North Yorkshire Council
Environment Executive Members
27 February 2026
Fees and Charges for the Registration Service 2026-2028
Report of the Assistant Director – Regulation and Harbours
1.0 PURPOSE OF REPORT
1.1 To approve Registration Service Fees and Charges for ceremonies for the financial years 2026 to 2028 (Appendix A).
2.0 BACKGROUND
2.1 The Registration Service provides a range of statutory services with fees set by the General Registration Office (Home Office). Elective ceremonies fees are set in advance to allow prospective couples to book ceremonies both at Council and external venues. The mean lead in time for all marriage and civil partnership ceremonies is 51 weeks however this nuanced as registration office ceremonies have shorter lead in times than approved venues. The service has previously set fees two years in advance to provide couples with fees and charges at the time of booking.
2.2 In the autumn the Government responded to the Law Commission’s report on Wedding Law which recommended modernisation of wedding law to include couples being able to marry in a wider range of locations, and greater choice in who conducts their ceremony. A public consultation is due to commence in Spring 2026. The service wishes to postpone setting fees for 2028-2029 until this consultation is underway and greater clarity of the direction of government is published.
2.3 The Service proposes offering a fourth simple ceremony. This will allow couples to celebrate with a small number of attendees at a lower cost than an enhanced or venue ceremony. These will be offered at registration offices throughout the week.
2.4 Standard wedding and civil partnership ceremonies will continue to be offered one day a month at several registration office on Mondays to Wednesdays. Enhanced ceremonies at Registration Offices and ceremonies at approved premises will be offered from Monday to Sunday.
2.5 An additional range of fees for other services will also be introduced to include applications for passports prior to the ceremony and further services for pre-ceremony meetings.
2.6 Benchmarking across registration districts in the Yorkshire and Humber region indicate that North Yorkshire’s Fees and Charges for Ceremonies are set just above the average fees.
2.7 Approved premises are subject to a fee for a licence a 3-yearly basis. Fee proposals are based on existing fees and benchmarking across other regional registration districts.
3.0 CONTRIBUTION TO COUNCIL PRIORITIES
3.1 These proposals contribute to the following Council priorities. A well led and managed, financially sustainable and forward-thinking council.
· To operate on a commercial basis where it is appropriate to do so and invest in council owned assets to drive revenue generation opportunities to fund Corporate Plans.
4.0 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
4.1 The proposed fee structure has been set in line with the Constitutions Financial Procedure Rules.
5.0 LEGAL IMPLICATIONS
5.1 There are no known legal implications arising from this report.
6.0 EQUALITIES IMPLICATIONS
6.1 There are no significant equalities implications arising from this report.
7.0 CLIMATE CHANGE IMPLICATIONS
7.1 There are no significant climate change implications arising from this report.
8.0 REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS
8.1 To ensure that the service can provide a range of ceremony types and other services to suit all customers.
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9.0 |
RECOMMENDATION
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9.1 |
To approve the Ceremonies Fees and Charges for 2026-2028 and the Approved Premises Fees and Charges for 2026-2027 (Appendix B).
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APPENDICES:
Appendix A – Registration Service – Ceremonies Fees and Charges 01 April 2026 to 31 March 2028
Appendix B – Registration Service – Approved Premises Fees and Charges 01 April 2026 to 31 March 2027
Callum McKeon
Assistant Director – Regulation and Harbours
County Hall
Northallerton
27 February 2026
Report Author – Adrian Clarke, Head of Registration, Coroner and Bereavement Services
Presenter of Report – Callum McKeon, Assistant Director, Regulation and Harbours