Procedure for marriage of Muslims in Dubai

Getting married means starting an entirely new life .Its important to cover all the legal formalities required in a marriage ceremony along with planning a fabulous function. Lets have a look at a few points in this regard.

Islamic Marriage in Dubai

As per the Islamic law, the bride and groom should be UAE residents / have a UAE residency visa. If one of the couple is on a visit visa then he/she must undergo a medical examination in Dubai before the marriage can take place. The marriage can only be conducted in the Marriage Section of Islamic Courts. It’s compulsory that the Groom should be a Muslim, the bride, however can be of any other religion, though it is preferred that she converts to Islamic religion. If the bride is Muslim and the bridegroom is not, an Islamic marriage can take place only if the Groom converts to Islamic religion.

Apart from the Bride and Groom, the bride’s father /his attorney/the bride’s legal guardian and two male Muslim witnesses are to be present in the court.

Documents required for Islamic Marriage

• The bride's and bridegroom's passports, with copies
• Identity documents of the guardian and witnesses
• A UAE nationality document for the bridegroom, if the bride is an Emirati national
• A medical examination certificate from a Dubai hospital, stating that parties are free of infectious diseases
• If the bride's father is dead, a certificate of death or Sharia declaration of his death, made by the bride
• If the bride is divorced or widowed, a decree absolute or certificate of her former husband's death, or other proof. If the divorce was granted by a court, the bride must prove that the divorce is final.
• If the bride’s passport does not hold the name of her father, a copy of her birth certificate is a must.
• If the bride is Muslim and her guardian is non-Muslim, a letter from her embassy or consulate stating that they do not object to the marriage. The letter must also state the bride's marital status and the name of the groom
• The processing fee for the marriage certificate (around 50 AED)

Note: All the above documents should be translated into Arabic by a court approved translator and then attested by the UAE Ministry of Justice and the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

If all the documents satisfy the judge, he legalizes the marriage and issues the marriage certificate. This should also be authenticated by the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Finally, the documents should be taken back to the bride and grooms' embassy(s) to have the certificates sealed for their country(s).

For further information, please contact: Dubai Courts Tel: 04 334 7777 Fax: 04 334 4447 Website: http://www.dubaicourts.gov.ae/