Learning a little bit more about Marriage Celebrants…

Only those persons appointed by the Registrar-General as Marriage Celebrants and whose name appears in the List of Celebrants in the New Zealand Gazette have authority to solemnise marriages in New Zealand. I was excited to become registered as an Independent Marriage Celebrant on 5th June 2019 and later, to join the Celebrants Association of New Zealand (CANZ).

Why should you book a CANZ member as your Marriage Celebrant?

CANZ members create and facilitate ceremonies and rituals which respond to the diverse needs and values of New Zealand individuals, families and communities. In engaging a CANZ celebrant, you are gaining the assurance of employing a celebrant who belongs to the national professional body, a celebrant who has passed the association’s Code of Ethics and Professional Standards test, and a person who, more often than not, is committed to ongoing professional development with a strong network of fellow celebrants to call on if needed.

So, what is VCANZ?

CANZ has introduced a celebrant validation process known as VCANZ, which is a structured recognition of celebrant training, experience and professional development based on the CANZ body of knowledge. This gives couples additional certainty and greater comfort that a CANZ celebrant meets the professional standards of competency required for celebrant work. Also, only validated celebrants can legally perform Registry Ceremonies, no longer held at Births, Deaths and Marriages offices. I received my VCANZ status on 3rd June 2020 (and I cried LITERAL TEARS of joy!!!).

Why are Registry Ceremonies being held in the community?

Vaughan Millar (Senior Advisor at Services and Access - The Department of Internal Affairs) tells us more through a short history about the concept of validated CANZ celebrants performing registry ceremonies.

Like most change these days, it started with the Internet. In this case, marriage licence applications could be completed fully online from October 2018, which resulted in less walk-ins to a public counter. Other than signing declarations, the only other major work for the 47 registry offices was performing registry office marriages. With 10,000 appointed marriage celebrants, it made sense to give couples more options and a better customer experience by making better use of this pool of talent. It also provided an opportunity for more work for celebrants. Over the following 12 months the groundwork began to enable the outsourcing of registry weddings to celebrants in the community.

On 1 July 2019, the registry celebrant service was launched with 59 celebrants signed up in areas outside the centres where BDM had large offices – Christchurch, Wellington, Manukau and Auckland. The next step was taking advantage of the Wellington BDM office move early in 2020. The last day registry wedding ceremonies were held at the Wellington counter was on Friday, 31 January 2020 and on 1 February 2020, that work was handed over to VCANZ celebrants. The plan was to move registry office ceremonies in Christchurch, Manukau and Auckland to validated CANZ members on 1 December 2020 – similar to the process that had been successfully executed in Wellington. However, due to Covid19, this date was brought forward to early March 2020.

As of 12 May 2020, there are 129 registry celebrants spread across the length of New Zealand - BDM are out of the business of performing registry marriages, now sitting entirely with celebrants (including yours truly!).

What does this mean for YOU?

A celebrant is a deeply personal choice - someone who can connect with you and capture the essence of your true self. Their role is to share your story, encompassing your values and beliefs in a way that reflects your relationship. One of the most significant moments of my own wedding ceremony was when our celebrant, Sally, blessed us in te reo, grounding and connecting us to a particular place and time. For you, it may be a reading or a song, maybe a funny anecdote - your ceremony should be uniquely yours. In ten or twenty years time, you may not remember the exact words, but you will remember the way they made you feel. As a validated member of CANZ, and a lover of people and their stories, I am committed to creating something beautiful with you xx

AROHA NUI,

Vic xxx

*Please note: You can find out more about the different ceremonies I provide here.