Get married in Bali, it offers wonderful backdrops for meaningful experiences, why not your wedding day?  Whether you wish to splurge, and have a large gathering, or a few loved ones.  The wedding organizers in Bali will customize your wedding package according to your discriminating taste.

Weddings are the main attraction, considering the weather, and people are most accommodating towards visitors. If you want to get married on a wonderful sunny day, but the weather begins to look a little gray, feel free to employ a “rain stopper”.  “Rain Stoppers” make an offering to The Gods, so you can avoid torrential rains.  They use prayer, fire and “white magic” as the offering to The Gods

Get married: The Balinese way

For locals, to have their wedding in Bali, means to have their whole family present.  For Balinese, especially for Balinese Hindu, their wedding is one of the most important things in their life as the wedding ceremony is a sign or an announcement that he or she is to begin a new level of life by leaving the brahmacari stage.  The wedding ceremony in Bali begins with a Memadik process, where the groom’s family meet with the bride’s family to ask the bride if she wants to marry the groom. If the answer is yes, the bride will go with the groom to his family’s house.  Later (either that day or several days following) the couple will hold a wedding ceremony where many people from both families, along with friends and villagers, will witness the ceremony.  After the wedding ceremony, the couple and their families go to the bride’s house to say “good bye”.

When people get married in Bali, the man takes responsibility as a member of society. He gets the right to speak at a Banjar (the community body) meeting and must take on social duties, such as attending the temple ceremonies and taking part in the community activities. In this way other members of the Banjar will come to recognize him as an adult and he will have the opportunity to take on more responsibility in the Banjar.

Get married: Western tradition

For the majority of foreigners it is possible to get married in Bali legally and your marriage will be recognized by your government. Under Indonesian/Balinese law the marriage will have to be performed as a legal religious ceremony, no marriages can be conducted in government offices.

 

 

1. The religions recognized by Bali are:

• Christian Protestant
• Catholic, Buddhism
• Hindu
• Muslim

To get married in Bali you will need to register with the district Civil Registrar. It is important to get all of the necessary documentation in advance as there are often delays and can interfere with your wedding day.

Many of the documents can be arranged from your own country and it is usually a lot faster to do.

2. Necessary documents:

• Passport
• Birth certificates of both marriage parties’.
• Baptismal certificate or other forms of proof of faith.
• For people under the age of 21 a letter will be required from the    parents stating that they consent to the marriage taking place.
• If relevant, death certificate of former spouse.
• A decree of absolute divorce certificate.
• At least two witnesses are required to attend your wedding.
• 8 photos of the couple, side by side, looking straight ahead and of the head and shoulders only. The size of the photos needs to be 6cm by 4cm.

3. For Catholic Marriages additional documents include:

• Baptism certificates are mandatory and should have been issued not more than 6 months before the wedding, but it is safer if they are issued less than 3 months before.
• A “Letter of Freedom” needs to be issued by your Parish Priest or other church official stating that you have never previously been married and you are free to marry.
• A “Letter of Delegation” needs to be issued by your Parish Priest or other church official stating that they have no objection to you being married by a Catholic Priest from a church in Bali.
• Pre Nuptial Course
• Pre Marriage Inquiry

 I personally prefer the “local wedding” traditions, based on the family bond. After the couple gets married the families join as one big family.  It is common for the bride to move into the groom’s family compound, with his whole family living side by side.  There is little acknowledgment of one’s personal space, or boundary.  Once a family is joined, you are considered as a “blood relative”.