Marrying in Malta
Malta is the smallest wedding country in Europe and one of the easiest to marry in. The Marriage Registry marries foreign couples with no residency requirement, in its own marriage room or at any public place approved beforehand by the Marriage Registrar, so the civil ceremony itself can be held in a palazzo garden, on a harbour terrace or in a citadel courtyard, and a religious ceremony in one of Valletta's baroque churches alongside.
The settings are the capital and its harbour, the old capital inland, and the second island. Valletta, built by the Knights of St John in the sixteenth century, gives high baroque churches, the Inquisitor's Palace and the Upper and Lower Barrakka Gardens over the Grand Harbour and the Three Cities. Mdina, the walled medieval city on its hill, gives the Carmelite church and the courtyards of its palazzi. Around the villages stand the nineteenth-century palaces and villas, Palazzo Parisio in Naxxar with its gilded ballroom among them, and the gardens and marquee lawns of the country villas. Gozo, a short ferry crossing north, is quieter, greener and used to year-round visitors.
The season is long. May, June and September are the months planners choose: warm, the sea swimmable, the islands less busy than in the peak summer. The whole stretch from April to October is reliable; July and August are hot and full. One airport, Malta International, serves the islands with daily flights across Europe and to the Middle East, and nowhere on Malta is more than 40 minutes from it.
The seasons
- Best
- Shoulder
- Peak
- Quieter
5 Star view Our reading of the wedding year, from the months below.
- Best months
- May, June and September
- Shoulder season
- April and October
- Peak season
- July and August
May averages 24 to 25°C and is often the prime month; September is warm with golden light and thinning crowds. July and August are hot and the islands at their fullest. The sea is warm enough for guests from May to October. Winters are mild and a December wedding is possible indoors, with the sea gardens for photographs.
The weather, month by month
Lower row: average rainfall in the month, mm
Reference Luqa (Malta's airport station): climatological normals 1961 to 1990, Meteorological Office, through the WMO World Weather Information Service. Read 5 October 2026.
Daylight and sunset
The bar runs from sunrise to sunset on the 15th of each month. A ceremony is usually timed an hour or two before the sunset shown.
Calculated From the coordinates of Luqa, local time, for 2027.
Ramadan and Eid
For couples and guests who observe them, the dates to plan a wedding around.
| Year | Ramadan | Eid al-Fitr | Eid al-Adha |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027 | 8 Feb to 8 Mar | 9 Mar | 16 May |
| 2028 | 28 Jan to 25 Feb | 26 Feb | 5 May |
Calculated From the Umm al-Qura calendar. The observed dates follow the sighting of the moon and can fall a day either side.
The areas of Malta
Valletta and the Grand Harbour
The capital of the Knights: high baroque churches, the Inquisitor's Palace, and the Upper and Lower Barrakka Gardens with their panoramic view of the Grand Harbour and the Three Cities. City hotels and harbour terraces for the reception.
Mdina and Rabat
The walled medieval citadel on its hill inland: the Carmelite church, Palazzo Falson and the courtyard of the Xara Palace hotel for an intimate ceremony. Silent streets for the photographs.
The villages and country villas
Palazzo Parisio at Naxxar with its gilded ballroom and gardens, Villa Arrigo at San Pawl tat-Targa with a ballroom and a marquee lawn, rustic farmhouses and the Limestone Heritage park at Siggiewi with its waterfall and rock. The big receptions happen here.
The coast
Clifftop and seaside ceremonies on the approved spots, from the north bays to the southern cliffs, with the hotels of St Julian's and Sliema for the party.
Gozo
The sister island, a ferry crossing north: greener, quieter, with its own citadel at Victoria, farmhouses converted into small hotels and a coast of coves. For a smaller wedding that takes the whole island for a weekend.
What venues are like
Palazzo and villa
The nineteenth-century palaces and country villas with ballrooms and gardens, Palazzo Parisio and Villa Arrigo the best known: ballroom inside, garden or marquee outside, rain or shine.
Baroque church and citadel courtyard
Valletta's churches and Mdina's courtyards for the ceremony, civil or religious, in the oldest stone on the islands.
Harbour terrace and garden
The Barrakka Gardens and the sixteenth-century terraces over the Grand Harbour, approved for civil ceremonies, with the harbour as the view.
Hotel
The hotels of Valletta, Sliema and St Julian's, and the Xara Palace in Mdina, for ceremony, dinner and rooms in one place.
Farmhouse and heritage site
Rustic farmyards and the Limestone Heritage park at Siggiewi, and Gozo's converted farmhouses, for an outdoor wedding in the landscape.
Airports and transfers
- Malta International (MLA) Daily flights across Europe and to the Middle East; 20 to 40 minutes by road to Valletta, Mdina or the north coast.
