What Does it Mean if You were Married Without a Marriage License?
Getting married without a marriage license can mean that your marriage is null and void.
A marriage licence is required by the State to ensure that the persons getting married can validly do so. A marriage license is a requirement for most marriages to be valid, except in very limited situations.
A common question is whether you can remarry immediately if you were previously married without a marriage licence. I answer this question in depth as well.
Contents
- What is a marriage license?
- Where is a marriage license obtained?
- Do you always need a marriage license?
- What if you were required to get a marriage license, but you were married without one?
- If your marriage is null and void for lack of a marriage license, was never valid, can you therefore marry someone else straight away?
- What should you do if you were married without a marriage license and you want to remarry?
What is a marriage license?
First of all, what is a marriage license?
It is one of the formal requisites of marriage. It is a legal requirement for getting validly married in the Philippines.
A marriage license represents the authority to enter a contract of marriage. This is granted to the couple by the State only after the proper government official has inquired into their capacity.
You are generally not allowed to get married in the Philippines unless you have obtained a marriage license.
Where is a marriage license obtained?
A marriage license is applied for and obtained from the local civil registrar of the city or municipality where one of the prospective spouses lives.
Both the man and the woman have to submit certain documents before they can be issued a marriage license. These include the sworn application for the marriage license, their birth certificates, and a certification from their embassy if one of them is a foreign citizen.
It takes time for a marriage license to be obtained because the law requires that an application for one should be posted publicly for ten days before the license is issued.
Do you always need a marriage license?
You usually need a marriage license to get married, but not always.
A marriage license is not required in a few situations. These include a marriage when one of the parties is at the point of death. Or a marriage where the couple has, for at least five years, actually lived together as husband and wife without any legal obstacle to their marrying each other.
But, in most other situations, a marriage license is indispensable. Its absence is fatal to the marriage.
What if you were required to get a marriage license, but you were married without one?
What if you were married without a marriage license?
For example, what if you had falsely claimed that you and your intended husband had already lived together for five years and were thus exempted from the marriage license requirement?
What is the status of that marriage?
The absence of a marriage license makes that marriage null and void from the beginning.
That marriage was never valid in the first place. This means that the children born of this null and void marriage are illegitimate. The marriage’s community property will be subject to dissolution and distribution between the spouses.
If your marriage is null and void for lack of a marriage license, was never valid, can you therefore marry someone else straight away?
No. Even if you were married without a marriage license, even if the marriage is null and void as a result, you don’t get to just decide that your marriage doesn’t exist and that you can thus marry again without further ado.
You first need to file a case in court. Only the court has the power to declare your marriage void for purposes of remarriage.
If you are in a null and void marriage, the law requires that you first get a court declaration of nullity before you can marry someone else.
If you don’t — If, before first getting this court declaration, you instead get married a second time, then the second marriage will also be null and void.
Not only that, by getting married before a court ruled your previous marriage void, you can be prosecuted for bigamy under Philippine law.
What should you do if you were married without a marriage license and you want to remarry?
If you want to remarry, then you have to file a court case for declaration of nullity of marriage with the Family Court.
This is a court trial, so you’ll need a lawyer to prepare your case, to prepare the witnesses, and present evidence to the court. Documents have to be prepared and proof has to be submitted.
You yourself should ideally testify in court, along with other witnesses needed to prove that 1) a marriage license was required in your case; and 2) no such marriage license was issued to the couple.
Proving these requires digging into the facts. You have to put persons on the witness stand who are in a position to know these facts, such as the civil registrar and other witnesses who can testify to the documents and to the facts of the wedding.
If these are proven with enough evidence then the court can rule for the dissolution of the marriage.
Only after that, and after the court’s judgment is recorded at the civil registry, should you remarry.
I planned a surprise wedding and got a solemnizing officer on the same day of the wedding. The ceremony took place in Binangonan, Rizal while on the Marriage Cert, it says the place of marriage is at the office of the solemnizing officer in Quiapo, Manila. The marriage certificate also states that no marriage license is needed as it is being solemnized under Art 34 of EO no. 209. My wife left me a few months after our wedding in 2012, and I have no communication or any idea where she is located. Is my marriage null and void? If so, do I need to file a case in court to declare the nullity?
