Court Marriage Procedure in India: Your 5 Step Guide to Apply for Court Marriage

Finally planning to tie the knot? Well the first step to officially being called husband and wife is to make it legal with the help of a court marriage. Well we know that Court Marriage Procedures may sound like a long process but trust us, it’s not. You can complete your court marriage process by following these 5 simple steps.

We’ve listed all the court marriage rules, documents required for court marriage, court marriage restrictions and court marriage registration process that you’ll need. All you gotta do is follow the rules and make sure you’ve got the papers (and your fiance ;p) ready.

 

Here’s a list of Everything You Need to Know about Court Marriage Procedure In India

 

Step 1: Check Your Eligibility for Court Marriage

Individuals of any cast and country can enter a court marriage procedures according to the Indian law unless it’s a same-sex marriage. The court marriage rules say that any two persons can get married under this act. The condition is they should fulfil the eligibility criteria. This means that it is not compulsory to be an Indian citizen for getting married under this Act.

 

No Valid Previous Marriage: Make sure that your neither party has a previous marriage that is still valid. I.e. a living legal husband or wife

Valid Consent: Both the parties should be entering the marriage with full consent. The parties have to be of a stable mind and enter the marriage with their own will.   

Court Marriage Age: The legal court marriage age for a male is 21 years and female is 18 years of age.

Fit for Procreation: Both parties should be fit for the procreation of children.

Prohibited Relationship: According to court marriage rules, Parties should not be within degrees of prohibited relationship as provided in Schedule I; however, if the customs and traditions of the religion of any one of the parties permit so, then it shall be valid.

 

Step 2: Arrange for Documents Required for Court Marriage

Procedures in Court marriage require documents by the Bride and Groom (Bridegroom), along with documents of the 3 witnesses. The list of documents required for court marriage are listed below.

Documents for the Bride and Groom

• Age Proof of both parties(Leaving Certificate / Passport / Birth Certificate / Domicile Certificate / SSC Board Certificate)
• Residential Proof of both parties (Ration Card / Passport / Election Card / Light Bill And Telephone Bill Of Own Name)
• Photograph of both parties
• All Above Document Along With Original +1 Attested Xerox Copy
• Also, keep scanned copies for the online procedure
• In Case Of Divorcees: Divorce Decree Certificate Must Be Produced
• In Case Of Widow And Widower: Municipal Death Certificate Of Concerned Person Must Be Produced
• Receipt of payment of the fee.

Documents for the Three (3) Witnesses

Court marriage rules require Three witnesses to complete the procedures of the court marriage. These witnesses will need to carry the following original documents with a Notary Attested.

• Ration Card
• Passport
• Election Card
• Driving Licence
• Identity Card

 

Step 3: Fill the Court Marriage Application Form

All the Brides and Grooms need to fill the online form and submit a printed copy of the same to the marriage registrar with all the above documents.

Here is the link for the application: 

https://mregigr.maharashtra.gov.in/MarriageEntry/frmhomepage.aspx

Submission of Online Form for Court Marriage

The first step is to fill out data of where you come from and which marriage registration office you will have to go to. This page also provides a password so that you can edit the information on your application to court marriage.

• Select your district
• Your marriage registration office automatically gets selected
• Select special marriage for getting a marriage date after 30 days. (Form 16 is for a marriage that already took place but is to be registered in Maharashtra.)
• Type your safety password

 

Fill the Husband (Bridegroom’s) Data

Pro Tips:

• Always fill out data which matches with your documents
• Always mention the same Present Address and Permanent Address to avoid unnecessary dispute
• Kindly Select Document type for Age Proof and Residential Proof
• According to court marriage rules make sure the residential proof you mention is the same address you’ve been living at for more than 30 days.

Click on Next Button.

 Fill the Wife Data

Kindly follow same steps for court marriage applications as you did for the previous page. Make sure all the information filled matches to your documents as well.

Once you are done click on next button

Fill the Witness Details

In this page, you need to fill the Details for Witness for the court marriage.

 

 

Pro Tips:

• Mention the exact same details mentioned in Address Proof Document
• Add the type of Identification and its number
• Three Witness is required

Once Finished click next

Marriage Registration Confirmation

Pro Tip:

Take note of your Date Entry Number, this with the password you created at the beginning, will help you edit the information before submitting it to the marriage registrar.

