Customary marriages can now get certificates

Dear Harold,

We intend to get married under Maasai customary law in December. We are, however, seeking information whether the new Marriage Act provides for such traditional marriages and whether the registrar of marriages can register our union, and possibly issue us with a marriage certificate. We will need the document before we both fly abroad to live and work early next year. I have been informed by my employer abroad that I will need a marriage certificate to prove my status before my wife and children are included in the medical cover and other benefits.

Lemaloe, Nairobi

Dear Lemaloe,

It is now possible to register a customary marriage and receive a certificate in line with the Marriage Act 2014. The new law provides that a customary marriage can be celebrated in accordance with customs of the communities of the bride, groom or both. The couple should issue a notice to the registrar within three months of completion of traditional marriage ceremonies. The notice should specify the customary law applied, a written declaration by the couple that customary requirements to prove the marriage have been undertaken and signatures or thumb prints of two adult witnesses who played key roles in celebrating the marriage. The notice should also confirm that the couple was 18 years and above at the time of the marriage, the union is between people who are not within prohibited marriage relationship (close blood relatives) and they both freely consented to the marriage. The spouses can then apply to the registrar within six months of their marriage for a certificate. The registrar will register and issue a certificate of marriage after the spouses have appeared before him.

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