Yes, you can marry a partner from Russia or Belarus in Denmark, and unlike at a German Standesamt (registry office) you do not need a certificate of no impediment (Ehefähigkeitszeugnis) to do so. Russian and Belarusian documents need an apostille from the issuing country and a translation. The biggest hurdle is often the visa: if your partner lives in Russia, Danish visit visas are only available in special circumstances. With a residence permit from a Schengen state, on the other hand, the route is simple.
This guide is for couples where one of you lives in Germany, Austria or Switzerland and the other has Russian or Belarusian citizenship, whether they already live with you, are still in Russia or Belarus, or live in a third country such as Serbia, Georgia or Turkey. The rules for every nationality are on our page rules by country of origin.
Why Denmark: no certificate of no impediment needed
Anyone who marries in Germany and is subject to foreign national law must, under § 1309 BGB (German Civil Code), give the Standesamt a certificate of no impediment from their home country or be exempted from it by the Oberlandesgericht (OLG, Higher Regional Court). For Russia and Belarus, the Higher Regional Courts publish their own country notes on the exemption, with a birth certificate, a declaration of marital status before a notary or consulate and proof regarding every previous marriage (OLG München, Nürnberg, Bamberg, notes on Belarus, as of June 2025). This takes weeks to months; see OLG exemption from the certificate of no impediment.
Denmark does not require this certificate. Familieretshuset, the Danish Agency of Family Law, checks the requirements itself on the basis of the passport, proof of residence and, if your partner is divorced, proof of divorce. Unmarried applicants confirm their marital status in the application with their signature, under penalty of law. The guides Marrying without a certificate of no impediment and Germany or Denmark? compare the two routes.
Which documents does your partner need?
| Document | Russian or Belarusian name | When needed | Apostille and translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passport | заграничный паспорт (Russia) or passport of the Republic of Belarus | always | no, colour photos of all pages |
| Proof of lawful residence | residence permit from a Schengen state, otherwise visa and EES proof | always | no |
| Proof of divorce | свидетельство о расторжении брака, for a court divorce also решение суда with a note confirming it is final | if divorced | yes |
| Death certificate of the former spouse | свидетельство о смерти | if widowed | yes |
| Birth certificates of joint children | свидетельство о рождении | if you have children together | yes, if Russian or Belarusian |
| Proof of marital status | depending on the request | only if Familieretshuset asks for it | yes |
| Proof of a shared address | e.g. German Meldebescheinigung (registration certificate) | if you live together outside Denmark, not older than 4 months | not for German-language documents |
The Russian internal passport is not a passport for travel abroad. Familieretshuset requires the travel passport, and it must be valid for at least 3 months beyond your stay, have 2 blank pages and have been issued within the last 10 years. Belarusians should check this early: under Decree No. 278 of 4 September 2023, Belarusian missions abroad no longer issue or renew passports (pravo.by).
Apostille: who issues it in Russia and Belarus
Familieretshuset accepts documents from most European countries without certification, but Russia and Belarus are explicitly on the list of exceptions: their documents need an apostille (Familieretshuset: Documentation requirements). Both countries have been parties to the Hague Apostille Convention since 1992 (HCCH status table), so you do not need legalisation by a Danish embassy.
- Russia: For civil status documents, the apostille is issued by the civil registry authority (ZAGS) of the region where the document was issued; this is how the regional civil registry authorities appear in Russia's list of competent authorities at the Hague Conference (HCCH: Russian Federation). The City of Moscow portal states a maximum of 5 working days for Moscow documents, and a representative with a notarised power of attorney may also collect it (mos.ru: Как заверить документы апостилем).
- Belarus: The apostille is issued by authorities in Belarus. Under Decree No. 278, it is applied for, just like duplicates of civil status certificates and extracts from the civil status register, in person or through a representative with a power of attorney issued in Belarus. Belarusian consulates now certify powers of attorney only for narrowly defined groups of people.
Getting documents when your partner lives abroad
If a Russian document is missing or old, there are two routes. First, Russian consulates can request civil status documents from Russia; the application is made in person at the consulate or by a representative with a notarised power of attorney, based on a joint order of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Justice of 20 December 2024 (kdmid.ru: Истребование документов). According to the same page, anyone living in a CIS state or in Georgia contacts the local justice authorities directly. The page does not say whether the document already gets an apostille in the process; plan for it separately. Second, a representative in Russia with a notarised power of attorney can apply for a duplicate (повторное свидетельство) and have it apostilled straight away in the same region. For Belarusian documents, Decree No. 278 means the only practical options are to travel to Belarus yourself or to appoint a representative with a power of attorney issued in Belarus.
Translation from Russian or Belarusian
Familieretshuset requires foreign documents to be translated into Danish, English or German by an authorised translator before you apply, including the text of the apostille. The simplest option is a publicly appointed or sworn translator from Germany, Austria or Switzerland; costs and process are explained in the guide Certified translation of wedding documents. Pay attention to three things with names:
- Cyrillic names can be transliterated into Latin script in different ways. Ask the translator to write them exactly as in the passport.
- The patronymic (отчество) is part of the full name and should appear in full in the translation.
- If a name changed because of a previous marriage, the chain should be traceable from the documents: birth name, name in the previous marriage, current name in the passport.
