Marrying a citizen of the UAE. Travel and wedding arrangements

Marriage in the United Arab Emirates

• 18 years is the age at which you can get married, but it is calculated according to the Meccan calendar, so people can get married at the age of 17.5 by our standards. To get married at a younger age, permission from the legal authorities is required.

• If the age of the future spouse is twice that of the younger one, then such a marriage is concluded with the consent of both parties. Everything is confirmed by the court.

• Before entering into the union, the future spouses can stipulate that the bride will have the right to continue her studies or work in the same place as before. At the same time, a waiver of such a right can be agreed upon.

• Muslim women do not have the right to marry a person of a different faith.

• At the wedding, witnesses must be Muslim citizens.

• By law, now a girl can forbid her husband to enter into marriage a second time. If he violates this requirement, she has the right to file for divorce and demand financial compensation or maintenance: (http://peopleandcountries.com/article-3338-1.html)

In the UAE, there is no such thing as a civil ceremony. According to Islamic law, only religious ceremonies can be held. The list of religions allowed for the bride and groom is also limited. Currently, only Muslim, Christian, and Hindu wedding ceremonies can be performed. To enter into marriage in the Sharia Court, it is enough for the man to be a Muslim, while the woman can be Christian, Hindu, or Jewish. Foreign visiting couples who are not Muslims can get married in a church (Christians), a temple (Hindus), or a consulate/embassy. If you want to have a civil ceremony, it can only be held at the embassy, if they give their consent.

Polygamy, or rather polygyny, is legal in the UAE. A man can have up to four wives, provided that he can provide for them all and the first wife approves of subsequent spouses. This rule does not apply in reverse: women can have only one husband. Similarly, Muslim women are not allowed to marry non-Muslims, while men are allowed to do so.

If you are an expat and want to marry a citizen of the Emirates, keep in mind that

The rules and procedures will differ depending on your nationality and religion. If both parties belong to the same religion, then marriage is not such a complicated procedure, but if you are a Christian man and want to marry a Muslim woman, you will have to convert to Islam. This rule applies even if the Muslim bride is not a citizen of the UAE: (https://offshorewealth.info/offshore-business-abroad/living-and-working-uae-in-detail/

When concluding a marriage between citizens of the Emirates, both spouses must be present along with their legal representatives and two Muslim witnesses. There are different rules for foreigners: spouses must have valid permanent visas. Divorced people entering into marriage must provide proof of their divorced status.

It is extremely important for a woman to be married in the UAE if she is pregnant. At the clinic, when a woman goes to her first appointment, she will need to show the original marriage certificate along with copies of her passport and visa. If she is pregnant and unmarried, she must either get married or, if she is an unmarried foreign woman, return to her home country. It should also be noted that abortions in Dubai are illegal unless there are medical complications and doctor's orders: http://russiandubai.ru/news/zakony-i-osobennosti-vstupleniya-v-brak-v-dubae/

According to Muslim laws, an unmarried girl is responsible to her father. Therefore, he must be present at the wedding. But there are situations when the father cannot come to the Emirates for some reason. In this case, he should write a power of attorney drawn up by a notary for one of the relatives who will be present at the wedding. Also, do not forget that this document must be legalized (i.e., it will need to be translated into English or Arabic, the translation certified by a notary, stamped at the Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Belarus, and the document signed at the UAE consulate in Minsk). In this form, the power of attorney will be fully legal in the United Arab Emirates.

Example:

I, citizen (full name, date of birth, place of birth, citizenship, gender, passport details), hereby authorize citizen (full name of the person being authorized, date of birth, place of birth, Citizenship, gender, passport details) to be my representative in any authorities and institutions of the United Arab Emirates regarding the conclusion of state registration of my daughter's marriage (full name, date of birth) with a citizen (full name, date of birth), for which I grant the right to submit applications, petitions, explanations on my behalf, receive and provide certificates and other documents, pay fees, sign for me and perform all actions related to the fulfillment of this поручение.

Divorce

If a man pronounces the word "divorce" three times, the divorce procedure begins. The woman leaves the house in whatever she was wearing, for this reason, representatives of the fair sex are always laden with gold. Divorce in the UAE must be officially formalized. By the way, a woman also has the right to file for divorce if:

- the husband cannot financially provide for the family;

- the spouse has become impotent;

- he has gone somewhere for more than four months, and does not communicate with the family;

- the spouse suffers from mental disorder.

During court proceedings, the spouse must prove the specified fact by presenting several witnesses. In the event of a divorce, the court grants custody of the children to the spouse. It is impossible to take them out of the country without his permission.

A spouse (foreign girl) has the right to file for divorce only after ten years. This period is specified to prevent husbands of women from other countries from being used for their own selfish purposes.

Only women after 10 years of marriage can obtain citizenship through marriage. The applicant for citizenship in this case must be prepared to confirm the fact that the marriage was not concluded for selfish purposes and the relationship between the spouses is true and lasting. In addition, the woman still needs to obtain approval from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and renounce her previous allegiance, since dual citizenship is not recognized in the UAE. (http://peopleandcountries.com/article-3338-1.html)

The procedure for legalizing documents issued in the UAE:

Since the UAE has not joined the Convention abolishing the requirement for legalization of foreign public documents (The Hague, October 5, 1961), the presence of an apostille on a document does not eliminate the need for consular legalization of the document.

All documents issued in the UAE must undergo the following procedure to be recognized in the Republic of Belarus:

Stage 1. Legalization of documents at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Legalization of documents by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) is carried out by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abu Dhabi, as well as by the Ministry's offices in other cities of the UAE (information about working hours and location of offices (attestation section) can be obtained by calling the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs: +971 2 444 4488);

Stage 2. Legalization of documents at the Embassy of the Republic of Belarus in the UAE.

Documents legalized by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs are accepted by the Embassy for consular legalization. The validity period of legalization is the same as the period of validity of the document being legalized.

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