To marry in Denmark you must both be lawfully in the country on the wedding day. That is shown by an EU, EEA or Swiss passport, a residence permit of any Schengen state, a visa for the Schengen area or, if you travel visa-free, the printout of the EES visa calculator with your travel documents. A Duldung or an Aufenthaltsgestattung is not enough. With a Fiktionsbescheinigung, a refugee travel document or a protection permit the details matter; the table shows what applies (as of 6 November 2026).
This guide is for couples where one of you is not a national of an EU or EEA state or Switzerland. Whether your partner needs a visa at all is shown on our page rules by country of origin. Which documents you need besides proof of stay is listed in documents for your wedding in Denmark.
What does “lawful stay” mean for Familieretshuset?
Under the Danish Marriage Act (§ 11 a Ægteskabsloven), only Danish citizens or people lawfully staying in Denmark may marry there. For couples without residence in Denmark this is checked by Familieretshuset, the Danish Agency of Family Law, which issues the marriage approval (prøvelsesattest). On its page (Familieretshuset: Lovligt ophold for at blive gift i Danmark) it names as a basis: nationality of an EU or EEA state or Switzerland, nationality of a visa-free country, a Danish residence permit, or a visa for Denmark or another Schengen state. Accepted proof includes the visa, even a tourist visa, a residence permit of another Schengen state, and the passport.
Three basic rules apply to everyone:
- The wedding day counts. The condition must be met at the ceremony, not only when you apply. If your lawful stay is limited to less than four months, Familieretshuset limits the approval accordingly (Marriage guidance, point 2.7).
- A pending procedure is not lawful stay. Anyone who may only stay in a Schengen state because an application is being decided there, for example as an asylum seeker, has no lawful stay in Denmark according to the same guidance.
- No valid travel document, no wedding. You need a valid passport or another recognised travel document. For nationals from outside the EU and EEA it must be valid for at least 3 months beyond your planned departure from Denmark, have 2 blank pages and have been issued within the last 10 years.
What the approval is and how long it lasts is explained in our guide Prøvelsesattest: the Danish marriage approval.
The table: which document counts and which does not?
The overview combines Familieretshuset's information with the rules for travel in the Schengen area. “Yes” means Familieretshuset or Danish law accepts stay on this document. “Ask first” means Familieretshuset has published no rule on it.
| Document | Enough? | What you upload and what to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Passport or national ID card of an EU or EEA state or Switzerland | Yes | Photos of all passport pages; according to Familieretshuset, EU citizens may upload both sides of their ID card instead. For Swiss citizens the agency does not mention the ID card expressly, so use the passport if in doubt. |
| Residence permit of a Schengen state, such as Aufenthaltserlaubnis, Niederlassungserlaubnis, EU Blue Card or residence card for family members of EU citizens | Yes | Both sides of the card and all passport pages, no EES printout. Allows up to 90 days in any 180 in Denmark. |
| National visa (type D) of another Schengen state | Yes, up to 90 days in any 180 | Visa in the passport. Familieretshuset does not list the D visa, and the EES does not apply to it: ask first what to upload. |
| Schengen visa (type C) | Yes | Visa sticker, data and result page of the EES visa calculator, plane tickets or boarding passes. The visa must be valid for Denmark and cover the wedding day. |
| Visa-free nationality without a residence permit | Yes, up to 90 days in any 180 | Data and result page of the EES visa calculator and plane tickets or boarding passes; before entry, the printout for the planned stay. |
| Fiktionsbescheinigung with the third box: previous permit continues (§ 81(4) AufenthG) | Ask first | For travel, according to the EU list, only together with the expired permit and a valid passport. Familieretshuset has no rule on it. |
| Fiktionsbescheinigung with the first or second box (§ 81(3) AufenthG) | No | According to the EU list it does not allow visa-free entry into other Schengen states. |
| Residence permit under § 24 AufenthG (temporary protection) | Yes | A residence permit within the EU list. If the card shows an expired date, add proof that it continues. |
| Protection documents of other countries, such as Austria's Ausweis für Vertriebene or Switzerland's permit S | Ask first | Familieretshuset does not name them expressly. |
| Travel document for refugees or stateless persons | Yes, as a travel document | Together with the valid residence permit; upload all pages as with a passport. |
| German Reiseausweis für Ausländer (“grey passport”) | Yes, as a travel document if valid for Denmark | Together with the residence permit; check the territorial validity on the document. |
| Permit or certificate in an Ausweisersatz (German substitute ID) | No | An Ausweisersatz is only valid in Germany and is not a travel document. |
| Aufenthaltsgestattung (pending asylum procedure) | No | Valid only for Germany; stay during a procedure does not count in Denmark. |
| Duldung (suspension of deportation) | No | Valid only for Germany and ends when you leave. |
| Expired passport, permit or visa | No | Everything must be valid on the wedding day. |
The table only answers the question of stay. Apostille, translation or proof of divorce depend on the country that issued your certificates. How to create the EES printout step by step is shown in our guide EES proof for your wedding; which permits of other Schengen states allow entry without a visa is linked by the Danish Immigration Service on nyidanmark.dk.
Fiktionsbescheinigung: the ticked box decides
When someone in Germany applies for a residence permit or its extension, the foreigners' authority issues a certificate on the effect of the application, the Fiktionsbescheinigung (§ 81(5) AufenthG). It certifies one of three effects, shown by the ticked box on page 3:
- Deemed permission (§ 81(3), first sentence): someone who stayed lawfully in Germany without a permit and applies for one is treated as lawfully staying until the decision.
- Deemed suspension (§ 81(3), second sentence): after a late application only deportation is treated as suspended.
- Continued permit (§ 81(4)): someone who applies for an extension or another permit before theirs expires keeps the previous permit until the decision. This does not apply to a Schengen visa.
