When should we hire our wedding officiant? | photo by Henry + Mac Photography
I’ve seen the question come up on many wedding forums: when should we hire our wedding officiant? It’s a good question to be thinking about since without an officiant you really can’t have a legal wedding. Even if your officiant is a friend or relative or the clergy at your church, you need to start thinking about hiring them or confirming them pretty early on in your planning process. Here are my thoughts on when you should hire your wedding officiant.
Before You Hire Your Wedding Officiant
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Before you can hire your officiant you’ll need to know your wedding date.
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It would also be a good idea to also have a wedding venue confirmed, that way your officiant can calculate any travel fees that might applicable.
How Far in Advance to Book Your Officiant
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I suggest you book your officiant as far in advance as possible since many of us book up quickly. Many couples book me a year or more in advance.
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I also suggest hiring your wedding officiant well in advance of the wedding (at least six months) if you’re having them craft a customized ceremony. This planning process takes time and you don’t want to rush it.
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Yet another reason to hire your officiant at least six months before the wedding is it gets you to start thinking about what kind of ceremony you want. The ceremony sets the tone for the whole wedding day and it’s good to know what feeling you want for your ceremony before planning all the other elements of your wedding.
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And the last reason to hire your wedding officiant as far in advance as you can is it sometimes takes a while to find the right one. If you’re hiring a professional officiant, you want to give yourself plenty of time to find the perfect match. (Read more about finding the right officiant)
This of course is the ideal, and I’ve had many couples hire me a few months before their wedding and it has worked out just fine. If you have the luxury of time, then use it, if not, do the best you can. Contact me if you’re ready to start the process!
