FAQs

I started marrying loved up couples in late 2008! Best decision I ever made and the best job…EVER!!!

Sure do! There would be an extra travel fee added, for weddings further than the 50km radius from my home.

The minimum notice that you need to give a celebrant is 1 calendar month before your wedding date. For example, if you would like to get married on the 10th November, your Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) must be completed and signed with my or an authorised witness, before 10th October.  It must also be in my possession by the 10th October.  

However, there are a few exceptions, where a “Shortening of Time” can be applied for through your local court, if it is necessary to be married with less than 1 calendar months notice. There are some extra steps that need to be taken, but I can advise you of those legal steps, if this is the case for you. 

Generally not!
I would only ever book 2 weddings in a day, if there is at least 4-5 hours between each wedding and they are in close proximity to each other. But that doesn’t happen very often.
So what that means is I am there for you 100% on your wedding day. If there is any kind of delay, you can relax knowing that I will not need to rush through your ceremony, to make it to another wedding commitment.

To simplify the process, I always tell my couples there are 3 stages of Legal Paperwork:

Stage 1.

You must give a minimum of 1 calendar months notice before your wedding.  You need to complete,“The Notice of Intended Marriage” (NOIM)  and have your signature witnessed by myself or an authorised witness.  If we cant meet in person to sign the NOIM,  this can now be done via a video call. 

You will need to produce some specific identification ie Passports/Birth Certificate (original only) and if applicable, any evidence of the end of previous marriages.

Stage 2.

All of the information you give me on the NOIM, is then entered into a database with Births, Deaths and Marriages. From that information, I will print out the “Declaration of No Legal Impediment to Marriage” form, which needs to be signed BEFORE your wedding.

This is usually done at a final meeting or on your wedding day, BEFORE the ceremony starts. Easy!

Stage 3.

AFTER your ceremony, we will sign 3 Official Marriage Certificates, along with your 2 witnesses. 

One of those certificates  is yours to take home on the day you get married! And the other certificates  are used to register your marriage, which will be online AFTER your wedding day. 

I love to meet my couples at least twice, if that is possible, but Video Chats are always good for a 2nd meeting, if distance and job commitments make it difficult.
Sometimes just 1 meeting plus lots of emails and phone calls, is all that some couples need too.
My fees include unlimited contact.
If you are coming from interstate/overseas, we may not be able to meet until  your wedding day, so Video Chats are great to get to know each other.

I love to meet my couples at least twice, if that is possible, but Video Chats are always good for a 2nd meeting, if distance and job commitments make it difficult.
Sometimes just 1 meeting plus lots of emails and phone calls, is all that some couples need too.

If you are coming from interstate/overseas, we may not be able to meet until  your wedding day, so Video Chats are great to get to know each other.

Awesome!!! If you have decided to have me as your celebrant, thats great! 
I require a $300 booking fee that will lock in your date and time. Final balance is due no later than 5 weeks before your wedding date.

One of my Wedding Packages is  for a Non Personalised Ceremony, so it is a pre-written and a “ready -made” ceremony. It is still gorgeous and meaningful, and suits most couples needs. However, you can add your own personal touch to this “ready-made” ceremony, by writing your own personal vows. I have a “Tips and Tricks” Cheat Sheet to help you write your vows, or I have plenty of “ready-made” vows for you to choose too.

My most popular package, is a Personalised Ceremony, which is individually written and includes “Your Story” in the ceremony. To achieve this, I will ask you to complete a questionnaire, which gives me a clearer picture of you as a couple, and the style of ceremony I feel is right for you. Of course you will get to read the ceremony before your big day and your are free to let me know of any changes you wish to have made to the ceremony. 

I have an awesome professional and super loud Mipro PA which also has Bluetooth Connectivity which can be used for your music if you wish. I also have an extra mic for additional speakers too.

There is no extra fee for the use of my PA as this is all part of my fee. 

This is one of the first questions I will ask a couple when I meet them is, “do you have a back plan?” As your celebrant, I’m more than happy to stand in a little bit of rain, if you are happy to do that, but your guests may not be too thrilled about it, especially the more senior members of your family. 

However, you could have umbrellas handy for your guests if you are still really keen to get married in the great outdoors, and “YES”….. I have done some weddings standing under an umbrella (and it was rather fun too!)

Umbrellas are also great for those really hot days, where there isn’t a lot of shade. And having little bottles of water ready for your guests during those hot summer months, is also a great idea too!! Your guests will thank you for all these little added extras.

Rest assured, I have a network of some fabulous and very experienced celebrants that I can contact at a moments notice to step in and officiate your marriage.
All legal paperwork and the ceremony script would be transferred to them as quickly as possible, to make sure you get married when you planned to get married!

Absolutely not! And I would never encourage that either. Your wedding day is such a high emotion day, you do not need that extra stress on top of all the excitement and nerves that you will experience on your wedding day. 

I always offer to print your vows on a card for you to read to each other, or you can repeat each line of your vow after me. Whatever you are comfortable with, is what we will work with. 

You bet I do!
Getting married is a serious legal union between 2 people. As an Authorised Marriage Celebrant we must follow the Marriage Act 1961 and the Celebrant Code of Practice.
To see the Code of Practice, click here.

Need to know more?

Your Sydney Celebrant-Catherine Kennedy

Hey lovely people! For over 15 years, I've had the absolute pleasure of being a marriage celebrant and let me tell you, it's not just a job, it's my calling! Being a celebrant fills my heart with so much joy and fulfilment that I never knew was possible. The best part of my job? Working with my couples to plan their perfect ceremony, however that may look, and then seeing their gorgeous smiling faces on the happiest day of their lives! Being a celebrant isn't just about fulfilling a role, it's about being a part of a magical moment in the lives of two people in love. And let me tell you, there's nothing better than that feeling!

