A marriage affidavit is used to prove the union between a married couple. It is a proof of declaration that is made by a person to prove that he/she are married.

The 2006 Supreme Court’s judgement of Justices Arijit Pasayat and S H Kapadia in a 14-page judgment regarding compulsory registration of marriages, has made marriage registration compulsory. In order to register your marriage under the court of law, one requires a marriage affidavit. The marriage affidavit must be sworn before a Notary.

The procedure for registering a marriage in India is complete once you get your marriage certificate. Marriage Registration is carried out under either the Special Marriage Act, 1954, the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 or the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act, 1936. The Special Marriage Act applies to all residents of India in terms of religion, caste, dialect, etc.

Why Do You Need A Marriage Affidavit?

A marriage affidavit is a sworn document  by one or two members, stating that these details are correct to his/her knowledge, and that, it proves the validity of ones marriage. According to the Hindu Marriage Act, 1954, all benefits after marriage pertaining to property and legal matters can be availed only after the marriage is registered.

What Is A Joint Marriage Affidavit?

A joint affidavit is a joint statement sworn by husband and wife, after marriage, stating the date and place of their marriage including the law under which the marriage was registered. A joint affidavit should state the full names and addresses of the parents of both the parties. In certain cases after a person has changed his/her name after marriage, a joint affidavit shall also state the new name of the spouse that is going to be replaced with the old name.

A joint marriage affidavit must be printed on a non-judicial stamp paper and a marriage photograph of the couple must be affixed to the bottom of the affidavit. This photograph must be attested by a judicial magistrate or notary public.

This can also help you apply for a passport after marriage, open a bank account, claim succession rights of a property, seek legal custody of child at the time separation, etc.  

There are several reasons why you may need to draft a marriage affidavit – and there are also different types of marriage affidavits.

You can submit a joint affidavit for registering marriage or you could try to submit an affidavit which is done individually, making registration regarding marriage. However, few states in India required a single applicant over a joint affidavit for marriage. If a joint affidavit cannot be done, an affidavit sworn by a single entity needs to be made in order to state the reasons behind it.

How To Get A Marriage Affidavit?

If you wish to create your own single or joint affidavit to get your marriage registered, let Support Team at  LegalDesk assist you. Let us know about your requirements. We have several pre-drafted affidavit templates that can be used.

For enquiries, please call:

080-46682600

And if you are a woman planning to change your last name, then it would be worth going through our guide on name change after marriage.