Correction, 25 September 2026. An earlier version of this page said capitulaciones are mandatory for every foreign couple and that RENAP rejects a registration without them, gave notary fees of Q500-3,000, a RENAP registration fee of Q15, registration “in 5-15 days”, a 124-country apostille figure and a 6-12 week timeline, and left out the 15-day edicts. None of that was sourced, and the capitulaciones and RENAP statements contradict the Civil Code and RENAP’s own requirements. This version is rebuilt from the Civil Code, the Ley del Organismo Judicial, RENAP’s requirement page and tariff, and the notarial arancel. It keeps the health certificate for both partners, which Civil Code Art. 97 (as reformed in 2007) requires, now with the exceptions the article gives and without the unsourced price.
Two foreigners who want to marry in Guatemala follow the same Civil Code as Guatemalans, plus the rules the Code adds for a partner who is a foreigner or a naturalised Guatemalan. This page sets out those rules, the documents the law asks for, which costs the law and RENAP publish, and how the marriage reaches RENAP. If one partner is Guatemalan and the other a US citizen, see marrying a Guatemalan in Guatemala as a US citizen.
Quick summary: Each foreign partner must prove identity and freedom to marry, and edicts are published for 15 days before the wedding (Civil Code Art. 96). Both partners need a health certificate unless an Art. 97 exception applies. A mayor, a notary or an authorised minister of religion performs it (Art. 92). Foreign documents must be legalised or apostilled and, if not in Spanish, translated under oath by a translator authorised in Guatemala (Ley del Organismo Judicial Art. 37). Capitulaciones are mandatory only in the four cases of Art. 118. The officiant notifies the civil registry within 15 working days (Art. 102); RENAP’s tariff has no fee for registering a marriage and charges Q25 per certificate afterwards. General information, not legal advice.
The rules for a foreign partner
Proof of identity and freedom to marry, and edicts. Civil Code Article 96: «El contrayente que fuere extranjero o guatemalteco naturalizado, deberá comprobar en forma fehaciente su identidad y libertad de estado.» (unofficial translation: a partner who is a foreigner or naturalised Guatemalan must reliably prove identity and freedom to marry). The same article requires edicts before the wedding, in the Diario Oficial and in another newspaper of wide circulation, for 15 days, calling on anyone who knows of a legal impediment to report it. If the wedding is not celebrated within six months of publication, the edicts lose their legal effect. When both partners are foreigners, both must meet the proof requirement.
Where the declarations are made. Article 93 has the partners make their intention known «ante el funcionario competente de la residencia de cualquiera de los contrayentes» (before the competent official of the residence of either partner), who takes a sworn declaration from each on, among other points, name, age, civil status, nationality, absence of a legal impediment, and the property regime they adopt if they do not bring a capitulaciones deed. Ask the notary or municipality how they apply the residence wording to a couple who live abroad.
No separate waiting period after the edicts. Article 98 lets the official, once satisfied of the partners’ capacity and the requirements, set a day and time or perform the marriage immediately. Article 103 makes every day and hour valid for a wedding.
Who can perform the wedding, and how it is recorded
| Officiant (Civil Code Art. 92) | How the act is recorded (Art. 101) | Notice to the civil registry (Art. 102) |
|---|---|---|
| The municipal mayor, or the councillor acting for them | In a special book kept by the municipality | The mayor sends a certified copy of the act within 15 working days |
| A notary legally able to practise | In an acta notarial that must be protocolised | The notary sends a detailed notice (aviso circunstanciado) within 15 working days |
| A minister of any religion given that power by the corresponding administrative authority | In books authorised by the Ministerio de Gobernación | Same 15 working days |
Article 102 fines an officiant who misses the 15 working days one to five quetzales per case. Article 103 says the paperwork, certificates, notices and testimonios relating to a marriage are issued on plain paper (papel simple).
Documents
The Civil Code and the Ley del Organismo Judicial set the frame; the officiant may ask for more, so ask for their written list.
| Requirement | Source |
|---|---|
| Identity and freedom to marry of each foreign partner, proved reliably | Civil Code Art. 96 |
| Valid passport and birth certificate of a foreign partner (the US Embassy’s list for marriage in Guatemala) | US Embassy Guatemala, Marriage in Guatemala page |
| Health certificate (constancia de sanidad) for both partners, issued by a public health centre or an active registered physician, stating that the person has no incurable contagious disease harmful to the other spouse or to descendants, and no physical defect that makes procreation impossible. Not required of people who live where there is no active registered physician or public health centre, or of couples who have already lived in a de facto relationship that makes it unnecessary | Civil Code Art. 97, as reformed by Decreto 8-2007 |
| If previously married: the document proving the earlier marriage was dissolved or void; if there were children, proof that their support is guaranteed; if administering minors’ property, its inventory | Civil Code Art. 95 |
| Foreign documents legalised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the article now carries a note referring to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention, in force for Guatemala since 18 September 2017 | Ley del Organismo Judicial Art. 37 |
| Documents in another language translated into Spanish under oath by a translator authorised in Guatemala; where there is none for that language, by two people who speak and write both languages, with their signatures legalised by a notary | Ley del Organismo Judicial Art. 37 |
| Documents to be registered in public registries protocolised before a notary | Ley del Organismo Judicial Art. 38 |
US citizens: the United States issues no certificate of freedom to marry. The US Embassy in Guatemala says Guatemalan authorities usually accept an affidavit sworn by the US citizen and notarised at the Embassy, for a $50 fee by appointment. Details are on marrying a Guatemalan in Guatemala as a US citizen. For translation prices, see sworn translator prices in Guatemala.
