Planning · October 2026

Court Marriage in India: The Process, the Real Fees State by State, the Documents and What Is Actually Legal

Search for court marriage and you get agents' prices and very little law. This guide is built from the Special Marriage Act 1954 as it stands on India Code, the Hindu Marriage Act, the Supreme Court's rulings and the fee pages of six state registrars, read in October 2026. Two things first: a court marriage never happens in a courtroom, and the government's fee for it is a few rupees, not a few thousand.

The process, step by step

The process. 'Court marriage' means a civil marriage solemnised by a Marriage Officer under the Special Marriage Act. Either of you must have lived for 30 days in the district. You give written notice to the Marriage Officer, the SDM or ADM in Delhi, the Sub-Registrar in Karnataka and Maharashtra. The notice goes up on the office board for 30 days, and a copy is sent to the home district of a partner who lives elsewhere. Anyone may object in those 30 days, but only on the grounds in section 4: age, a living spouse, unsound mind or a prohibited relationship. After the 30 days, both of you and three witnesses sign the declaration, each of you says 'I take thee to be my lawful wife or husband', and the certificate is entered the same day. Marry within three months of the notice or file again.

Who can use it

Who can use it. Any two adults: no religion test, no caste test, no conversion, no parental consent. The man must be 21 and the woman 18, neither may have a living spouse, and you may not be within the prohibited degrees unless your custom permits. Inter-faith and inter-caste couples use this route, and so do same-faith couples who simply want a civil marriage. The Act does not require Indian citizenship, except in Jammu and Kashmir.

The real fees, state by state

The real fees. Delhi's Revenue Department lists ₹15 to solemnise a Special Marriage Act marriage, ₹100 to register a Hindu Marriage Act wedding and ₹200 under its 2014 compulsory-registration order, with ₹10,000 extra for tatkal registration in 24 hours. Maharashtra charges ₹100 to apply and ₹150 to solemnise at the office, ₹1,000 elsewhere, plus ₹25 for the certificate; registering a religious wedding is ₹50 within 90 days, ₹100 within a year, ₹200 after. Karnataka's state rules put the notice at ₹3 and solemnisation at ₹10, and a memorandum to register a religious wedding at ₹10. Uttar Pradesh registers a wedding online for ₹10, ₹50 a year late. Haryana charges ₹100 within 90 days, ₹150 within a year and ₹200 after to register a wedding; its Special Marriage Act fee is not published online. Rajasthan's current fee under its 2009 rules is not published either; the older guideline was ₹10, ₹100 late.

Where the thousands go

Where the thousands go. Agents in Delhi NCR advertise 'complete service' at ₹10,000–25,000, packages at ₹9,999, and 'from ₹2,499 plus government fees' in Bengaluru. Some relabel their own charges as government fees of ₹500–3,000. You do not need a lawyer for any step, and the paperwork is a form, affidavits and photocopies. Pay an agent if you want someone to queue for you, not because the state charges it.

Documents

Documents. A joint notice form signed by both; age proof for each (birth certificate, tenth-class certificate or passport); identity and address proof (Aadhaar, passport, voter ID, driving licence, a registered rent agreement); proof that one of you has lived 30 days in the district; separate notarised affidavits of date of birth, marital status, nationality and no prohibited relationship; passport photographs; a divorce decree or death certificate if either was married before; and three adult witnesses with their own identity and address proof. A foreign partner adds an embassy certificate of marital status and nationality, or an apostilled single-status declaration where the embassy issues none, with passport and visa.

Timelines

Timelines. The Special Marriage Act route takes at least 30 days from the notice going up; Delhi's stated norm is a response within 60. Registering a religious wedding is faster: Delhi issues the certificate the same day on the appointment date, Karnataka within one working day through Kaveri, Maharashtra in 15 days, Haryana after a 15-day notice and three working days, and Uttar Pradesh generates it instantly online if Aadhaar is linked to your mobile. Tatkal exists only in Delhi, only for registration, and cannot shorten the 30-day notice. The Delhi High Court refused to waive the notice in June 2026 even for an overseas job deadline; the Allahabad High Court made publication optional in Uttar Pradesh in 2021.

What is legal

What is legal. A Special Marriage Act marriage is valid everywhere in India and the certificate is conclusive evidence under section 13. A religious wedding with its proper ceremonies, the saptapadi for a Hindu marriage, is equally valid; registration proves it but does not create it. The Supreme Court directed every state to make registration compulsory in Seema v Ashwani Kumar (2006), and in Dolly Rani v Manish Kumar Chanchal (2024) it declared void a 'marriage certificate' issued without any ceremony, warning couples against registering first for a visa and holding the wedding later. An Arya Samaj wedding actually performed counts, as the Court held in Lata Singh (2006); a certificate without a ceremony does not.

NRIs and couples abroad

For NRIs and couples abroad. Indian missions solemnise and register marriages under the Foreign Marriage Act 1969: the embassy in Dublin needs 30 days' residence, a newspaper notice, a 30-day wait and three Indian witnesses for €48; the consulates in Washington and San Francisco register a US marriage the same day for US$52 with three witnesses and an apostilled certificate. Delhi's own registration routes need at least one Indian citizen.

And after the certificate, the celebration is entirely yours to time. Many of the couples we plan for are already legally married when they call us; the reception, or the full wedding, comes weeks or months later.