As the trend of beach weddings continues to rise, many couples dream of exchanging vows against the backdrop of the ocean.

While the idea of a beach wedding is romantic, couples must keep in mind the position of the law on getting married at the beach.

Presently, in Ghana, exchanging vows at the beach is considered illegal. Hence, any marriage which is blessed at the said venue is not recognised under the constitution.

Speaking on GhanaWeb’s Legal Agenda, legal practitioner Sena Hotor, explained that due to the legal requirements of marriages, every person who wants to get married must do so at constitutionally gazetted venues and officiated by legally empowered officials.

“You just see somebody having a marriage at the beach and then the next morning you also tell your fiancé that you also want to get married at the beach. Then the following day, you call your friends and family together and then you sign documents, and you think you are married. I am here to tell you that it is not valid.

“Simply because where you marry must be gazetted, registered, and recognised under the law. The person who officiates the marriage, whether the person is a pastor, bishop, archbishop, or whatever the nomenclature is, has been gazetted by law and given the power to perform that. If you are going to have it in church, it must also be gazetted.

“… I am a member of the Catholic Church, and I can say that almost all of the parishes have been gazetted so, you can have it in any parish. Also, as part of the ordination process, the priests are also given the power to be able to bless marriages, subject to the internal processes of the church. So, that is also one of the requirements you must look out for,” he added.

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