Who can initiate the registration and how?
Hungarian law stipulates that all foreign life events of a Hungarian citizen (marriage, divorce, etc.) must be registered in Hungary. You can initiate the registration of your foreign marriage if at least one of the spouses can prove their Hungarian citizenship.
Due to certain legal declarations - e.g. determination of marital name and last name of future children - the presence of both spouses is required.
Please note that appointments are required for all consular and visa matters. We cannot accept walk-in applications.
Appointments can be booked directly through our online booking system. https://konzinfobooking.mfa.gov.hu
The application can only be submitted in person. Mailed-in applications will be sent back without further consideration.
What fees are involved?
Marriage registration is free of charge.
What forms do I need to fill out?
You can find the necessary application form, with a complementary English translation, at the bottom of this page. Only the Hungarian form will be accepted.
When filling out the form, please use a blue ink pen, all CAPITAL letters, and do not sign anything in advance. You may also fill out the form electronically.
Full names must be written everywhere, in the Hungarian name order (Last name, First name, Middle name). Example: John T. Smith must be written as Smith John Thomas.
When referring to cities in the United States, please also specify the state. Do not use abbreviations.
Select option a) (mailing to Consulate) as the place of delivery of the certificate and write "Consulate General of Hungary, New York." This will allow the consular office to mail you the issued birth certificate to the U.S. address you provided.
What other supporting documents do I need to submit?
For the application, both spouses must present a government-issued valid picture ID, preferably passport.
The consular office cannot accept the application if the original foreign marriage certificate is not presented. Please note that we do not keep any original documents; we just merely have to see them.
Please note that marriage certificates that only contain the names of the spouses will be deemed insufficient. More information is required (such as DOB, place of birth, parents’ names) so the two spouses can be successfully identified, i.e. more detailed (long-form) marriage certificate or marriage license. Non-secular marriage certificates are also insufficient proof of marriage.
If a certificate was not originally issued in Hungarian, English, German, or French, we will require an official Hungarian translation by the Hungarian Office for Translation and Attestation. We also accept translations authenticated by other Hungarian consuls
Occasionally, US marriage certificates are handwritten. In such cases, a Hungarian translation may be required.
If the Hungarian spouse’s previous marital status was divorced or widowed, then a Hungarian certificate proving this fact must be presented. If the Hungarian spouse’s previous divorce has not yet been registered in Hungary, then this must first be initiated.
Why is it necessary to indicate my address in the application?
If the Hungarian spouse is not yet registered in the Hungarian Civil Registry (magyar személyiadat- és lakcímnyilvántartás), then this registration will automatically happen with the marriage registration. The consular office will mail the newly issued residential address card (lakcímkártya) to your U.S. address.
Forms