Capitulaciones: when they are mandatory
Article 118 of the Civil Code lists four cases in which capitulaciones matrimoniales are obligatory:
- Either partner has assets worth two thousand quetzales.
- Either partner earns more than two hundred quetzales a month from a profession, art or trade.
- Either partner administers property of minors or incapacitated persons under their authority.
- The woman is Guatemalan and the man is a foreigner or naturalised Guatemalan.
The fourth case needs a Guatemalan woman, so it does not cover a couple in which both are foreigners; the first three apply to any couple. Article 119 says capitulaciones go in a public deed or in an act before the official performing the marriage, and are registered with the civil registry after the wedding (and in the property registry if real estate is affected). Article 126 provides the default community of acquests (comunidad de gananciales); for foreign spouses without capitulaciones, Article 130 instead refers to their common personal law at marriage if they share a nationality, or the law of their first marital domicile if their nationalities differ (checked 2 November 2026).
RENAP’s requirement for a marriage before a notary asks for an aviso circunstanciado that states «si se celebraron o no capitulaciones matrimoniales» (whether or not capitulaciones were made) and, where they were, identifies the document and the regime adopted.
Costs: what is published and what is not
| Item | Published figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Registering the marriage with RENAP | No line in RENAP’s tariff | RENAP tariff (Acuerdos 15-2020, 26-2020, 35-2020, 12-2021 and 62-2022) |
| Certificate of the marriage registration | Q25 (Certificación de las demás inscripciones registrales) | RENAP tariff |
| Late (extemporánea) inscription, when it applies | Q25 | RENAP tariff |
| Notary’s acta notarial | Q100 to Q2,000 according to its importance, when there is no fee agreement (notaries and clients may agree fees freely) | Notaries Code Arts. 106 and 109 |
| Protocolising the acta | If charged as an undetermined-value deed (Art. 109.1 via 109.8): Q200 to Q5,000 on the arancel scale for deeds of undetermined value | Notaries Code Art. 109 |
| Notarial stamp | Q10 on the acta notarial and Q10 on the protocolisation | Ley del Timbre Forense y Timbre Notarial, Decreto 82-96, Art. 3 |
| Notary working outside the office | Q50 per hour within the town; outside it, also Q6 per kilometre, round trip | Notaries Code Art. 108 |
| Edicts in two newspapers | No figure on this page; ask each newspaper for its rate | Civil Code Art. 96 requires them |
| Marriage before the mayor | No municipal fee on this page; ask the municipality. Art. 103 requires plain paper | Civil Code Art. 103 |
Market prices for notaries, which can differ from the arancel, are on notary fees in Guatemala. RENAP’s requirement page (read 24 September 2026) gives no processing time for inscribing the marriage once it receives the notice.
After the wedding
- Registration. The officiant sends the certified copy or the aviso circunstanciado to the civil registry within 15 working days (Art. 102).
- Certificates. Once inscribed, request RENAP certificates (Q25 each): see RENAP marriage certificate.
- Apostille for use abroad. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs apostilles Guatemalan public documents: see MINEX apostille. What your home country needs to record the marriage is set by that country; ask its civil registry or consulate.
- Staying in Guatemala. Residence routes for foreigners are on Guatemala residency.
Related procedures
- Civil marriage in Guatemala: the procedure for any couple
- Marrying a Guatemalan as a US citizen: the US Embassy affidavit and the I-130 afterwards
- RENAP marriage certificate
- MINEX apostille
- RENAP hub
Sources: Código Civil, Decreto-Ley 106, Arts. 92-103, 116-119 and 126 (CENADOJ annotated Civil Code updated to 8 August 2025, read 23 September 2026; Arts. 92-103 also in the OAS-hosted copy, read 21 September 2026); Ley del Organismo Judicial, Decreto 2-89, Arts. 37-38 (CENADOJ, read 23 September 2026); RENAP requirement page for a marriage before a notary or minister of religion and RENAP tariff PDF (read 24 September 2026); Código de Notariado, Arts. 106, 108 and 109 (CENADOJ, read 21 September 2026); Ley del Timbre Forense y Timbre Notarial, Decreto 82-96, Art. 3 (read 21 September 2026); US Embassy Guatemala, Marriage in Guatemala page (read 24 September 2026). General information, not legal advice.