If you Click on “NOTICE”

By clicking on Notice, a Pop-up window for the confirmation page will appear for a printout. You have to take this printout and add Photos of both the Bride and Bridegroom and sign it.

If you Click on “HOME”

By clicking on Home, it will take you to the homepage of the Marriage Registration.

 

Step 4: Court Marriage Process Before the Wedding Day

Submit the Notice for Court Marriage

To be married in court, the marriage officer of the district must first be informed of the intention to marry. The notice has to be given in a district where at least one party has been residing for more than 30 days of giving the notice.

Publication of Notice and Compulsory Waiting Period

The marriage officer of the district to whom the notice is been submitted displays the notice in his office. He also needs to submit the notice to the district of each party’s permanent residence if any. The compulsory waiting period for a court marriage after this is 30 days.

 

Objections and its Procedures

After this notice is displayed, anyone has the right to object to the marriage within these 30 days. These objections to the court marriage can be based on the grounds listed in Chapter II, Section 4 of the Act, i.e. as per the Act and the eligibility conditions. Any person who believes that the marriage violates one or more court marriage rules can object to it. But, not otherwise.

Although if an objection is made the officer has 30 days to make his investigation. If the objection is said to be true the officer can reject the party from entering the court marriage procedures.

An appeal can be filed as a remedy in the case of the objection. This appeal is filed to the district magistrate within 30 days from the date of the refusal to solemnise the marriage.

 

Step 5. Court Marriage Process On the Wedding Day

Signing the Declaration by Parties and Witnesses

The Bride, Groom and Three Witnesses have to sign on the Marriage Declaration in the presence of the Marriage officer who will then countersign it. It is not necessary to sign the declaration in the marriage officer’s office. If the parties wish, with the consent of their marriage officer, The court marriage process can be healed at any other location which is at a reasonable distance.

The couple may choose their manner of solemnizing the court marriage, but the marriage procedures will not be complete unless both the parties say this sentence in any language of their choice.

“I ___, take ___, to be my lawful Wife / Husband.”

 

Court Marriage Certificate

The marriage officer enters a court marriage certificate in the marriage certificate book. If signed by both parties and three witnesses, the marriage certificate is conclusive evidence of the court marriage.

So there it was, the procedures for entering a court marriage. Below are a list of Common Questions every couple frequently asks.

 

Who is the marriage officer of a given City?

The SDM/ADM or /Deputy Commissioners of a city act as marriage officers.

 

How Many Court Marriage Forms do we need to fill?

The primary court marriage form needed is the notice of intended marriage. Other than this, you and your witnesses will also need to fill and sign a declaration.

What is the court marriage fees in India?

The Court Marriage Fees in India may vary from one state to another.

For example, court marriage procedure fees in Maharashtra include, Applicant has to submit the memorandum of marriage form affixed with Rs.100 court fee stamp. In case of non-availability of wedding card, Rs 100 is charged. Bride and Bridegroom also need to give Rs. 95 (court marriage fees can revise time to time) as a fee at the counter, you will get Challan (Receipt) for same.

What’s the total Cost of a Court Marriage?

You can opt for any of the two kinds of “court marriage”. Your expenses would depend upon that.

1. Intended marriage under “Special Marriage Act”. It means irrespective of your religions, you want to marry directly under registrar of marriage. Technically, the fees are less than Rs 1000 but formalities, paperwork etc. Although with the help of touts or advocates to help, the cost can rise up to 10k-20k.
2. Registration of a solemnized marriage. This is the most preferred and fastest mode of marrying. Here the Marriage takes place with religious rites and ceremonies like Hindu Vivah, Nikaah in the presence of Kaazi etc. Your marriage should cost you less than 2,000 after this process. Later, you can register this marriage with the marriage officer easily and pretty fast. The fees again will be less than Rs. 1,000.

What is the timeline of a court marriage procedure?

If there is no objection to the marriage, you can complete the court marriage procedure as soon as the 30 day waiting period is over. If there is an objection, the entire court marriage procedure may take as long as 60 days.

 

Do you need parents’ approval to be married in court?

No. according to the court marriage rules, there is no need for parents’ approval of a court marriage process, so long as the following conditions are fulfilled.

So that is it, your complete guide to the procedures of a Court Marriage. If you’re also looking for the perfect Hindu Marriage Dates according to the Muhurat and time you can check that out here..