Skip to main content
Prove your eligibility to a foreign government

Beta This is a new service – your feedback will help us to improve it.

Confirm you’re free to get married in Italy if you live abroad

Contents

Get a certificate of no impediment by post

Here’s how to get a CNI by post. Alternatively, you can get a CNI at the British Embassy Rome.

  1. Download an affirmation and notice (opens in a new tab). Fill in your details but do not sign the documents yet.
  2. Book an appointment with a notary in Italy and ask them which documents you need to take to your appointment, for example proof of address.
  3. If you do not live in Italy, you must be there for 3 whole days before your appointment, starting the day after you arrive.
  4. Take your documents to your appointment and sign the notice and affirmation in front of the notary. They’ll notarise (sign and stamp) the notice and affirmation too.
  5. Apply online and pay £100 for your CNI – £50 for receiving notice (non-refundable) and £50 for issuing the CNI plus £19.00 (Italy) or £47.00 (rest of world) for posting your CNI to you.
  6. Post your documents to the British Embassy Rome.
  7. Your notice will be displayed for 7 days.
  8. If after 7 days no one has raised a legal objection to your marriage or civil partnership, your CNI will be issued.
  9. You can collect your CNI or choose to have it posted to you for an additional fee (£19.00 in Italy or £47.00 rest of world). You’ll select if you want to book an appointment to collect your CNI or have it posted when you apply online.

A CNI is equivalent to a ‘Nulla Osta’ in Italy.

If you decide to apply by post, you will pay an additional fee to a notary public. Ask the notary to use the ‘Vera di Firma procedure’.

Once you have your CNI, it will be accepted by local authorities for 6 months.

Filling in your affirmation and notice

Download an affirmation and notice (opens in a new tab). Print and fill in your details by hand. The details in the documents to be notarised must match the documents you upload when you apply online. For example, enter your details exactly as they appear on your passport. If they do not match, the embassy will ask you to complete a new version of the document and get it notarised, delaying your application.

Do not sign when you enter your details. Only sign in front of a notary in Italy.

See guidance on how to fill in your documents, including examples of the notice and affirmation.

Documents to send to the Embassy

You’ll be told which documents to post to the British Embassy Rome when you apply online. You will not need to post your original passport. All original documents will be posted back to you with your CNI.

Apply online – CNI by post

To apply you’ll need your:

  • notarised affirmation
  • notarised notice
  • UK passport
  • proof of address
  • partner’s passport (or national identity card if they’re not a UK national)
  • partner’s proof of address
  • proof any previous marriages or civil partnerships have ended
  • credit or debit card to pay for your CNI
  • partner's proof any previous marriages or civil partnerships have ended
  • proof of permanent address if you live outside of Italy
  • chosen address where your CNI will be sent in Italy

If any documents are not in English or the local language, you’ll need to upload a certified translation. Find a qualified translator.

Make sure you have these documents with you before you start. Your application will timeout if you’re inactive for 20 minutes. You can either scan your documents or take photos on your mobile phone.

Before you apply, you should have signed a notice of marriage or register a same-sex civil partnership and affirmation in front of a notary in Italy.

It will take about 20 minutes to apply and pay for your CNI online.

Check with the person conducting your ceremony or relevant local authority before you apply to make sure you need a CNI.

Apply now


  




        

      

    

    
    



    
  
    

        

            Your application will time out soon