Indicative Guidelines for the Authorisation of Religious Communities

If you wish to be authorised as a religious community or congregation, you must submit an application. You have to meet some requirements, and you must use a specific form.

In order to apply, you must be a group of persons over the age of 18 with permanent addresses in Denmark, and you must belong to a particular religion. Religious communities and congregations in Denmark may be authorised by The Ministry for Ecclesiastical Affairs.

Read more on the authorisation of religious communities and congregations.

When a religious community has been authorised, you can apply for an authorisation for your religious worker (for example a priest or imam) til perform marriages. The Ministry for Ecclesiastical Affairs decides on the application.

Read more about marriage and the right to perform marriages.

It is not a requirement that the religious community has been authorised before you can practice it in Denmark. It does, however, have some advantages being authorised, for example the possibility of applying for the right to perform marriages and it also provides certain tax advantages.