A marriage is a formal and legal union of two individuals who are partners in personal relationship. They stay together and raise their family while being dependent on each other for physical, emotional and psychological needs of theirs. In the UAE, Dubai court marriage are the ones which are validated and hence, one has to comply to the rules of the Dubai Court in order to get married. A marriage certificate is a legal requirement for marriage in Dubai to get validated.
The institution of marriage in UAE has different rules for different nationalities and religions. The marriage in UAE can happen between people residing in UAE. It can also happen when one partner is a resident of UAE and the other one is a visitor or has come on tourist visa.
In this article we will explain how people from various nationalities can get their marriage registered in Dubai courts and what all regulations they have to follow depending upon the religion they belong to.
Dubai Court Marriage rules for different religions-
- Non-Muslim Couple-for non-Muslim couples. The first and foremost requirement is the residence visas. The marriage laws that are applicable in-home country is also applicable in UAE. Some countries mandate the application for marriage in the respective consulates at least 2 months before the marriage date in UAE. Therefore, it becomes a necessity to consult the consulate of one’s country before applying for the marriage to understand and assure that the requirements are met and all the documentary things are sorted. The consulates in UAE of different countries also conduct the marriages however, they conduct the marriage for people who belong to the same nationality.
- Christian marriage- for Christian marriage the church should be registered and recognized by the Dubai Courts. Also, the priest of the church should give a go-ahead for the marriage as some allow the marriage of their own folks. The single status of the bride, groom, or both must be submitted. If the church confirms that the single status is required then it has to be drafted and witnessed by the authorized person/body. The main church where Christian weddings are held is the Christ Church in Jabel Ali. The bride and groom should be non-Muslim and they should be above 18 years of age. Either of them should also be baptized. The fees for the ceremony have to be asked from the church. The documents required for marriage has to be submitted (if applicable) like passports, visa, baptism certificate, single status certificate, divorce certificate, death certificate, 2 witnesses and their passports who are above 18 yrs. of age. Once the application is approved, the marriage certificate is granted and it is stamped by the notary public in Dubai Courts. The document then has to be attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This is then translated to Arabic and then both English and Arabic documents are to be stamped by the Ministry of Justice. To ensure that the marriage is valid in-home country as well the documents might require authentication by the respective consulate or embassy as well.
- Hindu Marriage- The Hindu marriage is conducted in a Hindu temple in Dubai in concurrence with the Indian Consulate and are recognized by the UAE courts. The requirement, in this case, is that both bride and groom should be Hindu and should hold the residence visa of the UAE. the documents needed can be confirmed from the Indian consulate and the process after the marriage certificate after the ceremony should follow the same procedure as that of Christian marriages mentioned in point no 2.
- Islamic marriages- The Islamic marriages are conducted under the Sharia law. The law is applicable under provisions when both the bride and the groom are Muslims or where the groom is a Muslim and the bride is from another religion. The law permits a Muslim man to marry a non-Muslim woman but it doesn’t allow a Muslim woman to marry a non-Muslim man unless he is converted to Islam. The Muslim woman have to have a guardian present in the marriage who is usually her father and two witnesses present in the marriage. If the father is no more, then the death certificate has to be presented along with the closest guardian who is male. In case none of the guardian is available be it for any reason, then the judge may act as the guardian.
Pre-marital screening test is a must for all wedding in the UAE. There are 25 health centres who have the authority to conduct these tests. The validity of these tests is 3 months and the documents required are copy of passports and valid Emirates ID and 3 coloured passport sized photographs.
To know more about the latest rules and regulations regarding marriage of different nationalities and religions in UAE, contact the lawyers at Dubai Court Marriage.
