Groom invents new wedding etiquette: No gift, no invite!

Updated July 22, 2025, 4:11 p.m. | By Lifestyle Reporter

A man only wants to invite people to his wedding who he is sure will bring a gift.

bride and groom opening a wedding gift.png — File photo: iStock

It's customary for wedding guests to give the bride and groom a gift on their special day, but not everyone does.

Most are just there to watch two people they love make their union official, while others are just there for the food.

However, a groom wants all his guests to contribute a gift to his wedding, and he has devised an interesting idea to ensure this.

According to the bride, he only wants to invite people to their special day who will spend $300 (R5,265) or more on a present.

In an anonymous post on Reddit, she told users, "My fiancé is paying for most of our wedding."

"His family is Persian, very traditional and generous. At our engagement party (which he paid about 70% for), most of his family gave us cash gifts, even though I know engagement gifts aren’t really expected."

The bride reveals that no one on her side of the family gave gifts aside from a few close friends. She described her family as "middle-class and Westernised".

The groom now worries that they will do the same at the wedding.

"He was pretty disappointed by that and now seems guarded. When I told him I’d like to invite about 100 people from my side, he said we should only invite guests who would likely give at least $300 in gifts," she wrote.

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The bride says she told her soon-to-be husband that his idea felt transactional.

"In the heat of the moment, I said something I regret. We haven’t spoken since. Is it reasonable for him to feel that way? Or is this a red flag?" she asked.

Many redditors who responded to the post found the idea gross, with some saying the couple might as well charge an admission fee if that is how he feels.

"That’s gross. I don’t [know] what you said that you regret, but it is definitely transactional and I don’t think that’s the point of a wedding," one person said.

Another commented: "Massive red flag. My friends sister married into a Persian family, much wealthier than her family, and they didn't pull a stunt like this. He sounds greedy."

A third person felt the idea was cruel, as not many people have a $300 budget for a wedding gift.

"Getting married is a celebration of your life together. It is a chance to thank all of the people who have helped you along the way and that you love.

"I cannot imagine marrying someone who is this transactional and cruel. Not everyone can afford that level of gift."

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