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Magical Moments. Captured.

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Nothing feels better than knowing you have found "The One", and now you are going to make it official.

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Get in touch with me to organise your wedding today!

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"Thank you Catherine for being part of our special day! Upon first meeting you, we knew we needn't look further for our Marriage Celebrant. Your beautiful down to earth personality, guidance and professional organisation of our ceremony, was so very appreciated."

Steph and Brent
Nicky and Brendan. ❤️ We had only ever met via Zoom and planned everything else with emails, texts and calls. And we even signed the Notice of Intended Marriage via Zoom. Everything came together just perfectly and it was so good to give them a big hug what I finally met in person about an hour before the ceremony started. 

Nicky’s dad was unable to join us in person so the ceremony was live streamed by the amazing team @ceremonycast 

And I have to say that seeing Nicky walk down the aisle by herself looking like a movie star ⭐️ was one of those moments when time stands still. Just precious. 💖

Congratulations Nicky and Brendan. Here’s to love,laughter and your Happily Ever After ❤️❤️

@white.magnolia.events 
@cassandraladru 
@story_of_us 
@jodieday.com.au 
@bridalglowco 
@leahmitchellfloral 
@white.magnolia.events 
@bendooleyestate 
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#marriagecelebrant #marriagecelebrantsydney #sydneycelebrant #sydneymarriagecelebrant
Nicky and Brendan 11/1/2025 ❤️❤️
@bendooleyestate 

#sydneymarriagecelebrant #marriagecelebrant #sydneycelebrant #marriagecelebrantsydney #celebrantsydney #marriagecelebrantsydney #celebrantsydney #southernhighlandswedding
After a long drive to get to Cronulla, they were thrilled that the forecast rain, did not appear this afternoon. 😃👍🏻

With just 2 witnesses, and their 2 children, Elanor and David exchanged very meaningful and heartfelt vows, with the endless ocean behind them and rain to be seen . 

And to celebrate…..they had a romantic dinner for 2 booked and a weekend staying in the city. Love that ! 🥂❤️
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@simpleceremonies 
#elopement #privatewedding #cronullawedding #marriagecelebrant #celebrant #marriagecelebrantsydney #sydneycelebrant #sydneymarriagecelebrant #simpleceremonies
Just a few minutes after this was taken Mother Nature unleashed one heck of a downpour 🌧️🌧️🌂🌂….. and then…. It was gone! 

After some 11 years together , Drew and Rachel promised to share the rest of lives together as Mr and Mrs and as beautiful parents to their son Koa. Koa was their Ring Bearer, who was hard to wrangle for a photo  as he was far too busy  running around beautiful Oak Park, burning off energy…. as pre-schoolers do. 🤣

Congratulations Drew and Rachel. Your personal vows were perfect! 💖❤️ Enjoy your celebrations with your family at Sealevel. Yum 🥂🍸🍹
I love that my first wedding for 2025 was on a Thursday for a short and super sweet ceremony for this ready made family. ❤️

Jason and Teo made it official at Clark Park, Milsons Point this morning and despite the showers and grey skies it was perfect…. and any day that you are surrounded by some of your favourite people,  is going to be a great day. 👍🏻

With their brand new baby girl snuggled up close to mum,  and their son holding mum and dads hands together while they said their vows, ( that was so cute ❤️) it was the beautiful and heartfelt way to start a new year of weddings a ahead. 

Jason and Teo will head to Romania one day for a more formal and cultural ceremony with family and friends, so today was about making their relationship legally recognised. 

Congratulations to Jason and Teo 🥂💖
 What a gorgeous way to kick off my 2025 weddings. 
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#sydneyharbourweddings #milsonspointwedding #sydneycelebrant #celebrantsydney #marriagecelebrant #marriagecelebrantsydney #sydneymarriagecelebrant
Happy 2025 to each and every one  you. ❤️💖 New Year….New Beginnings! 

And exciting times for those of you getting hitched in 2025! 
Bring it on! 🎉❤️🎉🎊❤️🎉🎊
Sometimes things just happen, even though it was perfect ☀️

Chevy and Mikaelah drive more than an hour for their ceremony,  with just 3 witnesses, to beautiful Oak Park Beach. 

But…. before we started they realised they had left the rings at home 💍
No problem…. Family to the rescue, temporarily using their rings for the ceremony. 

So, next year they may return to Oak Park Beach on their 1st Anniversary to exchange the real rings while they renew their wedding vows with me. ❤️

Congratulations Chevy and Mikaelah 💖❤️. Loved your relaxed and easy going nature,  and being flexible and accepting with the unexpected. 💍😜
Have the most amazing Christmas with the ones you love ❤️ because really….that is what it is all about. 💖

And to all of my 2025 couples, pretty soon you can finally say, “We are getting married this year!” 
Merry Christmas to you all. 🎅🏻💖🎅🏻💖🎅🏻
There is something very special about  finding love later in life. ❤️❤️

It can often bring a richer, more meaningful connection, because it can comes from a place of gratitude for having met “The One”. 

Deanne and Paul certainly typify that sentiment and 4 weeks ago they became Mr and Mrs! 💍 It was a very special day for these to beautiful souls. And I’m loving Deanne’s dress! 💖 @needleandthreadlondon 

I was their celebrant and MC 🎤 for a very intimate gathering @havenstonesyd 
And we are loving these fabulous images 📷 from @bedfordphotography. Thanks team. 👏🏻

@idoido_invitations 
@havenstonesyd 
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#sydneymarriagecelebrant #marriagecelebrant #marriagecelebrantsydney #sydneycelebrant #celebrantsydney #weddinganniversary #springwedding