State Permits For All Beach Weddings

The State of Hawaii has begun enforcement of a law requiring a State issued use permit for free beach locations used for wedding ceremonies starting 8/1/08. This has just happened within the last two months prior to the enforcement date. Obviously, it hasn't made the wedding industry very unhappy by adding an extra layer of bureaucracy and added work for couples wanting to be married in Hawaii.

The cost of the permit is based upon the size of the wedding and the actual space required. Currently, the rate is $.0.10 per square foot of area with a minimum permit fee of $20. Couples may apply for the permit directly with their proof of liability insurance to the State of Hawaii or we can submit this for you, including using our liability insurance.

We suspect that the majority of weddings will only require the minimum space for a State permit fee of $20. For larger weddings which require more space for guests, chairs, etc., expect a higher permit fee. For example, a 40 ft by 40 ft space which should be enough to cover a chair set-up, etc. the permit fee will cost $160.

Our fee for the additional service of obtaining a State beach use permit including use of our liability insurance for your event will be approximately equal to the cost of your State permit. For example, if your permit is $20, our service fee including use of our liability insurance will be $20 for a total cost to you of $40.

Our packages do not include these additional permit fees because, we can't know the cost of the permit and insurance until we know the requirements of your wedding and the location.

The State tells us that permit processing will take from 7-10 days so do not wait to reserve your wedding. This is a new program and delays are to be expected. We have heard it taking as long as 14 days.

If you are trying to reserve your wedding within the time it takes to apply for a permit, we can agree to still do your wedding but, the responsiblility for not having a permit will be yours. We do not anticipate that they will be doing any strict enforcement except possibly at the most often used areas and congested areas i.e. Waialae Beach, Lanikai & Kailua beaches.

Since there is nothing we can do about this, we try to look on the positive side of things. We can be where we want to be, it eliminates a lot of Internet wedding companies who shouldn't even be offering services to the public, and it's still far cheaper than using a hotel or paid private site (hotels and paid private sites must also get a permit to allow their clients to get married on the beach).

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Here are our current guidelines:

- If it's almost too late for you to apply for a permit, we can still perform your wedding. FYI: We still don’t know exactly how long this process takes.

• You may have your wedding at the location of your choice OR you may have it at one of the locations whose jurisdiction is debatable (Magic Island or Ft. DeRussy Beach) or is hidden enough to where the likelihood of enforcement is unlikely (Makapuu Beach or Waimanalo Beach).

• We will apply for your permit just the same though, we may not get it confirmed in time. If we get it great. If we don’t get it, we don’t.

• We are not permitted to accept responsibility in this circumstance therefore, you will have to accept full responsibility for not having a permit.

OR

- If it's too late for you to apply for a permit, we can still perform your wedding.

• You may have your wedding at the location of your choice.

• We are not permitted to accept responsibility in this circumstance therefore, you will have to accept full responsibility for not having a permit.