Only civil marriages are registered in Turkey legally. You can have a religious ceremony if you want but it will have no legal power in Turkey.
The Turkish legislation allows to perform marriage between two foreigners as well as between a Turk and a foreigner. A Turk and a foreigner and two foreigners need to marry in the competent Turkish authorities. Two foreigners of the same nationality can marry either in the Turkish register offices, or in the Embassy or Consulate offices of their own country.
MARRIAGE REQUIREMENTS:
- people of the same sex can’t get married in Turkey;
- close relatives can't get married;
- you can't marry if you are already married;
- the minimum marriage age is 18 years (persons who are aged from 16 years may apply to marry with a parent or guardian's consent);
- divorced women can remarry only after 300 days from the date of the divorce;
- people who suffer from some mental diseases like epilepsy, hysteria cannot get married.
To marry in Turkey you will need to provide the following documents:
- birth certificate and passport translated into Turkish and notarized in Turkey or in the Turkish embassy;
- certificate of no impediment;
- petition of the marriage filed by the groom and the bride at the Municipality in Turkish;
- six passport size photos of the groom and the bride;
- health certificate taken from a State medical institution, Sağlık Ocağı or Develet Hastanesi. Certificates issued by private hospitals and clinics are not accepted;
- accommodation document. Foreign couples not residing in Turkey need to provide a letter from the hotel where they are staying in which duration of staying and departure date are mentioned.
CHANGES IN MARRIAGE PROCEDURE FOR BRITISH NATIONALS
Since the 1st of March 2014 the marriage procedure for Britons has been changed. Now British nationals do not have to get a certificate of no impediment in the UK or in Turkey. Instead of this certificate, they need to complete a new Affidavit of Marital status form. If the intending spouses are both British, they need to provide two forms.
If you are a UK resident, you need to file an Affidavit form in both English and Turkish. After it is signed, it should be notarized and posted to the FCO Legislation department in Milton Keynes where it will be legalized. And after that you will submit this Affirmation in the local marriage office where you are going to marry.
If you are residing in Turkey, then you need to complete an Affidavit form and then book an appointment at the British Embassy in Ankara or consulates where the affidavits will be signed and witnessed in person. After that, the MFA in Ankara or the Governor in Istanbul, Izmir, or Antalya will legalize them. This document is valid for 180 days.