From Monday, small weddings with a maximum of 10 participants can be held again. The marrying couple can stand closer than two meters, but only the local official and public registrar can be present on behalf of the authorities, and handshakes are allowed only with consent and immediate disinfection. According to Interior Minister Jan Hamáček: “This is a compromise, which at the moment is the maximum possible.” Photo credit: Freepik / For illustrative purposes.
Brno, Apr 21 (BD) – Last week, the government presented a plan to relax anti-coronavirus measures that allows wedding and registered partnership ceremonies of up to ten participants and under specific hygiene conditions from Monday, April 20th. The list of all businesses that can open from Monday is here (in Czech).
The Ministry of the Interior issued recommendations for municipalities, registry offices and guests how to organize a wedding in compliance with the regulations. “We have managed to contain the epidemic so far. We must not relax, but a gradual return to normal life is necessary. It may seem impossible at first glance to organize a small wedding for only 10 people, so we have proposed a solution to municipalities and wedding guests,” explained Hamáček, adding that this is a compromise, which at the moment is the maximum possible.
- From Monday, only the local official (for the municipal authority or the church), the public registrar, the marrying couple, their two witnesses and a maximum of four others can attend the ceremony.
- Apart from the marrying couple, everyone must have their mouths and nose covered during the ceremony.
- Witnesses may temporarily remove their face protection when to be identified by the registrar.
- The premises where the wedding takes place must be disinfected and thoroughly ventilated after each ceremony. Outdoor weddings are recommended.
- Congratulation handshakes are permitted only with the agreement of all parties, and subsequent disinfection.
- The office must provide each person providing signatures during the ceremony with their own pen; writing instruments must be disinfected after every ceremony.
- The public registrar [matrikář] is recommended to wear disposable rubber gloves during the ceremony.
New York City in the United States, where many weddings had to be cancelled due to lockdown restrictions which will not be eased until mid-May, has introduced a temporary technological solution for impatient couples. On April 18th, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed an order allowing online marriages. “You can do it by Zoom. Yes or no?” he said on Saturday, as quoted by BBC.
