Weddings Terms and Conditions

Terms and Conditions

Reading the Terms and Conditions before payment is a requirement. This is a verbal agreement. At this stage, you have agreed to book my services, therefore, continuing to pay the booking fee to hold your date indicates you have read and agreed with all terms and conditions listed. We have agreed on booking your ceremony date so the first step is to pay a non-refundable booking fee of $300 will secure your booking/date.
Final payment is due no less than 4 weeks prior to your wedding date. I have a payment plan if that helps. Just ask.
If you cancel 4 weeks before your wedding date I will refund 70% of the final payment. The booking fee is non-refundable.
If you cancel within 4 weeks prior to your wedding date no monies will be refunded. This is to cover the loss of income as a professional wedding celebrant. Legally I can not perform another wedding within 4 weeks unless it is a 'Shortening of Time' which only occur under extremely extenuating circumstances.
If you change your ceremony date, there will be no refund if I am unavailable to perform your ceremony on your new chosen day. If I am available on your change of date then we can continue with proceedings.
Travel expenses will occur if travel exceeds 250km for a return journey from the celebrant's (my) house.
Coronavirus - This virus is still with us, unfortunately. Let's hope we all stay healthy and can continue with our life events as planned as cautiously as we possibly can. My policy stands as per my terms and conditions. My booking fee of $300 is non-refundable. If you have paid the balance of the booking and cancellation happens within the 4 weeks prior to your ceremony date and your wedding has to be postponed or cancelled we will then discuss your options for the future. I will honour your booking to marry you and together we can organise a date that will suit you and a date that I am free to perform your ceremony. If I get sick ... and I am unable to perform your ceremony then I will find an awesome celebrant for you. I will be able to introduce you to my colleagues from The Celebrant Society. We are a 400-strong group who all have the same professional outlook and the same standards of how we honour our clients, such as you. Only the best in this group. You will be in good hands xo

The Celebrant (Me)

Will provide services as an Authorised Marriage Celebrant to the agreed fee.
Will perform the marriage ceremony at the agreed time, date and place. Pursuant to the marriage celebrants 'Code of Conduct'. I will arrive at the agreed place at least 40 minutes prior to the designated ceremony commencement time.
Reserves the right to leave the place of the marriage ceremony one hour after the agreed start time for the ceremony if both or one party to the marriage has not arrived or the ceremony cannot proceed for any reason outside the celebrant’s control. NOTE: If I can stay or return to conduct the marriage ceremony later that day, an additional fee (as per Statement of Fees) will be due and payable before the ceremony commences. I will negotiate extra fees to conduct the ceremony on a different day if the ceremony doesn't commence on that chosen day.
If on the agreed date I am unable to perform the ceremony for any reason, you will be advised as soon as possible and I will call upon my colleagues from The Celebrant Society, who are all awesome, to replace me. You won't be disappointed as we all have a very high standard and regard you & your partner to be our priority.
If after accepting the marriage ceremony booking, I find I can no longer proceed with the ceremony for personal reasons unrelated to you guys, I will:
1. Refund 50% final payment if the ceremony script has been written and accepted by you both. Refund 100% if the ceremony script has not been written.
2. Transfer the Notice of Intended Marriage in a timely and appropriate manner to my colleague taking over the performance of your ceremony.
Will work with the official photographer/videographer to decide the best position for the wedding party at the ceremony site that will allow discrete photographs and videography to be taken. I have a keen eye and have been to many ceremonies and will help arrange the placement of the wedding party in line with your wishes and in such a way that allows the guests to see without having their view blocked by the photographer.
Will provide the commemorative Marriage Certificate on the day of the ceremony.

The Couple (YOU)

Agree, after the signing of the NOIM and if not produced at signing, will produce ID no later than four (4) weeks prior to the ceremony. You will provide all original documentation, such as birth certificates, divorce decrees, death certificates, statutory declarations and/or any other documents necessary to allow the ceremony to proceed on the scheduled date. This includes any appropriate translations as requested by the celebrant.

NOTE: Unless the celebrant performing the ceremony has sighted all necessary documentation prior to commencing the formal procedure, the marriage cannot be officiated. This is a LEGAL requirement.