Hello, thank you for sharing your story. Base in your circumstances it may not be automatically null and void. We need further information to establish appropriate legal action. We will be sending an email to you, kindly check your inbox.
i was married to my husband last oct.2012 in a civil wedding w/o a marriage license due to art. 34 EO no.209 stating that the license is not needed if both parties is living together for more than 5yrs. i was not informed about this excemption ksi ung tita ng husband ko na nag wowork sa Quezon city government nag asikaso ng wedding namin. sa saudi kami nagkakilala year 2009 first deployment ko abroad as an ofw. we became bf and gf year 2011. nagkasama kami sa bahay almost 1 year lang before our wedding. so is it possible na null & void wedding namin? i’ve been married for 12yrs then 2023 pinalayas nya ako sa bahay namin. i suffered from psychological/emotional abuse since ng ikinasala kmi, i thought magbabago sya after namin magkaron ng 2 kids, pero its like a cycle, he is a narcissistic. he would even shout at me infront of our children inside the car then he would drive like a drug racer na parang kulang nalang ibangga nya ung sasakyan, he even isolated me sa family ko, i was not able to see them and celebrate special occasions ksi ayaw nya. he would even call me and my mother bad names like “hayup” he would even curse me and my mother repeatedly. so when he told me na magsamasama kami ng nanay ko and kapatid ko, magsama sama daw kami mga hayup kami, sa harap ng mga anak namin, thats the time i decided na baka sign na tlga na need ko umalis sa ganung toxic na relasyon, pero sobrang sakit sakin kasi naiwan ko mga anak ko, nag empake ako from 8am-3pm pero never nya ko pinigilan, ipinasok pa nya mga bata sa room para hindi ako makita umalis. now that iam working abroad he sent me a demand letter na ginawa daw ng atty nya which i doubt ksi magaling sya sa mga ganyng corporate letters. demanding 40k for child support. and base on my counting hindi ganyan kataas gastos ng mga bata nung magkasama kmi. and bakit ako lahat? diba dapat hati kami? really need ur help po
Hello, thank you for reaching out to us. Your situation is very concerning, and we will need further information about your case and your legal objectives in order to establish the appropriate legal action.
We offer legal consultations either in person or online, depending on your preference. The fee is 2,500 per 30 minutes.
We will send you a direct message via email with the details, so kindly check your inbox. Thank you.
Hello in my kids birth certificate I declared that I was married to their Dad, gave date of marriage and where it was took place where in fact there was no existing marriage. I also have a cenomar and there was no record the said marriage. What can I do about it?
In your situation, you need to file a petition for judicial correction of your children’s birth certificate to remove the false marriage declaration. It is important to know that this cannot be corrected through administrative means because it involves a substantial change in civil status.
Good day po! We got married on May 18, 2018, but the date on the marriage certificate is June 11, 2018. I inquired to the Civil Registry about the validity of the marriage license, and it was listed under my spouse’s name. Pero we never attended any seminars, we never personally processed the application for the marriage license. My mother in law hired a fixer in order for us to obtain one. May pinafill up lang po sakin na papel sa bahay and told me to sign. I was also 21 years old by that time and I got married without my father’s consent, my mother knows pero I don’t think she has provided a signed and written document giving her consent for me to marry. Can I also add those to my argument when I file a court case? Please help
Yes, you can raise those points you have mentioned when filing a case. But the court decides whether these are sufficient grounds for annulment or other remedies. It is best for you to consult a lawyer that can assess whether your situation fits annulment grounds.
Do we really need to postpone the scheduled ceremony and wedding date since the marriage license is still in process and won’t arrive before our wedding date, or is there a way to proceed with the ceremony (garden) as planned and sign the marriage license once it’s processed?
You must have the marriage license before the ceremony if you want the marriage to be legally valid. A valid marriage is a formal requisite. Without it, the marriage is considered void, meaning in the eyes of the law, you were never married at all.
Good day! My mother taught she is married with another person, since my grandma requested it before letting her leave for Japan. My mom and the person she married never lived together. Recently my mom requested a Certificate of no Marriage in PSA. The first result they gave to my mother is that she is not married, but after requesting another copy of it they gave her a different result. The second is that she is married to that person. My mom requested a Certificate of Marriage, but both PSA and the City of San Juan, do not have a Certificate of my mother supposed marriage. However, the reason why PSA issued that my mother is married, as per them, is because she is recorded as married to this person on their data. Can my mom request to have her marital status as Single? Since the man is already married with another person (that has a marriage certificate).
