by Linda Straker
- Marriage Act provides for parental consent to allow 16-year-olds to get married
- Bill seeks to increase minimum age at which an individual may marry to 18 years
- Amendment will also affect Marriage (Special Licences—Destination Wedding) Regulations
The marriage age will be moved from 16 to 18 once Members in both Houses of Parliament approve the 2025 Marriage (Amendment) Bill, which is set to be tabled and go through the first parliamentary step when the Lower House meets on 24 July 2025.
“This Bill seeks to amend the Marriage Act, Chapter 184 (the “principal Act”), to increase the minimum age at which a person may marry from 16 years of age to 18 years of age, and to remove any exceptions thereto, with consequential amendments to related regulations,” states the explanatory notes of the bill.
Currently, the Marriage Act allows parents or guardians to give consent for a child aged 16 or older to get married. Once the amendment is approved and goes into effect, the marriage age will start at 18 years, which is the Age of Civil Legal Responsibility according to the 2011 Age of Civil Legal Responsibility Act.
“As from the appointed day, any person who attains the age of 18 years, shall be of the age of full civil legal responsibility and thus have full legal capacity to deal with civil matters without needing the consent of his parents or guardians, or the permission of any court of law, on account only of his age,” said the Act under the Section 3 which is labelled “Legal age of civil legal responsibility.”
The amendment will also affect the Marriage (Special Licences—Destination Wedding) Regulations by repealing regulation 8 and substituting or replacing it with a new regulation say that the application for a special licence set out in Form III of Schedule I, shall be made in writing addressed to the Governor-General and signed by one of the parties to the intended marriage and shall state the full name, address, age, occupation and condition of both of the parties to the intended marriage.”
A special marriage license is granted to people who are residing in the country for a minimum of 24 hours, and if they are under the age of 18, must provide evidence of having consent or permission from a parent or parents and guardians.