The provincial department that administers marriage commissioner licences on P.E.I. has decided not to offer the group certification this year.

Anyone wishing to become a marriage commissioner on the Island has to apply and give references. They are then required to participate in a half-day course where they review the Marriage Act, and sign documentation under oath.

Adam Peters, director of Vital Statistics, says because of COVID-19 the process couldn't go ahead as usual, so it has been cancelled for this year.

"The difficulty is that as part of the process, we would be verifying the identification of that individual," said Peters.

"We'd also be getting them to sign an affidavit, witnessing their signatures, performing an oath of office. So the practicality of being able to do that over a Zoom conference, as opposed to in-person, we just haven't been able to resolve that as of yet."

He said approximately 40 people had registered for the licence this year prior to the April 1st deadline. Those individuals were given the option to get a refund of their registration fees or rebook for next year.

"We've had some that have been very appreciative of the opportunity to have their money refunded. Also those who wish to have the course next year so we're quite comfortable with that," Peters said.

"We've also had some individuals that are looking to continue to be able to perform their ceremonies this year. We're making arrangements with the ones we've heard from."

He says with many weddings postponed due to COVID-19, there are fewer people looking for the marriage commissioner licence this year, but anyone who still needs it will be accommodated on an individual basis.

He said so far this year, the department has had 40-50 marriage licence applications compared to the 70-80 it would normally have by this time.