Description
A
marriage certificate serves as proof that you are married. A
marriage must be conducted in the presence of the people getting
married, two witnesses in possession of their identity documents
and a marriage officer.
Verify your marital status online.
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Steps to follow
- People getting married must have identity documents and a
completed BI-31.
- Complete application form BI-130 at any Home Affairs office.
Apply at the South African embassy or mission if you live
abroad.
- A marriage can be formalised by a chosen marriage officer from
a specific religious group or organisation or a representative of
the Department of Home Affairs.
- Marriage must be conducted in a church, a building used for
religious purposes only, a public office or a private house. If
someone about to get married is severely hurt or sick, that
marriage may be conducted in a hospital.
- Foreign nationals getting married in South Africa must have
valid passports and a completed application form BI-31.
- The two people getting married, two witnesses and the marriage
officer must sign the Marriage Register immediately after the
marriage has been formalised.
Marriage of minors:
Minors are persons under 21 years who have never been married
before. According to the law, those who have been
married before and had their marriage later dissolved by death
or divorce, are no longer minors.
Minors must:
- Submit written approval of both parents and/or legal guardian
with a completed application form BI-32. Minors may apply for
approval at the Commissioner of Child Welfare if parent(s) cannot
be found or do not know how to approve a marriage.
- A minor may apply for approval with a Judge of the High Court
in the area he or she lives if the parents and or the Commissioner
refuse to approve the marriage.
Divorced people who want to get married again must produce a
divorce order. Submit an affidavit if there is a valid reason why
you cannot produce a divorce order or have been divorced in a
foreign country and you cannot obtain it. The affidavit must state
that the applicant is legally divorced, the name of the court and
the date of divorce.
Widowed people who want to get married again must produce the
late spouse’s death certificate. Submit an affidavit if the death
certificate is not available. The affidavit must confirm the name
of the deceased spouse and date of death.
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Legal framework
(Documents are provided in PDF
format. To open PDF documents, you need to have
Adobe Acrobat Reader 4 or higher installed on
your computer.)
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Service standard
- Abridged marriage certificate: Issued same time.
- An unabridged certificate: Applications may take 6 to 8
weeks.
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Cost
- Abridged marriage certificate: R15
- An unabridged marriage certificate: R70
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Forms to complete
(Documents are provided in PDF
format. To open PDF documents, you need to have
Adobe Acrobat Reader 4 or higher installed on
your computer.)
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Contact details
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