Marriage Act 1994

The Marriage Act 1994 (c. 34) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Introduced as a private member's bill by Gyles Brandreth, it amended the Marriage Act 1949 to allow civil marriages to be solemnized in certain "approved premises". Prior to the Act, marriage ceremonies could only be conducted in churches and register offices. "Approved premises", for the purpose of the Act, include publicly available premises which are "readily identifiable" as marriage venues, support the "dignity of marriage", and do not have any official connections with any religion or religious institution. The majority of these approved premises are hotels, as well as stately homes, restaurants, and leisure clubs. The Act also allows couples to marry in registration districts in which neither member of the couple resides.

Following the passage of the Act, the proportion of civil marriages performed in the United Kingdom increased from 1% of all marriages in 1995 to 6% in 1997.

Approved Premise
An Approved Premise is a designation given to buildings and other locations that are permitted to be used for civil partnerships and civil marriages under the Act. A building or location can be given the Approved Premise mark by having their location be verified by the superintendent registrar of that area.