Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

Provision is being made in the Bill to facilitate couples working or living abroad. They can notify the registrar under the prescribed form by post. They can submit any other required documentation, for example, a divorce decree, by post but they must attend a registrar's office a minimum of five days prior to the date of the intended marriage to produce the identification and to sign a declaration of freedom to marry. Where a couple is unable to meet this requirement due to exceptional circumstances, special arrangements can be made by agreement with the registrar. We can all appreciate that something might happen, and that can be facilitated.

In addition, it is proposed that the designated registrar's office will be open late one evening each week to provide an expanded service for our customers. All marriage notification details, including the couple's signatures, will be captured electronically and this can only be done now by a personal attendant at the registrar's office. We will certainly facilitate people as best we can. The couple's electronic signature will be used for comparison purposes with those on the marriage registration form when the marriage is being registered.

It is a principle of international law that couples wishing to marry outside their country of residence must comply with the marriage laws of the country where the marriage is to take place. We are all aware of that happening. Given the significance of marriage to the couple in society, it is not unreasonable to require a couple to attend a registrar's office in person to complete the civil preliminaries for marriage. It is an intrinsic part of making all necessary arrangements for the marriage.

I consider that adequate provision is included in the Bill to cater for couples resident outside the State who wish to marry in Ireland. That flexibility is being given to the registrar.