Marriage interview in France – Questions 2026 and tips

Marriage interview in France

Written by Marina Yulis · Legal review: Ms Anna Coquery · Updated January 2026

Planning to marry in France?

The french law requires the marriage interview ( also called pre wedding interview) to take place in the presence of an interpreter at the town hall.

Our agency provides the face to face interpreters for pre wedding interviews, since 2011.

Based on our experience, we have drawn up a list of typical questions asked during the marriage interview and also a list of interview tips and mistakes to avoid, that can help you to significantly reduce the stress.

Pre wedding interview questions in France in 2026

Don’t worry, these questions are purely formal and you’ll be able to answer them easily.

Questions about your spouse and his or her family


First of all, in the marriage audition questionnaire, several questions will be asked about your spouse’s identity and family, to see if you know them well enough:

  • The personal data of each of the spouses (date of birth, address, occupation etc.)
  • You may also be asked questions about your partner’s family: parents’ first names, sisters’ and brothers’ first names, occupation and place of residence.
  • Do you know which region your future spouse comes from?
  • What training or education has he or she completed?
  • Do you know your spouse’s friends? What are their first names?

Questions about your decision to marry and your wedding plans

  • Which of you was the first to talk about marriage?
  • Who proposed marriage? When did it happen?
  • Was there an engagement ceremony?
  • What does marriage mean to you?
  • Why did you decide to marry in France?
  • Have your family and your partner’s family already been informed about the wedding? If not, why not?
  • How has your future spouse’s family reacted to your decision to get married?
  • How do you see your civil marriage ceremony at the town hall, who will be your guests, who have you chosen as witnesses? Will the foreign spouse’s family be able to come to France for the ceremony?
  • Who will pay for the wedding expenses?
  • How do you see your family in 10 years’ time, and what are your medium- and long-term plans?


Questions about how did you meet

Other questions you will be asked about your meeting, your exchanges since the meeting, etc…

  • Where, when, how and under what circumstances did you meet? Was the meeting organised by a family or friendly intermediary?
  • If the meeting was preceded by telephone exchanges – specify when, and by what means (Zoom, whats’app, ets…)
  • How much time did you spend together to get to know each other and consider getting married?
  • How many visits has the French spouse made to the foreign spouse’s country?
  • If the foreign spouse does not live in France: how many times and for how long did he or she come to France and stay with his or her spouse? Who paid the related expenses?
  • Does the foreign spouse have any family in France?

Questions about things you have in common and interests: yours and your partner’s

  • What are your future spouse’s interests? What types of hobbies do they enjoy? Do you do them together?
  • What do you like to do together in your spare time? How do you spend your time together?
  • How would you describe your partner’s character?
  • Describe their weaknesses, their faults, and their strengths, the character traits you like in them…

Questions about the couple’s plans after marriage

  • Do you plan to continue living in France after the wedding? If yes: does the French spouse have the means to accommodate the foreign spouse? Does he/she have the means to support the foreign spouse?
  • Where do you plan to live after the marriage, and is the search for new accommodation underway? Does the foreign partner intend to learn French and look for a job?
  • If you are planning to go and live in your partner’s country after the wedding, you may also be asked to give details of your plans.

Interpreter in Paris for the pre marriage interview : rates and conditions

The town hall will ask you to hire an interpreter for the interview if the foreign spouse does not have a perfect command of French.

Our professional translators can accompany you to interviews and weddings in Paris, and also in any other city in France.

For marriage interview, the translator does not need to be sworn; the law states that a non-sworn translator (interpreter) is sufficient.

In terms of price, accompaniment to an interview by a professional interpreter costs from €250. This price is indicative and applies to the services of an English-French translator for a marriage interview in Paris and the Ile-de-France region.