You cannot simply request to delete a record change. Once a marriage is encoded in the system, it is presumed to exist. To change her status back to single, she needs a court order. In this case, it requires a judicial petition in court. You will be needing a lawyer to guide you through this petition.
Greetings!
Attorney, I would like to ask your knowledge about my marriage. We got married August 10, 2019 through a Christian Wedding. We had signed marriage contract with both of our parents and principal sponsors. However, we intentionally did not register our marriage contract because during that time, my partner was under his petition to the US and he must remain single in documents otherwise his father won’t be able to petition him. It was our mutual decision not to file it. We welcomed our son the following year. In his birth certificate he was declared illegitimate since we have no marriage contract to show. During the pandemic, his petition papers was halt ,so we just patiently waited of what is about to happen. Unfortunately, his father died in 2023. Thus the petition was already impossible. This year we would like to make our marriage legal. Would there’s still be a possibility that we can still use our marriage contract even though one of the signatories in the document is dead already? Can we still file for late registration? Thank you for your immediate response, atty. God bless
Yes, it is possible to file for late registration, but there are specific legal hurdles you must clear. First is the validity of the marriage contracts. The fact that one of the signatories, the father, passed away does noy invalidate the contract. What matters is that the parties you and your partner and the solemnizing officer were all present and signed at the time of the wedding. Since it has been several years, you cannot simply drop it off at the city hall. You must follow the rules set by the PSA for delayed registration.
Should the validity of a marriage be questioned if a marriage license was not obtained as legally required? What are the potential consequences for couples who failed to follow this legal process before getting married?
A Philippine Annulment would be possible depending on the situation, as a marriage license is a formal requirement to a vaid marriage.
Being married without a marriage license is thus not valid.
I married was in my babtismal name and I used since elementary and college then I discovered that is not my real name according to my birth certificate and when I took a CENOMAR I am not married and I’m separated for 18 years now can I marry again thru my real name according to my birth certificate?
There are a several nuances to your case.
?You said you are married to your ex but you also said when you requested a CENOMAR it shows that you are single. If your name in your baptismal is what you used to get married to your ex and the name on your birth certificate that you used to get a cenomar are different from each other, you will surely get different results. Can you confirm which name did you use to request a cenomar? Was it your baptismal name or your birth certificate name??
2. Since you want to remarry with your current partner, there is a risk of making it bigamous if your marriage with your ex is not yet annulled. Using different names to get married may only put you to more legal risk.
If a couple was legally required to obtain a marriage license before getting married, but failed to do so, what are the legal implications of their marriage? Can they rectify the situation and legalize their union, or are there potential consequences for being married without the proper documentation?
If they are required a marriage license and still get married without one, the marriage is void from the beginning. If it is already registered with the PSA, it must be declared void by filing a petition for declaration of nullity of marriage in court.
Is it okay to have the wedding ceremony first while waiting for the release of marriage license?
No, you cannot legally have a wedding ceremony before the release of the marriage license because it is a mandatory prerequisite for most marriages under the law. If you proceed without a marriage license, the ceremony may look valid socially, but legally it will not be recognized. This can cause serious issues later.
Greetings! Can i ask if we need a marriage license to get married if we are already living together as husband and wife for more than 5 years? Thank you
If you and your partner have lived together as husband and wife for more than 5 years, and there are no legal impediments, you do not need a marriage license. You only need to execute a joint affidavit and have the marriage solemnized properly as long as you meet the condition. Just to make sure as well, coordinate with the Local Civil Registrar and seek there advise.
Got married without a marriage license. Solemnized by the Baptist Church. The marriage was never registered to the Local Civil Registry or anywhere else. Do you still need to nullify such?
Yes. Particularly for purposes of remarriage, you cannot decide by yourself that the marriage is null and void. A court case and a court decision to this effect is necessary.
What if the marriage license was already filled up by somebody and it’s not your handwritten but you’ve forced to signed it because you don’t have any family members during that day to help you.
The marriage may consider void and null under Philippine law. Consent must be voluntary and given in the presence of the officiant. You should consult a lawyer immediately to assess your legal options.
got a marriage certificate without a liscense number because I let the agent process my papers, but I already got a copy of My marriage certificate at the PSA, my question is can I get liscense number even is it too late?.
If the license number is missing because of clerical error, you can request a correction of entry at the LCR. The LCR will verify the records and annotate your PSA certificate with the correct license number. If no license was ever issued because the agent mishandled the process, the marriage may be questionable in validity. In that case, you may need legal advice to confirm whether the marriage is valid or voidable.
