Symbolic Ceremony BEFORE Legal Ceremony

[dm2011]

I'm new to this board and have a question/need opinions. I am planning on having a second wedding in DR in April 2011. The problem is that you have to be divorced at least 10 months before getting married there and I won't meet that threshold before April. I don't want to postpone the wedding so I was thinking about having the symbolic ceremony on the beach first and then doing the legal ceremony when I get back home. Can this be done? Does it sound weird? Has anyone else done this?? I know a lot of brides have a civil ceremony before they go away but we don't want to do that as I think it might take away from walking down the aisle and saying our vows for the first time. Many thanks!

[richarsd]

That can totally be done. Since a symbolic wedding is not legal in any way, there is no requirement for being divorced or whatever for a certain period of time. That 10-month requirement for the civil weddings is a law so there's no way around it but since the symbolic ceremony follows no law...you're good to go. And it doesn't really matter whether you did the legal wedding at home before or after the symbolic one...I've heard of people doing it both ways.

[Aumuller]

Richarsd totally covered this but you definitely can do a symbolic ceremony first. I plan on doing this because I agree with you that I don't want to already be married before our destination wedding.

[jkgirl83]

Be careful what resort you are looking at, we went with the Majestic, but they require a copy of your marriage certificate to do the symbolic ceremony...so I don't know about other resorts, but I have heard the same from other brides on here that are doing symbolic ceremonies at different resorts.

[Aumuller]

I have checked with my resort (dreams palm beach) and you don't need to be married before doing a symbolic ceremony there. 

[glenny05]

 Just like the Majestic, the Bahia Principe also required a copy of our marriage certificate to do the symbolic ceremony . I wou..

I would've been nice to have the civil stuff after the symbolic ceremony