Married before: proving the divorce correctly
If your partner was married before, Familieretshuset needs proof that the marriage has ended, and for a divorce, proof that it is final. The German Higher Regional Courts describe which proof goes with which type of divorce:
| Country and type of divorce | What you submit, each with apostille and translation |
|---|---|
| Russia, divorce at the registry office | Divorce certificate (свидетельство о расторжении брака) |
| Russia, divorce by a court | Divorce certificate and the complete court decision (OLG notes on Russia) |
| Belarus, divorce before 1 September 1999 | Divorce certificate |
| Belarus, court divorce from 1 September 1999 to 31 December 2012 | complete court decision with a note confirming it is final |
| Belarus, divorce from 1 January 2013 | at the registry office: divorce certificate and proof of registration; by a court: court decision with a note confirming it is final and proof of registration in the civil status register |
For Germany, a second question arises: under § 107 FamFG, a foreign divorce must in principle be recognised by the state justice administration (Landesjustizverwaltung). This does not apply if, at the time of the divorce, both spouses were nationals of the state whose court or authority decided it. Conversely, according to the OLG notes, foreign divorces need no special recognition procedure for Russia and Belarus. More in the guide Divorced: your second wedding in Denmark.
Visas since 2022: what applies to Russians and Belarusians
In Denmark, only people who are lawfully in the country on the wedding day can be married. If your partner lives in Germany, Austria, Switzerland or another Schengen state with a residence permit, that permit is sufficient proof (Familieretshuset: Legal residence for marriage in Denmark). Without a permit, they need a Schengen visa, and since 2022 the following applies (as of 6 November 2026):
- Russia, EU level: The visa facilitation agreement has been fully suspended since 12 September 2022 (Decision (EU) 2022/1500); the general rules of the Visa Code apply. Since a Commission decision of 6 November 2025, Russians who live in Russia and apply there only receive multiple-entry visas if they belong to certain groups, for example close relatives of people resident in the EU (Implementing Decision C(2025) 7552).
- Russia, Denmark: Since 10 September 2022, the Danish Immigration Service (Udlændingestyrelsen) has placed Russian citizens in main group 5. Visit visas are then only issued in special circumstances, for example serious illness or the death of a relative in Denmark (nyidanmark.dk: Who needs a visa?, as of 30 June 2026). The authority does not mention a wedding. According to its announcement of 14 March 2024, the Danish embassy in Moscow is not accepting visa applications until further notice and refers applicants to Danish application centres in other countries.
- Belarus: The facilitation agreement has been partially suspended since 12 November 2021 (European Commission: Visa policy). Udlændingestyrelsen places Belarus in main group 3; a visa is required, and the authority decides case by case.
To be honest: if your partner lives in Russia, you should not firmly plan on a Danish visa for the wedding. Always state the true purpose of the trip in the application. What you can look into instead, for example marrying in Germany with a visa for the purpose of marriage, is compared in the guide Marriage visa or marrying in Denmark.
Russians in Serbia, Georgia or Turkey
A Schengen visa is applied for at the consulate responsible for the place where the applicant lawfully resides. In 2022 the European Commission instructed the member states not to accept visa applications from Russians who are only in a third country such as Georgia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Serbia, Turkey or the United Arab Emirates for a short stay or in transit (Commission guidelines, 30 September 2022). If your partner lives in one of these countries with a residence permit, include it with the visa application; however, a residence permit from Serbia, Georgia or Turkey does not replace the Schengen visa. For Familieretshuset, what then counts is the visa, the printout from the EES calculator (data and result pages) and flight tickets or boarding passes (Familieretshuset: Documentation of legal stay). Details are in the guides Marrying with a Schengen visa and EES proof for the wedding.
After the wedding: recognition in Russia, Belarus and at home
Straight after the ceremony you receive two international marriage certificates in five languages (Danish, German, English, French, Spanish). German and Austrian authorities do not require an apostille on the certificate. The guides Recognition in Germany and Married in Denmark: what now? explain what happens next in Germany.
- Russia: Under Art. 158 of the Family Code, marriages between Russian citizens and foreigners concluded abroad under the law of the place of marriage are valid in Russia if there is no impediment to marriage under Art. 14 (Art. 158 SK RF). The law does not require the marriage to be registered again.
- Belarus: Under Art. 230 of the Code on Marriage and Family, marriages between Belarusian citizens and foreigners concluded abroad in the form prescribed there are valid in Belarus if they do not contradict Articles 17 to 19 (Art. 230 KoBS).
To prove the marriage to Russian or Belarusian authorities, for example for a new name in the passport, the Danish certificate needs an apostille from the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Udenrigsministeriet) for DKK 250, with processing taking about 5 to 7 working days, followed by a translation into Russian. Ask the authority that requires the certificate in what form the translation must be certified. We obtain the apostille as an add-on service for €149.99; see Apostille on the Danish marriage certificate. If your partner then wants to move to Germany to join you, they need a visa for spousal reunification, usually with German at level A1; see Family reunification after the wedding.
How to proceed, step by step
- Clarify residence: If your partner has a permit from a Schengen state, that is the simple route. Otherwise, take an honest look at the visa chances. The free eligibility check shows which documents your case needs.
- Get the documents: only the ones you need, ideally as a current duplicate, through a consulate or a representative.
- Apostille in the issuing country: in Russia from the civil registry authority of the region, in Belarus in person or with a power of attorney from Belarus.
- Translation: document and apostille together into German, English or Danish.
- Application to Familieretshuset: The fee is DKK 2,100 (about €281) and is not refunded. Familieretshuset usually decides complete applications within 5 working days; after a request for further documents, it is currently processing applications from August 2026 (Sagsbehandlingstider, as of 6 November 2026). The approval (prøvelsesattest) is valid for at most 4 months; with a visa, it ends earlier if the visa expires earlier.
- Ceremony: It takes 15 to 20 minutes. You need two witnesses; many municipalities provide them on weekdays.
Familieretshuset can ask any couple about their relationship; the guide Proof of relationship and sham marriage checks explains what it wants to see. If you would rather not check the documents on your own: in the Complete package for €649.99, including the Familieretshuset fee, we check every scan before submission and file the application for you. The Essential package for €249.99 includes a document list, instructions and WhatsApp support. All services are listed on the prices page.