Article 34 – No license shall be necessary for the marriage of a man and a woman who have lived together as husband and wife for at least five (5) years and without any legal impediment to marry each other.
Kahit po ba meron na neto sa batas considered as NULL or VOID padin ang marriage without license?
It is not null and void if it falls under one of the exceptions to the marriage license requirement.
What if po nag sinungaling lang na 5 years na nagsasama kahit hindi, void pa din or hindi?
Hi. The marriage cannot be automatically void, but the circumstances can be a support of a legal grounds for annulment or nullity of marriage.
Hello,
I filed a petition for declaration of nullity on the ground of lack of marriage license. I did not pray for the custody of the child since the respondent/ father is out of the country and the child has been with my client/ mother since birth. The respondent did not participate in the trial and cannot be located. The petition for nullity was granted but the court did not order the amendment of the birth cert of the child who is 17 years old. I filed a motion to issue a decree of declaration of absolute nullity and also a motion to issue an order amending the birth cert from legitimate to illegitimate, and to order custody to my client. The court did not resolve the motion but issued the decree of declaration, however refused to issue the order to amend and give custody of the child. They said that I need to file a separate petition for it. Which I think is moot and academic in view of A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC. I plan to file a motion to resolve the previous motion with regards to the order to amend and as well to issue an order for my client to have sole custody of the child. I am a new lawyer but I think the court is wrong to refuse resolve the motion and issue the orders I prayed for.
This looks like a sound argument, but it may require an appeal if the court is not swayed. You may also consider whether the civil registry will annotate the birth certificates of the children with a note of the court decision without need of a further order. This may depend on whether the children were identified in the court records and decision.
But keep in mind that lawyers’ opinions, including this, are just that while the court’s issuances are rulings.
Hello I was 24 and he was 33 my parent didn’t sign parent consent for our wedding. We both. Protestant but the offiiciating ministry was a priest. We don’t have cenomar, no seminar and no married license.
The withness have no name only signature, our parent has no middle name. My address was different
from my real address.
We get merried in resort. But the merriage certificate shows different place… But we have now married Certificate with out license number.
I don’t want to come to him because he abuse me and the children.
What should I do?
What chould I do?
Thank you .
Based on your story, you raised many grounds potential for void marriage. You have no marriage license, which generally void. Lack of parental consent, technically, you no need for it since the age required for this ground is 18-21. Irregularities in the certificate may be legally invalid and fraudulent. Officiating outside your church’s authority may be another potential ground for nullity. The immediate action you can do is to seek a family lawyer to help you address this concern.
I married with my husband we only have a marriage contract but we have no marriages license our marriage is valid?and that time we both not in legal age
If you and your husband did not secure a marriage license, your marriage is generally considered void from the beginning. You do not need annulment, instead, you may file a petition for declaration of nullity of marriage to formally establish that the marriage is invalid.
Hello Atty, would like to ask if their is possibility n my marriage license n nklgay s marrige certificate, but ung license n yon ay hndi valid at hndi nkapangalan smen, possible po kaya un? Than you po
If the marriage license that you used to get married is not correct and in fact names two different persons, your marriage is void. You need to file for a declaration of nullity of marriage in court to fix that.
Greetings! Is it okay to have a wedding ceremony while processing the marriage license. for my end, we would like to get married on July 11, but our registration will only available on July 17. Thank you
No, you cannot validly marry without a marriage license except in very specific circumstances.
My friend’s ex-GF got pregnant when they were both under 18 years old. With parental consent/supervision, they performed a civil marriage ceremony with a city mayor back then. Under the impression that he was already married before, he asked for a marriage certificate recently in PSA but they found no record of their marriage which happened around 2007. He is puzzled now if their marriage was really considered legal or due to their age so it was considered null from the start that is why it was never registered to PSA.
We cannot speak for why a record was not submitted to the PSA.
we are 78 years old and would like to be married, however we would like to keep our wealth separate to insure that our children receive the wealth we accumulated with a former spose at the time of our death. we both have trust and trustees. is there anything else we need to do to ensure this? .maybe a prenup or a Christian certificate instead of a license?
certi
A prenuptial agreement fixing an absolute separation of property as your marital property regime.
Avoiding a marriage license is not a good idea for this.
What if we filed for marriage license, but ceremony will start before the license is to be issued. will there be any concern on that?
That would be a void and invalid marriage.
