Registration of Other Marriages under the Special Marriage Act

A couple already married under their personal law, or in any other form, may wish to bring the marriage under the Special Marriage Act, for example to obtain the Act's matrimonial remedies or its succession rules. Chapter III allows this. A marriage celebrated in another form, before or after the Act came into force, may be registered by a Marriage Officer if six conditions are met, and it is then deemed to be a marriage solemnized under the Act. This note covers the conditions, the procedure, the appeal and the effect of registration.

1. Conditions: Section 15

Six conditions for registration

Figure 1: Six conditions for registration

Scope. Any marriage celebrated, whether before or after the Act, other than one solemnized under the Special Marriage Act, 1872 or under this Act, may be registered by a Marriage Officer in the territories to which the Act extends.
Ceremony and cohabitation. A ceremony of marriage must have been performed between the parties, and they must have lived together as husband and wife ever since. Registration does not create a marriage where none existed.
Age. Both parties must have completed 21 years at registration; the female age of 18 under s.4 does not apply here.
Residence. Both parties must have resided in the Marriage Officer's district for at least thirty days before the application, a stricter rule than for solemnization.
Pre-1955 marriages. For a marriage celebrated before the Act, the bar of prohibited degrees is subject to any law, custom or usage governing each party that permits the marriage.

Solemnization and registration compared

Figure 2: Solemnization and registration compared

2. Procedure and Appeal: Sections 16 and 17

From application to certificate

Figure 3: From application to certificate

Section 16. On an application signed by both parties, the Marriage Officer gives public notice in the prescribed manner, allows thirty days for objections, hears any objections, and, if satisfied that s.15 is met, enters a certificate in the Marriage Certificate Book in the Fifth Schedule form, signed by the parties and three witnesses.
Section 17. Any person aggrieved by a refusal to register may appeal within thirty days to the district court within whose jurisdiction the Marriage Officer has his office. The district court's decision is final.

3. Effect of Registration: Section 18

Deemed marriage under the Act. From the date the certificate is finally entered, the marriage is deemed to be solemnized under the Act. The Act's remedies, succession rules and penalties then apply.
Children. All children born after the date of the ceremony, whose names are entered in the Marriage Certificate Book, are deemed to be, and always to have been, legitimate.
Proviso. This does not give such children rights in the property of anyone other than their parents where, but for the Act, they would have been incapable of acquiring those rights for want of legitimacy.
Section 24(2). A registered marriage is not declared void under s.24(1), but its registration may be declared of no effect if it was made in contravention of any of clauses (a) to (e) of s.15 (Topic 12)
Consequences. Because the marriage is deemed solemnized under the Act, s.19 and s.21 apply unless both parties are Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs or Jains (Topics 8, 9)

4. Registration and Compulsory Registration

Different purposes. Registration under Chapter III changes the legal character of the marriage. It is distinct from registration that merely records a marriage under personal law, such as under s.8 of the Hindu Marriage Act or State compulsory registration laws, which leaves the governing law unchanged.
Seema v Ashwani Kumar (2006). The Supreme Court directed that marriages of all citizens be compulsorily registered under State rules, for evidentiary purposes; such registration does not bring a marriage under the Special Marriage Act.

⚠ Exam trap

Chapter III registration requires an earlier ceremony with cohabitation since, no other spouse, no idiocy or lunacy, both parties aged 21, no prohibited relationship and both parties resident in the district for thirty days. The application is by both parties; public notice gives thirty days for objections; the certificate is in the Fifth Schedule form with three witnesses. Appeal lies to the district court within thirty days. From entry, the marriage is deemed solemnized under the Act, and children born after the ceremony are legitimate (s.18).

5. Frequently Asked Questions

Can a marriage performed under Hindu or Muslim law be registered under the Special Marriage Act?

Yes. Section 15 allows registration of any marriage celebrated in another form, before or after the Act, if the six conditions are met. Once registered, the marriage is deemed solemnized under the Act from the date of entry of the certificate.

What age must the parties be for registration under section 15?

Both must have completed 21 years at the time of registration. This differs from s.4, under which the female need only be 18 for a marriage solemnized under the Act.

Can the registration of a marriage under Chapter III be set aside?

Yes. Under s.24(2), a marriage registered under Chapter III is not declared void under s.24(1), but the registration may be declared to be of no effect if it was made in contravention of any of the conditions in clauses (a) to (e) of s.15.

6. Related Topics

Topic 8: Effect on Family Property and Succession. What follows from the deemed marriage.
Topic 12: Void Marriages, Section 24. Including s.24(2) on registration.