The Notice of Intended Marriage form (NOIM) must be witnessed by the celebrant when signed and dated. Signatures and date are required at least one month prior to the wedding date. This is a LEGAL requirement.

Shortening of Time

If the couple has not provided the Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) to the celebrant with a minimum of one month's notice, the couple will need to apply to a prescribed authority for authorisation before the celebrant can make or confirm any arrangements to marry them.

It is only extenuating circumstances where a 'Shortening of Time' will be granted.

Agree to regular communication with me and to respond to all emails, phone calls, letters and/or text messages, in a timely manner.
Agree that if running late for appointments, I will be notified as soon as possible in order to check that I am available to continue or need to reschedule.
Will provide the final wording for their ceremony to me via email, no later than two (2) weeks before the wedding date. If the final draft is not received by our agreed time, then I will choose the ceremony wording and there will be no option for changes at the last minute.
Will advise me, the celebrant immediately of any changes to the time, date or place of the marriage ceremony. The celebrant reserves the right to terminate the agreement and retain the booking fee if I am unable to perform the ceremony due to the change of either date or time. The celebrant will discuss whether or not any other monies already paid at the time of notification of the change to the ceremony time, date/or venue will be refunded.
Understand and accept that any fees outstanding are payable four (4) weeks prior to the ceremony date.
1. If you cancel your ceremony booking for any reason after this date, the celebrant will discuss the matter but may reserve the right to retain the entire fee to cover the loss of income.
Agree that you and your witnesses will arrive in time for the ceremony to commence at the contracted starting time. In the event that the ceremony starting time is delayed more than 1 hour, the couple accepts that I the celebrant reserve the right to leave if necessary to honour other commitments.
1. If I can stay, or return to conduct the marriage ceremony later that day, the couple accepts that the ceremony will not commence until after they have paid an additional fee, calculated according to the Statement of Fees, to cover the celebrant’s extra time.
2. The couple agrees to pay an additional fee, to be negotiated with the celebrant, if I conduct the ceremony on a different day.
If the couple and witnesses do not speak English well enough to understand the legal parts of the ceremony, the couple will provide an Interpreter who can translate for the non-English speaking persons. Interpreters can be found on the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters Ltd (NAATI) website. The Interpreter will be required to sign a Statutory Declaration declaring that they have faithfully and honestly translated from English to the other language and back again. Please note that serious legal penalties that exist for giving false information in a Statutory Declaration.
Agree to bring to the ceremony all documents originally provided when completing the Notice of Intended Marriage, e.g. original birth certificates, divorce or death certificates if applicable and photo ID. This will ensure that my colleague can legally take over the ceremony on the agreed date due to unforeseen circumstances preventing me from solemnizing the marriage.

COMPETENCE TO ENTER INTO MARRIAGE

A marriage can be declared invalid if it is solemnised where there is doubt about whether either of the couple is capable of understanding the commitment they are making. Competence relates to a person’s normal mental capacity and ability to understand exactly what they are agreeing to at any given time.

Alcohol and drugs can affect mental capacity.

If at the beginning of the marriage ceremony, either party intended to marry appears to be intoxicated due to alcohol and/or drugs (legal or otherwise), I will only perform a ‘Commitment Ceremony’ at that time.

The celebrant agrees to perform a basic legal marriage ceremony at her home or suited location on the first day she is available, with only the couple and their witnesses attending.

This will incur an additional charge of $600.00 to be paid before the ceremony takes place.

This fee covers not only the performance of the marriage ceremony but also the celebrant’s time to prepare new documentation and the completion of new declarations by the couple, as legally required.

If the couple are both sober but either of the signatory witnesses is intoxicated at the contracted time and date of the marriage, the marriage ceremony will only be conducted provided alternative sober witnesses (over 18 years of age) are appointed.

The Celebrant

Grants permission to the couple for her to be included in all photographs and videography that occurs during the ceremony.
Retains copyright of all material she has written for the ceremony in both draft and final form.

The Couple

Agree that they will not share, copy or reproduce in any way, any part of their written ceremony without the express permission of the celebrant.
Grants permission for me to use images of the ceremony that include the couple on my website and within promotional material as required.

Note: Any professional photographs used by the celebrant will acknowledge the photographer and/or the photographic studio. Also the couple’s names if requested.