A number of amendments have been made to existing marriage laws in South Africa in recent months. These changes were meant to have been implemented earlier in the year but were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdown.

The Department of Home Affairs said in a presentation to parliament that they plan to introduce new policy changes that will update South Africa’s marriage laws. The policy will be drafted for public comment before the end of the 2020/2021 financial year, which will be by March 31, 2021.

The changes are all based on constitutional values and modern social dynamics, the department explained in May.

“Despite all the changes that have been made in the marriage legislation post-1994, there are still serious gaps in the current legislation. For instance, the current legislation does not regulate some religious marriages such as the Hindu, Muslim, and other customary marriages that are practised in some African or royal families,” the department said.

“Given the diversity of the South Africa population, it is virtually impossible to pass legislation governing every single religious or cultural marriage practice. It is against this background that the DHA is embarking in the process of developing a marriage policy that will lay a policy foundation for drafting a new single or omnibus legislation.”

The key updates introduced in the new policy include:

– The new Marriage Act will allow South Africans of different sexual orientations, religious and cultural persuasions to legally marry.

– New rules on the age of marriage

– Changes in marriage, matrimonial property, and divorce legislation

– solemnisation and registration of marriages that involve foreign nationals

– solemnisation and registration of customary marriages that involve non-citizens especially cross-border communities or citizens of neighbouring countries

Most recently, President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed the Civil Amendment Act of 2020, making it illegal for state marriage officers and magistrates to refuse to solemnise a civil union between same-sex couples.

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When you tie the knot, you enter into a legally binding agreement. With all the paperwork required, it’s important to do things right the first time to avoid any further legal issues.

All marriages in South Africa must be registered at the Department of Home Affairs. There are three types of marriages that are recognised under South African law: civil marriages, customary marriages and civil unions. Each one has different paperwork requirements, so couples need to know which one they plan to enter into.

If you are planning on having a civil marriage, you must:

– ensure that you are legally allowed to marry

– understand the legal consequences of a marriage, particularly that marriages in South Africa are automatically in community of property, unless a valid ante-nuptial contract has been entered into before the marriage, and

– make sure that your marriage will comply with all the legal requirements for a valid marriage

Should you be unsure of any of these, legal counsel should be sought before the marriage is entered into.

On the day of the marriage, a couple must present the following documents to the person officiating at the wedding:

– Identity documents(for each person getting married)

– If a foreign national is marrying a South African citizen, they should both present their valid passports as well as well as a completed BI-31 Form (Declaration for the Purpose of Marriage, Letter of no impediment)

– If the wedding is for a minor (a person under the age of 18 years), the written consent of both parents/ legal guardian or the Commissioner of Child Welfare or a judge should be submitted on Form DHA-32 as well. If the minors getting married are under the ages of 18 for boys or 15 for girls, the written consent from the Minister of Home Affairs will also be required

– If any of the persons getting married are divorced, then the final decree of divorce should be furnished

– If any of the persons getting married are widowed, the deceased spouse’s death certificate must be submitted.

Marriage certificates

Two witnesses and the marriage officer must sign the marriage register after the solemnisation of a marriage. Then the marriage officer must issue the parties with a handwritten marriage certificate (BI-27) free of charge.

The marriage officer must then submit the marriage register to the nearest office of the Department of Home Affairs, where the marriage details will be recorded in the National Population Register (NPR).

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