• Registration of marriage

Hi,

My fiance and I are holding H1B visas and are residing in US (and are both Hindu's). We are planning to get married in US. Could you please let me know if we need to get married in Indian consulate so that it will be recognized as registered marriage in India? If we get married in a U.S. Court, Can this marriage certificate from U.S be used to register in India or is it just considered valid in India?
Asked 8 years ago in Family Law
Religion: Hindu

3 answers received in 2 hours.

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6 Answers

1. The certificate issued by Indian consulate or City Hall is not equivalent to Marriage Certificate.

2. However you can do this in USA which would be treated as valid marriage therein but after coming to India you have to register the marriage under local Marriage Registrar afresh.

3. You can then rely upon the usa marriage paper to waive notice period.

Devajyoti Barman
Advocate, Kolkata
22779 Answers
484 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Marriages between two individuals can be solemnized/registered at the indian embassy under the Foreign Marriage Act, 1969. At least one of the parties to the intended marriage should be a citizen of India and should have resided in the USAfor a period of not less than thirty days immediately preceding the date on which the notice of intended marriage is given to the Marriage Officer at Indian embassy

2) prospective bride and groom need to appear in person before the Marriage Officer along with three (3) witnesses with their valid passports.

They need to submit the prescribed “Notice of Intended Marriage” form duly filled-in and signed by both the parties along with a fee in cash or through crossed postal order drawn in favour of the Indian embassy USAThey are also required to fill-in and sign the prescribed Declaration and Sworn Affidavit. The Declaration needs to be signed by three (3) witnesses in the presence of the Marriage Officer.

They need to publish the “Notice of Intended Marriage” in a widely circulated newspaper in their home country, at the place of permanent residence as indicated in the passports of bride and groom, and in the country or countries in which the parties are ordinarily resident.

A date for solemnization of the marriage is given 30 days after the publication of the Notice and provided no objections are received from any quarter.

A day prior to the date of solemnization of marriage, original passports of the couple and witnesses are required to be submitted to the Marriage Officer.

On the scheduled date, the prospective couple and the three (3) witnesses need to come to the Indian embassy for solemnization of the marriage.

What documents are to be submitted at the HCI prior to the marriage?

Notice of Intended Marriage, prescribed Declaration and Sworn Affidavit.

Four (4) Passport size photos each of the prospective bride and groom.

Photocopy of the valid passport and USA residence visa of the bride or groom, whoever is an Indian national.

Photocopy of the passports of the three (3) witnesses.

The prospective bride and groom and the three (3) witnesses should also carry their original passports for verification at the time of the submission of the Notice.

3) maariage certificate given by Indian embassy would be valid in India

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
94520 Answers
7485 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Marriage will be valid in India in both scenario.

Feel Free to Call

Nadeem Qureshi
Advocate, New Delhi
6307 Answers
302 Consultations

4.9 on 5.0

Hi

You can register your marriage in Indian consulate under Foreign Marriage Act.This will be a valid registered certificate in India as well.

If in case you are chosing to get married through a religious ceremony after that you can aproach the consulate for a certificate.

Both the case the Marriage and certificate are valid in India and all over the world.

If you get married in US court,once you return in India you can apply for Marta certificate based on the one issued by US court.

To register for marriage formalities will be directed by the Indian Consulate in US and the procedure is simple.

Thresiamma G. Mathew
Advocate, Mumbai
1642 Answers
212 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Any marriage solemnised in India is desired to be registered in India on the basis of Indian citizenship, that has to be registered under the Foreign marriages act by following the prescribed procedures laid down in it.

However a marriage certificate obtained in US for the marriage solemnised in US is very much valid in India too.

In my opinion even if your marriage is solemnised in the Indian consulate it is a foreign marriage as far as Indian laws are concerned. You may check this up and confirm.

The provisions of Foreign marriage act, 1969, the following are furnished for your information:

Marriage Officers.—For the purposes of this Act, the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint such of its diplomatic or consular officers as it may think fit to be Marriage Officers for any foreign country. Explanation.—In this section, "diplomatic officer" means an ambassador, envoy, minister, high commissioner, commissioner, charge d' affairs or other diplomatic representative or a counsellor or secretary of an embassy, legation or high commission.

4. Conditions relating to solemnization of foreign marriages.—A marriage between parties one of whom at least is a citizen of India may be solemnized under this Act by or before a Marriage Officer in a foreign country, if, at the time of the marriage, the following conditions are fulfilled, namely:—

(a) neither party has a spouse living,

(b) neither party is an idiot or a lunatic,

(c) the bridegroom has completed the age of twenty one years and the bride the age of eighteen years at the time of the marriage, and

(d) the parties are not within the degrees of prohibited relationship: Provided that where the personal law or a custom governing at least one of the parties permits of a marriage between them, such marriage may be solemnized, notwithstanding that they are within the degree of prohibited relationship.

Besides above, there are other formalities to be followed in this regard.

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
84711 Answers
2172 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1. The Marriage which is solemnized and registered in any foreign country between two Indians (whether or not either of them has NRI status or not is immaterial here) can not give jurisdiction to an Indian court unless and un-till the foreign marriage was duly registered under the Foreign Marriage Act,1969 in any of the foreign country (before the Indian High Commission and or before the Indian Consulate Generals Office as the case is) OR was certified under the Act in that foreign country where it was solemnized OR the marriage was got registered in India by the parties either under the Special Marriage Act,1954 or any other Matrimonial enactment made for the registration of the marriage.

2. Indian courts do recognise the foreign marriage but what lack in instant brief is their adjudicating the matter between the parties if the marriage goes to rocks.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30763 Answers
972 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

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