Can a captain perform a marriage ceremony on board a seagoing vessel?

It sounds so romantic, but no: Under German law, masters are not permitted to perform marriage ceremonies on board their seagoing vessels—only civil registrars have the authority to do so.

And even registrars may only perform a legally valid wedding ceremony on a ship if the relevant registry office has officially recognized the ship as a wedding venue. The ship must be located within the respective (German) registry office district during the wedding ceremony. Since German territorial waters are only incorporated into municipal areas in exceptional cases, weddings on ships generally take place in ports belonging to the municipality. 

Other countries, such as Malta, Bermuda, and the Bahamas, on the other hand, allow masters of ships flying their flags to perform marriages in international waters. For example, couples can get married aboard the “Mein Schiff” fleet of the cruise operator TUI Cruises—though under Maltese law, since the ships sail under the Maltese flag.

Compared to a German wedding, however, there are more formalities involved—at least for German couples. For example, the signatures on the marriage certificate must be notarized, and one or more apostilles (documents certifying authenticity) are required. Anyone who also needs a German marriage certificate or wishes to change their tax bracket later must have their marriage retroactively recorded in the marriage register at the relevant German registry office.

For those who want more details, here are the relevant German legal provisions:

• Section 11(1) of the Civil Status Act (PStG)
• Section 1310(1) and (2) of the Civil Code (BGB)

(last updated 06/2026)