Newlyweds 'must file their papers within a week of their big day or face a £1,000 fine' under new system

Under a new system, which has been branded "chaotic", couples will no longer be given a marriage certificate at the end of their big day.

Instead, they will sign a 'marriage document' and will need to take this to their local register to be recorded electronically, The Times reports.

But married couples who fail to do this within a week will be legally required to 'attend personally' and could be guilty of a criminal offence and pay up to £1,000 if not.

However, due to most couples jetting off on their honeymoon straight after the wedding, they can ask someone to lodge the document on their behalf.

The Faculty Office told the publication: "The couple can ask someone to lodge the marriage document on their behalf - as in many cases they will, of course, be on honeymoon - but it is their responsibility, not the officiating minister's responsibility, to ensure that it it done."

It posted on Twitter: "There will be criminal penalties for failing to register marriage , in the same way as there are for failing to register the birth of a child or a death."

The Rev Marcus Walker, from London, told the publication: "Thanks to the new rules, newly married couples have an immediate threat of criminal sanction laid upon them. Great."

The Faculty Office says the church only has a matter of months to train more than 2,000 clergy in the new system. The changes have been coupled with moves to include mother's maiden names on certificates and to allow same-sex couples to have civil partnerships.

The Rev Paul Butler told the publication: "This is going to create all kinds of chaos. A simple revision of the marriage registers and certificates [to] include mothers' details would have sufficed."

The Home Office told the publication that it had not confirmed when the changes would take place, saying it was "modernising" marriages and "saving over £30million".