Civil marriage

REQUIREMENTS & FORMALITIES FOR A CIVIL MARRIAGE CEREMONY IN KUWAIT

For those couples desirous of having a civil marriage the requirements and formalities are as follows :-

• The Civil marriage ceremony between two non-Muslims is conducted at the office of the Public Notary at the Ministries Complex, Ground Floor, Block No:15 on Sundays and Wednesdays from 7.00 A.M. to 12.00 Noon.
• Two MALE witnesses are required to accompany the couple.
• The family name of the witnesses should not be the same as that of the couple.
• The couple is to take the "Free to Marry" affidavit form on which your signatures are to be notarized by the Consul of your Country's Embassy and attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait. This form should be presented to the Public Notary at the time of the ceremony.
• There is a fee to be paid for each copy of the Marriage Contract.
• The Civil Marriage Contract has to be attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait for the Embassy of your country to counter attest the same. Since the Civil Marriage Contract is issued in Arabic, it is recommended that the same be translated officially and the translation too be attested by the Embassy of your Country.
• The above requirements are subject to change and so it is recommended that you first approach the Office of the Public Notary to determine all the requirements and documentation needed before you plan on obtaining a Civil Marriage Contract.

Note:

Civil Marriage Contracts can be drawn up even at the embassy of your country. Rules and requirements for these are different in each embassy and we therefore recommend that you contact your embassy directly for information regarding the procedure.