Hello I am a NRI and i got married to my wife who is not indian national. We got married and divorced outside India. The registration of the Non-Resident Indian Bill, 2019 stipulates marriage of NRI to an indian national or an NRI. If i understand clearly this law does not apply to me ? Also is it mandatory for an NRI who got married to a person with other nationality (marriage outside india) to register the marriage in India ? Does official marriage or divorced certificates issued by other countries involving alteast one indian in the marriage valid in India ? thanks a lot for your help Thanks a lot
If you marry a foreign citizen in that country and register the marriage as per the law of that country then it may not be mandatory for you to get your marriage registered as per Indian laws.
However if you would like to get your marriage registered as per Indian laws then you may have to get it registered under special marriage act by following the procedures prescribed in the law accordinlgy.
It iss as not applicable in your case
2) Every NRI who marries a citizen of India or another NRI shall register his marriage within 30 days. In case an NRI fails to register the marriage within 30 days, the passport authority may impound his passport.
3) bill has not been passed by Parliament
4) you can register your marriage abroad with Indian consulate
Yes you can register under the said NRI Act
Dear client,
As a NRI who married and divorced outside of India to a non-Indian national, the Non-Resident Indian Bill, 2019 does not apply to you as it pertains specifically to marriages between NRIs and Indian nationals or NRIs.
However, it is not mandatory for NRIs who marry outside of India to register their marriage in India. Still, it is advisable to register your marriage in India to establish the legality of your marriage and to avoid any legal complications that may arise in the future.
Official marriage or divorce certificates issued by other countries are generally recognized in India, as India is a signatory to the Hague Convention on the Celebration and Recognition of the Validity of Marriages, which mandates the recognition of foreign marriage certificates in member countries. However, it is advisable to get the marriage or divorce certificate attested by the Indian embassy or consulate in the foreign country to ensure its validity in India.
1. Non-Resident Indian Bill, 2019 is not enacted, it has no legal implications. 2. If the marriage is not under Foreign Marriage Act, it is not a valid marriage and anyway it dissolved by decree of divorce. There no need to do anything further.
- As per this Bill , every NRI who marries a citizen of India or another NRI must get his marriage registered within 30 days. If the marriage occurs outside India, it must be registered with a Marriage Officer, who will be appointed from among the diplomatic officers in a foreign country.
- Further , this Bill amends the Passports Act, 1967 to state that in case an NRI fails to register the marriage within 30 days, the passport authority may impound or revoke his/her passport.
- However, if your marriage was not performed and registered under India law, then this Bill not applied in your case, as the divorce has taken place outside India.
Hello Thank you all for your feedback. I am really grateful. The reason i asked this question because my passport is about to expire and i am in the process of applying for re-issue. I live outside India I got married and divorced to a non indian national in France. Both the marriage and divorce certificates are issued by authorities where i live and i never registered my marriage in India. The name of my spouse does not appear on my current passport. While going through the procedure to apply for new passport because of expiry, i found the sample passport form in the vfs website https://services.vfsglobal.com/fra/en/ind/apply-passport. According to this sample form https://assets.ctfassets.net/xxg4p8gt3sg6/GJQRxHuuNX8ntGhqsHOyY/04b3947decfc1b849fe63fe268c07ccc/sample-passport-online-application-form.pdf , it is marked that i need to put my spouse name after entering either married, divorced, widow or seperated in the marital status field. So i understand that i need to put divorced in the marital status field and then spouse name. Thanks for letting me know if it is mandatory to put spouse name even if i am divorced ? After i enter my spouse name, will the spouse name appear in the passport ? If the spouse name will appear in the passport, will it mean i am changing the fields on my passport as compared to my old passport and hence will i have to furnish marriage / divorce certificate issued by country where i got married and divorced or an affidavit issued at embassy of India ? Or should i write single in martial status tab in the passport application as i never regsitered my marriage in India ? But i think forgeign marriages/divorces are recognised in India i should put divorced in martial status tab. I am really confused and would really appreciate your input. thanks a lot Regards
1) if you are divorced spouse name would not enter into your passport
2) dont write single status in passport
3) act as mentioned herein above
Thank you Mr Sethi. I found the new passport rules of 2016 which does not require furnishing marriage/divorce documents https://passportindia.gov.in/AppOnlineProject/pdf/PressRelease_PassportRule.pdf Regards
1) don’t furnish divorce documents but declared you are divorced
2) never suppress any material facts
Since you have not married in India as per Indian laws and presently you are a divorcee but again this divorce also is not in India as per Indian laws, it is advisable that you continue with the same status of the present passport for reissue of the new passport too.
In fact it is not mandatory to provide a marriage certificate for adding a spouse name in your passport if you both are Indian and also it is not mandatory to have your spouse name on the passport.
One of the primary benefits of adding spouse name in passport is that it helps prove your genuine relationship when you apply for a dependent or a spouse visa.
Marriage certificate is not mandatory.
If your passport had spouse name then for reissue of passport Marital status in passport application will not change if there is no proof of divorce from the competent Court with decree of divorce.
Best of luck
Dear client. Yes, as per the new passport rules of 2016, there is no requirement to provide the marriage or divorce certificate when applying for a new passport. So, you can simply mention your marital status as divorced and provide your spouse's name as per the instructions on the passport application form. However, please note that the spouse's name will not be printed on the passport.