One airport serves the islands and nothing is far from it. Gozo is reached by ferry from Cirkewwa in the north; the crossing is short and the wedding party travels together.
Marrying legally in Malta
The Marriage Registry marries foreign couples with no residency requirement. The couple applies at least three months before the date, and the civil ceremony is held at the Registry or at any public place the Registrar has approved, with two adult witnesses.
- 1Three months before, at the latest
Apply to the Marriage Registry
Book an appointment with a Marriage Registry Officer and complete the request for the publication of banns and the declaration under Article 7(5) of the Marriage Act, with birth certificates (apostilled or legalised unless issued in the EU) and identification.
- 2The day
The ceremony
In the Registry's marriage room or at a public place approved beforehand by the Registrar, such as a garden or a terrace, with two witnesses aged 18 or over.
- Apply
- at least 3 months ahead
- Residency
- none required
- Witnesses
- 2, aged 18 or over
- Documents
- apostilled unless issued in the EU
Already married at home?5 Star view
Many couples complete the legal or religious marriage in their own country and hold the celebration here. A ceremony with no legal effect needs none of the steps above: the venue and the planner arrange it.
Who needs a visa
Travelling from the United States
American citizens visit Malta without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period under Schengen rules. The European Union's ETIAS travel authorisation will be required of visa-exempt visitors, Americans included, once it is operating; the EU expects that in the last quarter of 2026.
Travelling from the United Kingdom
British passport holders visit Malta without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area. The passport must have been issued less than 10 years before arrival and be valid for at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave. The European Union's Entry/Exit System registers fingerprints and a photograph at the border on a first visit.
Travelling from the Gulf
Citizens of the United Arab Emirates travel to Malta without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, and will need the European Union's ETIAS travel authorisation once it is operating. Citizens of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman need a Schengen short-stay visa, applied for through the Maltese consulate or its visa centre; under European Commission rules, Saudi, Bahraini and Kuwaiti nationals who qualify can be issued a multiple-entry visa valid for five years. A resident of the Gulf who holds another passport follows the rule for that passport.
Other nationalities
EU and EEA nationals need no visa. Other nationalities check with the Maltese embassy or consulate in their country.
Reference Identità (Malta Public Registry): Marriage Registry requirements. gov.uk: Malta entry requirements. EU Travel to Europe (travel-europe.europa.eu): ETIAS, who should apply European Commission implementing decisions on multiple-entry visas for Saudi, Bahraini and Kuwaiti nationals (2023, 2024). Checked 5 October 2026. Rules change: confirm with the authority that will marry you before you book.
Accommodation
Guests stay in the capital, on the Sliema and St Julian's seafront, in Mdina's one hotel, or in Gozo's farmhouses; the islands are small enough that the wedding and the rooms are never far apart.
At the table
Maltese cooking is Mediterranean with Sicilian and North African notes: rabbit, fresh fish, ricotta pastries and local wine from the islands' small vineyards.
Fenek
Rabbit, stewed or fried, the national dish, served at the long family table.
Fish of the day
Lampuki in autumn, swordfish and sea bream from the harbours at Marsaxlokk and Mgarr.
Pastizzi and ftira
Ricotta or pea pastries from the street, and the ring-shaped bread with tomatoes, tuna and capers, for a welcome lunch.
Gozo cheese and honey
Gbejniet, the small sheep's cheeses of Gozo, and the island honey that gives Malta its ancient name.
Maltese wine
Wine from the islands' own vineyards, for the table, with Sicily's a short way north.
What planners tell couples
Apply at least three months ahead
Couples book an appointment with a Marriage Registry Officer at least three months before the wedding date and complete the request for the publication of banns and the declaration under Article 7(5) of the Marriage Act. There is no minimum residency requirement.
The documents
Birth certificates, apostilled or legalised unless issued in the EU; identification documents and copies; a photocopy of the witnesses' identification; and other documents the Registry asks for according to nationality and marital status. Documents not in English are translated into Maltese or English.
Where the ceremony may be
A civil marriage may take place in the Registry's marriage room or at any other public place approved beforehand by the Marriage Registrar, including a passenger ship registered in Malta. That approval is what lets a palazzo garden or a harbour terrace host the legal ceremony.
Witnesses
Two witnesses, each at least 18, present valid identification on the day, as do both partners.
What you receive
Two copies of the Act of Marriage and the Certificate of Banns are provided before the ceremony; the marriage is registered in the Public Registry.
Religious weddings
Malta is a Catholic country and a church wedding is possible for couples who qualify; the Registry's religious-marriage guidance sets out the civil formalities that run alongside it.
