Court Marriage in Nepal | Marriage Registration in Nepal: Executive Summary with Latest Updates Till November 2023 – Exclusive 3 Mins Read

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Updated: November 30, 2023

Court marriage or marriage registration or civil marriage (sometimes informally also referred as ‘Paper Marriage’ or ‘contract marriage’) is a legal process of marriage registration in Nepal. In this process, the marrying couple appears before a competent court having jurisdiction and signs on the marriage register (book) maintained by the court, in front of a judge.

With the implementation of the ‘Muluki National Civil Code’ in 2017, new legal provisions regarding marriage have been enacted & enforced. After the implementation of this code, marriages are registered in a district court in Nepal. There are currently 77 district courts, and applicants may register marriage in any of the courts, depending on their residence or convenience.

Section 70 of the Muluki Civil Code lists the following criterias for a man and a woman to get married.

1. Both man and woman must accept each other as wife and husband.
2. Marrying couple must not be in blood relation such that they can be punished for incest.
3. Both man and woman must be unmarried or single or divorced.
4. Both man and woman must have completed 20 years in age.

However, the law has created a reservation for the caste (tribe) where it is culturally acceptable to marry one’s relatives.

Court Marriage in Nepal is executed as per the legal provision mentioned in Section 77 of the Muluki Civil Code. For the purpose of this article, ‘man’ and ‘woman’ are collectively referred as ‘Applicants’.

The process for the Court Marriage or Marriage Registration is very simple and straightforward. An application can be filed in the District Court of the respective district where the Applicants reside. The law requires Man or Woman or both Applicants to have stayed at least 15 days in the respective district where the application is being filed. In case if Applicants are outside Nepal , they can apply in the respective Nepali Embassy or Consulate. If Applicants are outside Nepal, they must demonstrate that they have stayed at least 15 days in the Country where the application is being filed. [However, due to lack of the procedural directives, the Nepali Embassies in foreign countries have still not initiated the marriage registration process.]

Information Required for Court Marriage in Nepal:

• Details of Applicants – Full name; address; occupation; father’s and mother’s name; grandfather’s and grandmother’s name; citizenship number and place of issue; details about previous marriage/divorce (not required for persons never married before).
• Details of all witnesses – Full name; address; age; citizenship number and place of issue.

Documents Required from Nepali Citizens for Court Marriage in Nepal:

• Duly filled and signed application form in the prescribed format [Prepared by an Attorney].
• Consensus paper in the prescribed format [Prepared by an Attorney].
• Recommendation letter from local ward office for temporary residence. This is only required if the application is being filed in a different district other than the district of permanent residence [Issued by the Local Government].
• Unmarried or single status recommendation letter issued from the local government. This is required for both the Applicants [Issued by the respective Ward Office of the Applicants].
• Original citizenship of the Applicants.
• Original citizenship of two witnesses.
• Passport sized photographs of Applicants.
• Court fee deposited bank voucher equivalent to NPR 500.

For foreign citizen(s) willing to perform a Court Marriage in Nepal, the following documents are needed:

• No Objection Certificate/ Unmarried or Single Affidavit/ or any other document provided by the respective government or embassy or consulate stating the eligibility of the applicant to get married in Nepal. If a document is issued by a foreign government, such documents must be attested by the competent authority like Ministry of Foregin Affairs. This must be translated in to Nepali language and attested by a Notary public.
• An excerpt of the marriage law of respective country. This must be translated in Nepali language and attested by a Nepali Notary public.
• Passport and valid visa issued by the Government of Nepal. This must be attested by a Nepali Notary public.

Registration Process:

Applicants and all witnesses must appear at the District Court (in case if applicants are in Nepal); or the Embassy or Consulate of Nepal (in case if applicants are abroad), and register the application along with the required documents. After that applicants must appear before the judge or consulate general and sign in the log book (marriage register). At the end of the process, Applicants shall receive one ‘Certificate of Marriage Registration’. The whole process can take from 1 to 2 days depending on the district court.

Advantages of Court Marriage in Nepal:

• The entire process is fast and saves time. In some cases, the whole process can be completed in a single day.
• Cost effective. Since it’s a formal registration done in a court of law.
• Court marriage is legally accepted and enforceable in foreign countries. Very convenient for visa processing or submitting to foreign countries.
• No additional limitations. As long as the requirements stated above are met, applicants don’t have to worry about social or family affairs. Court marriage is especially favorable for inter-caste or inter religious marriages.
• A marriage registration certificate is issued by the respective District court at the end of the process.
• Online verification of the marriage registration is possible.
• Smart move due to fewer invitees. Especially after the post Covid-19 pandemic where mass gathering is risky let alone prohibited.

Why Choose Chintan Law Associates?

We are the leading if not the No. 1 law firms representing hundreds of domestic and foreign clients for marriage registration. We have been practicing court marriage from the beginning and have very experienced attorneys who personally handle our clients. Our clients are pre-informed about the process, which reduces last moment surprises, and increases our success rate to a 99.9%. As we enjoy being on top of the game, we ensure highest quality of professionalism, maintain full confidentiality of or about our clients and offer affordable service fees.  

To gain more details on Court Marriage in Nepal or Marriage Registration in Nepal – Get in touch with us by e-mail at info@lawchintan.com or call us at +977 1 5364011 or +977 9851133809.

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Watch these YouTube videos posted on Court Marriage in Nepal:

Court Marriage in Nepal: What’s New in 2022?? Let’s Talk!! – YouTube

सर्वोच्च अदालत नेपाल (supremecourt.gov.np)

Learn about divorce process instead? Divorce in Nepal – Exclusive 3 Mins Read – Chintan Law Associates (lawchintan.com)