Part VI General
75 Offences relating to solemnization of marriages.
1
Any person who knowingly and wilfully—
F19a
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
b
solemnizes a marriage according to the rites of the Church of England without banns of matrimony having been duly published (not being a marriage solemnized on the authority of a special licence, a common licence or F1certificates of a superintendent registrar);
c
solemnizes a marriage according to the said rites (not being a marriage by special licence F2or a marriage in pursuance of section 26(1)(dd) of this Act) in any place other than a church or other building in which banns may be published;
d
solemnizes a marriage according to the said rites falsely pretending to be in Holy Orders;
shall be guilty of felony and shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years.
2
Any person who knowingly and wilfully—
C1a
solemnizes a marriage (not being a marriage by special licence, a marriage according to the usages of the Society of Friends or a marriage between two persons professing the Jewish religion according to the usages of the Jews) in any place other than—
i
a church or other building in which marriages may be solemnized according to the rites of the Church of England, or
F6aa
solemnizes a marriage purporting to be in pursuance of section 26(1)(bb) of this Act on premises that are not approved premises;
b
solemnizes a marriage in any such registered building as aforesaid (not being a marriage in the presence of an authorised person) in the absence of a registrar of the district in which the registered building is situated;
F7bb
solemnizes a marriage in pursuance of section 26(1)(dd) F21or 26B(6) of this Act, otherwise than according to the rites of the Church of England, in the absence of a registrar of the registration district in which the place where the marriage is solemnized is situated;
c
solemnizes a marriage in the office of a superintendent registrar in the absence of a registrar of the district in which the office is situated;
F8cc
solemnizes a marriage on approved premises in pursuance of section 26(1)(bb) of this Act in the absence of a registrar of the district in which the premises are situated;
d
e
shall be guilty of felony and shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years.
F122A
In subsection (2)(d) “the waiting period” has the same meaning as in section 31(4A).
3
A superintendent registrar who knowingly and wilfully—
F13a
F24issues any certificate for marriage before the expiry of F2328 days from the day on which the notice of marriage was entered in the marriage notice bookF18, or in an approved electronic form by virtue of section 27(4A);
F24issues a marriage schedule when none of the conditions in section 31(3) is met;
b
c
d
shall be guilty of felony and shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years.
4
No prosecution under this section shall be commenced after the expiration of three years from the commission of the offence.
5
Any reference in subsection (2) of this section to a registered building shall be construed as including a reference to any chapel registered under section seventy F22or 70A of this Act.