step by step guide to court marriage

Marriage in India is not just two people coming together and committing to spend their life with each other, its a ritual which acts as a binding force between two families. The process of one getting married is of two types, culturally where one marries according to their respective culture and other is court marriages.

The legal age of getting married in the case of man is above 21 years and the woman is above 18 years. The process of court marriage is conducted by the Marriage Act 1954 or the Special Marriage Act when a person marries someone of the opposite sex.

When both the parties belong to the Hindu religion the marriage is performed according to the Hindu Marriage Act, in case of inter-caste marriage Special Marriage Act comes into force.

Procedure for court marriage

The procedure for court marriage includes various steps, from registration to finally getting the certificate. Lets us go through the procedure:-

Notice of intend

The primary and most important step of the procedure is to file a notice of intent to the marriage officer of the district. To provide the notice one can simply do by filling up the court marriage application form(as mentioned in Schedule ll of the Act) or has an option to download the form online and submit the form 30 days before the date of marriage to the officer of the district where either of the participants resides.

Display of notice

The marriage registrar of the district will display the notice at a prominent place at his office for 30 days. Within this period, anyone can object to the marriage if it is deemed illegal under the Act and the prescribed eligibility conditions. Section 7 of the Special Marriage Act says that any person having an objection to the marriage intended can raise so within 30 days from the publication of the notice.

On the receipt of any such objection, the marriage registrar checks the validity of the same. On being reasonably satisfied with the validity of the objection, the registrar can end the court marriage process then and therein. In this case, the parties may appeal to the concerned district court, against the order of the marriage registrar.

If there is no valid objection, the officer can proceed with the procedure of court marriage, as per the laid down court marriage rules.

Day of marriage

The parties proceeding for the court marriage need to sign the declaration form in the presence of the marriage registrar or at a location that is reasonably close to the registrar’s office (as per Section 12 of the Special Marriage Act), which will state their consent for the marriage.

Court marriage certificate

The entire court marriage process usually takes 30 to 60 days to complete. The marriage registrar fills the details in the court marriage certificate. This is as per provisions mentioned in Schedule IV of the Special Marriage Act.

Court marriage documents

The prescribed form, duly filled and signed by both the prospective groom and bride

• Receipt of the necessary court marriage fees.
• Two passport-sized photographs each.
• Date of Birth Proof (This could be your Voting or Pan Card, Municipal Corporation Certificate or pass certificate for 10th or 12th Examination)
• Residential address proof (PAN or Aadhar Card)
• In case either party is a divorcee or a widow, divorce decree/order or death certificate of the spouse is required, as the case may be.
• Affidavit
• The affidavit must contain the following information related to the court marriage-
• Marital status of the parties
• Date of birth of the parties
• A statement confirming that the parties involved are not at all related to one another
• Besides, the following court marriage documents of the witnesses are required for the solemnization of the marriage-
• Identity proof
• Residential address proof
• PAN card
• One passport-sized photograph each

Documents required in case of Foreign National

• In case the court marriage is solemnised between the Indian vs Foreign national, then the applicant has to submit the following documents in addition to documents as mentioned above:
• Copy of Passport of with valid Visa.
• Documentary evidence regarding stay in India of one of the parties for more than thirty days (Proof of residence or report from the concerned Station House Officer (SHO)).
• NOC or Marital Status certificate from the concerned embassy or Consulate in India by a foreigner partner.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:

• At least one of the parties should be an Indian citizen

• .The bride groom must be 21 years of age; the bride must be 18 years of age.
• Neither party has a spouse living,
• Neither party is an idiot or a lunatic,
• The parties are not within the degrees of prohibited relationship
• Each party involved should not have any other subsisting valid marriage.

Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)

1.Is it possible to change or extend of court marriage date?

Ans. Yes, it’s possible to change or extend the date by calling toll free number 1800119091. The information must be given at least one day before.

2.What is the minimum age requirements to get married legally in India?

Ans. The man should be above 21 years of age and woman should be above 18 years of age.

3.The minimum number of witnesses required for court marriage?

Ans. The consent of both parties is required as well as witness present should be 3.

4.Objection to the marriage even though marrying in court?

Ans. Marrying in court does not take the right of anyone who has an objection to the marriage. The marriage officer gives 30  days to object with reasonable, logical, and valid points for objection.

5.Are parents informed of the decision to marry?

Ans. No. the parents aren’t informed