For travel to other Schengen states only the third variant counts. The list of residence permits Germany has notified to the EU says the Fiktionsbescheinigung allows entry without a visa only if the third box is ticked, and only together with the expired permit and a valid passport. With the first or second box there is no such right (EU list of residence permits, section Germany). The City of Cologne also points out that with a Fiktionsbescheinigung under subsection 3 you may not leave Germany and re-enter. The German Foreign Office advises all holders to check with the foreigners' authority before travelling whether re-entry is possible.
Whether Familieretshuset accepts a Fiktionsbescheinigung as proof, and for how long it then issues the approval, is not stated on its pages (as of 6 November 2026). The safe route: if time allows, wait for the new card and apply only then. If time is short, ask Familieretshuset in writing before applying and upload the Fiktionsbescheinigung, the expired permit and all passport pages. The fee of DKK 2,100 (about €281) is not refunded if the application is refused.
Aufenthaltsgestattung and Duldung: why Denmark stays closed
The Aufenthaltsgestattung allows stay “in the federal territory” for the asylum procedure (§ 55 AsylG). A Duldung is not a residence permit but a suspension of deportation, and it ends when the person leaves the country (§ 60a(5) AufenthG). According to the German Foreign Office, neither allows entry into other Schengen states without a visa, and Germany expressly lists both as unsuitable for this in the EU list. On the Danish side, stay that is only allowed for the duration of a procedure in another Schengen state does not count as lawful stay in Denmark.
In these cases, do not apply and do not travel. Which routes exist, for example marrying in Germany, is explained in our guide marrying in Denmark with a Duldung. Get advice from an immigration lawyer before you trigger deadlines or fees.
Travel documents and passport substitutes: what counts
Anyone who has no passport from their country of origin and cannot reasonably obtain one receives a passport substitute in Germany. The German Residence Ordinance names, among others, the travel document for refugees, the travel document for stateless persons and the Reiseausweis für Ausländer (§ 4 AufenthV). The guide on lawful stay published by Familieretshuset expressly names aliens' passports and travel documents for refugees or stateless persons as valid travel documents (Vejledning om lovligt ophold).
- Travel document for refugees (“blue passport”): suitable as a travel document, together with the valid residence permit. According to the German Foreign Office, the permit only counts for travel if it is in the passport or travel document.
- Reiseausweis für Ausländer (“grey passport”): it can be limited to certain states or continents (§ 9 AufenthV). Check that Denmark is within its territorial validity.
- Provisional travel documents without a chip: they are valid for one year at most. Make sure the document is valid until 3 months after you leave Denmark.
- Ausweisersatz: it replaces the identity card within Germany and is not a travel document.
What recognised refugees should also consider, for example documents from the country of origin, is explained in our guide marrying in Denmark as a refugee.
Temporary protection: § 24 and similar permits
The residence permit under § 24 AufenthG is a residence permit; Germany lists it in the EU list with the remark “24”. According to BAMF, holders may travel to other Schengen states for up to 90 days in any 180, and permits of Ukrainian nationals that were valid on 1 February 2026 automatically continue until 4 March 2027, without an appointment at the foreigners' authority (BAMF, Germany4Ukraine). If your card shows an earlier date, add proof that it continues or ask Familieretshuset beforehand what it accepts.
Other Schengen states issue their own documents for temporary protection. Whether such a document counts as a residence permit follows from the list each state notifies to the EU; the Danish Immigration Service advises asking the issuing state if in doubt. Familieretshuset does not expressly name Austria's Ausweis für Vertriebene or Switzerland's permit S. More in our guide marrying in Denmark with a Ukrainian partner.
Expired passport or permit: planning the four months
The approval is valid for at most four months from issue and only for the municipality you name in the application. If your lawful stay ends earlier, it is valid for less. Three rules follow:
- Renew first, then apply. If your passport or permit expires in the coming months, renew both before applying. Then the data in the application match and the approval runs the full four months.
- Plan visa and wedding day together. With a Schengen visa the wedding day must fall within its validity and the permitted length of stay. Without a visa, 90 days in any 180 apply, counted for all Schengen states together.
- Do not stay beyond the end. Anyone who stays after the visa or the visa-free period ends is no longer lawfully present on the wedding day. Since 10 April 2026 the EES records entries and exits digitally; it does not record holders of residence permits and long-stay visas (Regulation (EU) 2017/2226, Art. 2).
If proof is missing or unclear, Familieretshuset asks for more. Your case then goes into a separate queue, where the agency is currently working on applications from August 2026 (Familieretshuset: Sagsbehandlingstider, as of 6 November 2026). How to respond is explained in Familieretshuset requests more documents or refuses.
How to check your documents step by step
- Check the visa requirement: does your partner need a visa for the Schengen area? See rules by country of origin.
- Find your document in the table: “Yes”, “No” or “Ask first”.
- Check validity: passport, permit or visa until after the wedding, the passport at least 3 months beyond departure.
- If it says “Ask first”: ask Familieretshuset in writing before you pay the fee.
- Upload everything: both sides of the card, all passport pages in colour, and without a permit the EES printout with travel documents.
- Apply: fee DKK 2,100 (about €281), not refundable; Familieretshuset usually decides complete applications within 5 working days.
If your partner has no visa yet, first read our comparison marriage visa for Germany or wedding in Denmark and the guide marrying on a Schengen visa. Whether your case works is shown by the free eligibility check. In the Complete package for €649.99, including the Familieretshuset fee, we also check the proof of stay before we submit the application; all services are on our prices page. Whether a document is enough in the end is decided by Familieretshuset. This overview is not legal advice; for asylum procedures, a Duldung or an unclear status, talk to an immigration lawyer.
