Legal and Symbolic Ceremony +destination Wedding in Mexico

As long as all your guests know that technically you are legally married and they aren't witnessing your official ceremony, you should be fine.

I didn't get married outside of the US, but I've definitely heard of couples who have destination weddings outside of the US choosing to get married at the courthouse before they leave for their weddings in another country so the paperwork is simpler.

My best friend had to do this before getting married in the Dominican Republic. They went to the courthouse and I don't think it really cost them anything other than the fee for their marriage license, which you have to get no matter what, so it's not an "extra" fee.

ETA I was wrong, they paid $25 to have the ceremony in the city clerk's office, plus the $35 license fee. $25 extra is NBD.

You’ll have to pay for the legal ceremony in the US. How much it will cost will depend on your county. I’d call the clerks office to get that information.

A courthouse wedding is like 60.00. (give or take, depending on your state.) I assume that is what you mean when you say "legal ceremony"?

For me once you are married, pretending to marry again seems silly, but as long as everyone knows you are already legally wed I suppose it will be up to your guests to attend.

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Ehh, I think a case like this is an exception to that, when the legal logistics are just too complicated to deal with abroad. I don't think anyone would decline this invitation for that reason.

We are doing this for our wedding. We have to pay for the license plus $30 for ceremony at the courthouse. We are doing that 2 days before leaving for Jamaica for our symbolic wedding with our guests and family. Only our parents will be at the courthouse wedding and then we are going to dinner afterwards.

View Quoted Comment I don't understand why we need to let guests know this?...

I am getting married in Mexico and having the 'legal' part done 2 days prior in the US. Then 2 days later we will have our ceremony and reception with 150 of our friends and family. Like OP stated, it's much easier this way.

My friend had the legal part done in the US a couple days before her wedding in Mexico. She paid for the marriage license, and I think a $100 or so for the officiant.

View Quoted Comment They need to know the event they are attending isn't a wedding...because telling the truth is good? Are you really considering to pretend to not be married? Why lie?

I am not but my friend did. It's pretty common for destination weddings, for just the reasons you have said. Depending on where you live, it might cost about $50 - $100 for the license and judge. You may have to set aside an afternoon to go do it, but NBD.

I don't think this is the same as "We got married now for xx reason but we're going to throw a pretend wedding next year and not tell anyone we are really married." I think most people will assume you are doing this. If asked I wouldn't lie, but nobody will care or not come if you do the paperwork here first.

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The only thing that stands out to me is the blood test, which some US states still require. Everything else seems fairly routine?

https://funinthesunweddings.com/is-it-legal-to-get-married-in-mexico-for-a-u-s-citizen/

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They need to know that they are paying to travel/ take time off of work/ arrange child care/ pet care / get a passport possibly for a symbolic wedding ceremony, as opposed to a legal one.

If they know that, then they can either decide to go or to decline the invite based on that information.

View Quoted Comment The event they are attending is a wedding... MY WEDDING. I have to get the paperwork done in the US bc that is where I live and my WEDDING will be 2 days later in Mexico.
And no it is not lying. If anyone asks then I will tell them but I don't see why anyone would ask. The guests are my family and close friends and even if I got married 6 months before, that wouldn't influence their decision to attend or not. And honesty it's sad that some people think that way...

View Quoted Comment I mean you can say it's your wedding but if you aren't legally getting married at the ceremony it's not a wedding...you have your wedding in the US and it seems like you are doing a vow renewal in Mexico.

I don't see why someone wouldn't say "hey we are already legally married but want to have a celebration of marriage/vow renewal on a different day." I mean I'd be pretty upset if a close friend or family member chose to have a destination vow renewal and played it off like a wedding. Like why not tell us the truth to begin with?

I guess I just prefer to be transparent and open with my guests. If you want to get married then do a fake ceremony later; go for it. don't be surprised if people are upset that you omitted the truth though.

View Quoted Comment I'm not playing anything off as a wedding. It is a wedding. And I'm sorry you would get "pretty upset" over something this silly. We are providing great good, live music, and an open bar so I'm pretty sure no one is going to be petty about it and be upset LOL

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Sounds like you are well on your way with your plan to do it your way regardless! Good luck planning your wedding and vow renewal!

We are also having a symbolic ceremony in Mexico and inviting our immediate families. Prior to going, we will get legally married at a courthouse here in Cleveland. We are choosing to do it this way not only because of the blood tests but also because the fees are ridiculous and there are so many hoops to jump through! Translation fees for paperwork (that must be done upon arrival), the doctor to come to the resort, the actual blood test itself, the fee for the officiant and you STILL have to pay a fee when you get back in the US for the license to be translated to english/validated!

GIRL. I GET YOU. YOUR GUESTS WILL BE FINE. YOU DO YOU AND IT'LL TURN OUT JUST FINE.

View Quoted Comment For us, the marriage is the Catholic one. The legal part is all fine and good, but to us, we aren’t fully married until we get sacramentally married in the Church. And pretty much everyone attending our wedding is Catholic so they have the same views we do. If you live in Mexico, you actually have to do two ceremonies if you’re Catholic because a priests can’t legally marry there. The legal “ceremony” in the US will just be us and the required number of witnesses signing papers.

View Quoted Comment Thanks Allie! It might be even more complicated for us trying to get married legally in Mexico since he is a Mexican citizen. Apparently you have to apply for permission or something? We definitely don’t want to deal with that monkey business so it’s eaiser to do it in the US since he’s also a US citizen.

Best of luck with your wedding!