Contact us to request a quote and to find out about our Packages for the services of a face to face translator (interpreter) who will accompany you at all the stages of your marriage in France :

  • English to French interpreter the pre-marriage interview ( face to face or remote)
  • English French face to face interpreter for the wedding at the town hall
  • Sworn interpreter in Paris for the marriage contract signing at the notary’s office
  • Certified English to French translation of the documents of the marriage record (Dossier de mariage)

Our interpreter will not only go through the interview with you, but will also give you invaluable advice and tips, as our official translators assisted hundreds of couples during their interviews, and we know the steps and pitfalls.

If you wish to hire a face to face interpreter for a wedding interview in Paris or the Ile-de-France region, we advise you to send us your request in advance, especially during the spring and summer, when the demand is especially high.

How to Succeed in the Pre-Wedding Interview: 5 Mistakes to Avoid based on our practical experience and observation


Above all, don’t worry. We’ve been accompanying french-foreign couples to marriage interviews in France since 2011, and we’ve never seen a marriage refused!

The procedure is fairly formal and the questionnaire for the interview is formal too.

Based on our experience, here are a few tips to ensure that your interview with the civil registrar goes off without a hitch:

  • Mistake 1 : Not to think of your Insta or Facebook accounts in this context… Do your social media accounts reflect the status of your relationship? Usually, though, the civil registrar will never ever ask to see your social media accounts. But just in case… Think about that.
  • Mistake 2 : Not enough evidences… Keep just in case all the evidence you can to prove that you are indeed a loving couple.
  • Mistake 3 : Provide “evidence” you are not asked for – “too good of a good thing” … Do not bring or present more documents or “evidence” than what is explicitly requested. Items such as airline tickets, hotel bookings or personal photographs are normally neither required nor asked for during the interview. You should only provide documents if the registrar specifically asks for them. In our experience, presenting unsolicited materials can create confusion or even raise unnecessary questions. One of our cases involved a client who added 3 years of personal photos with his future spouse to the file without being asked, which led the administration to question their relevance. As a general rule, provide exactly what is requested — no more, no less.
  • Mistake 4 : Seeing the Interview as a Stressful Test — It is not intended to be one. Don’t be nervous and maintain eye contact with the registrar during the interview, smile, and try not to look stressed or tense. In most cases, the interviewing official treats future spouses very kindly.
  • Mistake 5 : Panicking If You Do Not Know or Cannot Remember Something. There is no need to worry if you cannot answer a question perfectly. The interview is not about testing your memory but about understanding your situation as a couple. In one case from our experience, a future bride could not recall the names of two of her partner’s five brothers, whom she had never met because they lived abroad. She simply explained this honestly, and it was not an issue. It is always better to answer sincerely than to feel pressured to give a “perfect” response.

Don’t worry, the registrar will really not try to fail you. If you know basic information about your spouse, don’t even have any doubts, the interview will definitely go well.

We succeeded in the interview… What’s next?


Immediately after the interview (and in some cases a few days later) you will be asked to choose a day for your civil wedding!

Don’t forget that for foreigners the time between validation of the interview and the wedding date may be longer, because in between you’ll have the obligatory publication of marriage banns.

If one of you lives abroad, you will also need to publish the banns at the French embassy or consulate in your country.

For the banns, the mairie handles all the details, so you don’t have to worry about them. It may just delay the process a little.

Need an experienced French English interpreter for your pre-wedding interview ? You are in a right place!

Our official interpreters in Paris and all over France have extensive experience in marriage interviews.

If you need an interpreter for your marriage interview or civil wedding, our official translator will help you with face to face interpreting, advise you and give you all the tips we’ve learned from the hundreds of interviews that we’d helped to conduct since 2011.

To hire our interpreter means to ensure a stress-free and worry-free marriage interview in Paris, Lyon or other cities of France !

Relecture juridique

Legal review

This article has been legally reviewed by our partner lawyer, Ms Anna Coquery,
Attorney-at-Law at the Paris Bar, specialised in family law and immigration law.

Agence Marina Yulis Traduction – Paris

Interpreting services provided by an agency ranked among the highest-rated in France and 4th in Paris in 2025 (independent rankings).

Adresse


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📧 office@translator-paris.com
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