jeff montgomery registrar-general births, deaths and marriages
DESCRIPTION
Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages. Celebrants Association of New Zealand Conference 11 August 2013. Department of Internal Affairs – Our Strategic Focus Areas. Transforming the way government agencies deliver their services. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
![Page 1: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
Jeff MontgomeryRegistrar-General
Births, Deaths and Marriages
Celebrants Association of New Zealand Conference 11 August 2013
![Page 2: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Department of Internal Affairs – Our Strategic Focus Areas
Transforming the way government agencies deliver
their services
Stronger and more resilient communities
Increased trust in how government manages NZ’s
civic information
Internal Affairs is a robust sustainable and fit for purpose
government agency
![Page 3: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Department of Internal Affairs – How we work
• 2000+ staff working across a wide range of areas
• Building a safe, prosperous and respected nation
• Service Delivery and Operations provide a range of services that make a difference in the lives of the people by enabling them to fulfil aspirations - for themselves, their families and their communities. This includes:
• Citizenship• Passports• Community Operations• Charities• iGovt – RealMe• Births, Deaths and Marriage
![Page 4: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Births, Deaths and Marriages• Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages - Jeff Montgomery. Independent statutory officer who makes decisions
on who becomes a celebrant, amongst other things.
• 48 registries nationally - Four run directly by the Department and 44 by the Department's agents, Ministry of Justice and local councils.
• Each year BDM deals with more than 300,000 New Zealanders. We register:o 62,000 birthso 23,000 relationshipso 30,000 deathso We issue more than 275,000 certificate and printouts
• Register Name Changes and Gender Reassignments
• 9,500+ approved marriage celebrants or Registrars of Marriage
![Page 5: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Marriage Statistics
Current celebrant numbers (July 2013)
• Church and organisation marriage celebrants = 7,594
• Independent marriage celebrants = 1,817
• Independent civil union celebrants = 452
• Each year 400 applications for independent celebrants. 25% approved.
Proportion of ceremonies performed by marriage celebrants
• 45% by an independent marriage celebrant
• 32% by a church or organisational marriage celebrant
• 23% in a Registry Office by a Registrar of Marriages
![Page 6: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Proportion of celebrants to ceremoniesNumber of celebrants
7547
2117
Church and organisation marriagecelebrants
Independent celebrants
Number of ceremonies
32%
45%
23%
Church or organisational celebrant
Independent Celebrant
Registry Office by a Registrar
![Page 7: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Marriages, Civil Unions, and Divorces:
Year ended December 2012
• 20,521 marriages registered to New Zealand residents• 2,422 marriages were registered to overseas residents. • 303 civil unions registered to New Zealand residents plus
87 to overseas residents. 22% were different sex couples.
• 8,785 married couples divorced.
More relationships ending
• Just over one-third of couples married in 1987 divorced within 25 years (ie before their silver wedding anniversary).
• Of the 2,455 civil union couples in New Zealand, only 124 civil unions (less than one in 20) have been dissolved.
Source: Statistics New Zealand
![Page 8: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/8.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Act 2013
• Royal Assent granted on 19 April 2013
• First same-sex marriage probably Monday 19 August 2013
• Notices of Intended Marriage accepted from 16 August
• Specifies that a marriage is between two people regardless of their sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity
• All married couples will be eligible to apply jointly to adopt a child
• Transgender people able to remain married regardless of gender identity
• Nothing else changes
![Page 9: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/9.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
“A marriage licence shall authorize but not oblige any marriage celebrant to solemnize the marriage to which it relates.” (current Act - unchanged)
The Marriage Act authorises but does not oblige any marriage celebrant to solemnise a marriage. No change.
Reinforced by the Amendment Act “no religious or organisational celebrant is obliged to solemnise a marriage that would contravene religious beliefs or philosophical or humanitarian convictions of a religious body or approved organisation.”
![Page 10: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Marriage Amendment Act – Implementing the change
• Not a major change. Flow on implications for the birth and death registration systems.
• Change to the Notice of Intended Marriage form, adding options for Headings of Particulars
![Page 11: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/11.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Celebrant Registration
• No change to celebrant appointment process.
• Celebrants registered for civil unions - 130 have been offered the opportunity to also be a marriage celebrant.
• Changing application process - merging marriage and civil union celebrant forms. Making criteria more transparent and permissive. Sought further feedback from CANZ.
• Working with CANZ to review renewal process (different time of year, maybe for longer)
• Looking at possibility for a competency based appointment process.
• Adding celebrant identification number to forms to improve quality of information we collect – eg number of ceremonies completed.
![Page 12: Jeff Montgomery Registrar-General Births, Deaths and Marriages](https://reader034.vdocuments.us/reader034/viewer/2022042519/56812b6a550346895d8f8c07/html5/thumbnails/12.jpg)
Department of Internal Affairs
Questions?