Hello Atty, may I ask if application for marriage license must be done by both parties? and can a marriage be solemnized even without parents consent as they’re both 21 above? Thank you
Parental consent is not necessary when someone is over 21 years of age.
Yes, the marriage license must be applied for by both parties.
How long and how much would it cost to file for the declaration of nullity of marriage for marriage which are null and void from the beginning due to lack of marriage license?
We would have to check the facts of your case, but perhaps a year or two in normal circumstances.
My wedding is on Dec 3, the marriage license will be released on November 11, will there be concern with the validity of our marriage ? Also we filed it sa makati, pero yung ceremony is on San juan.
A marriage license is valid for 120 days anywhere in the Philippines.
Hello Atty .I would like to ask if a marriage license must be obtained for a couple who are cohabitating for more than 5 years but are below 20 years old at the beginning of their cohabitation? Thank You and God Bless You
Yes. They must have been capacitated to marry for that entire time.
I got married at the age of 20 and I dont know about marriage license but I have a PSA copy of our marriage certificate. Will that be considered null or void if I file a legal separation? How to determine if I have marriage license?
If you have the PSA issued marriage certificate, that means that your marriage was registered with the civil registrar. The marriage license number also indicate in it. If your marriage truly had no license and no valid exemptions, it may be considered void. In that case, the proper remedy is a petition for declaration of nullity, not legal separation.
Hi Atty. I would like to ask if we falsely declared that we are living for 5 yrs before getting married to hasten our marriage, and wala pong marriage license na binigay, can it be used as ground for nullification or our marriage? Thank you po.
Yes. Such a marriage can be declared null and void if it is proved that the 5 year period was not really complied with.
Hello atty. I would like to ask if tbe marriage contract is not registred on 2 years. And the is died. Wolluld it be possible to file late registration for marriage contract. Thank you for asnwering. Godbless you po.
This is best addressed to the local civil registrar and the PSA.
My marriage was annulled in Valenzuela City Regional Trial Court, my marriage was done in Quezon City, I already received the certified true copy of Certificate of Finality. Whats the next step?
The court decision has to be registered with the local civil registrars and with the Philippine Statistics Authority.
Hello, I have question, Mali po ba or invalid ba Ang kasal na August 1 lumabas yung marriage license then on that day ngpakasal na rin kaagad
Kasi paalis na po yung isa sa ibang bansa. So Ang nangyari August 1 din Ang marriage ceremony.
If the marriage license was released on August 1, and the wedding ceremony was held on the same day, that is still valid. The important thing is that the license was already issued before the ceremony took place. The fact that one party was leaving for abroad does not affect the validity, as long as all legal requirements were met.
Greetings! Sa marriage certificate ng aking pamangkin,- a seafarer ang date of marriage was May 28,2015. And date or registration qas June 23, 2015. During Dec 2014-August 2015, nasa barko po sya. Nakatatak po sa passport nya na hindi po sya bumaba ng barko ng May 2015. Accng sa pamangkin ko ang wife po nya ang nag process nito noon. Legal po ba ang kasal kahit wlang seremonya?
It would not be a valid marriage, but a court case is necessary to declare the marriage void.
Good day Ma’am/Sir.
I would like to inquire regarding my stepfathers case, he and my mother was married last year. Someone said that the marriage was null/void due to lack/improper documentation. Since void daw po ito ano po need po namin gawin? Tinignan ko po sa US embassy website need daw po nito
“Certificate of Legal Capacity to Contract Marriage”, para daw po maging eligible na magpakasal. Since na kasal na po sila ano po need namin gawin na solution Para po maging valid po yung kasal nila? I hope po mabasa niyo po ito.
Your quick response is highly appreciated.
Thank you po and God bless.
We’d need to know why it would be void. We’ll be happy to go over the facts of this case if you can fill out our full form for this on https://lawyerphilippines.org/
Thank you.
Greetings! Can i ask what is the process of filling a nullity of marriage. We have a marriage certificate but we don’t have a marriage license. And now i have a new life i want to remarry but how and how long is the process
We would need to know more about the facts of the case. We will be happy to respond to specifics through our form on https://lawyerphilippines.org/
Good day,where can we get the Certificate of legal Capacity to contract marriage?Is it one of the Philippine required for US citizens to get married a Filipina?
Yes. This is typically an affidavit executed by a US citizen at the US embassy. Check this with the local civil registrar from which you intend to apply for a marriage license.