simple: tell us your nationalities and the dates you have in mind. Within 24 hours you receive a personal document checklist, so you know exactly what to prepare before you plan flights.

From there, our consultants pre-check your documents, file your application if your package includes it, book your City Hall date and meet you on the day. Contact our team to check your date, read more on the Copenhagen City Hall venue page, or compare our packages.