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Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2023

June 19, 2023

The Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act came into force on 27 February 2023. The age at which someone can marry or enter a civil partnership has now risen to eighteen in order to protect children from the danger of forced marriage.

Background

The implementation of the new Act will remove provisions which allow parental or judicial consent to marriages or civil partnerships to individuals aged 16-17. The Act will also extend the scope of current legislation regarding forced marriage. The Act will not affect the validity of any marriages or civil partnerships entered into prior to 27 February 2023.

Previously, people aged 16 and 17 could marry or enter into a civil partnership with parental consent. Under the Act, this will no longer be possible. The Act was proposed in order to address and target the practice of child marriage. A forced marriage is not one that parties do not fully or freely consent to.

The law relating to marriages and civil partnerships is devolved in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, opposite and same sex couples can get married or enter into a civil partnership if they are at least sixteen years old, no parental or judicial consent is required. In Northern Ireland, individuals can get married or enter a civil partnership if both are at least sixteen years old on the day of their marriage, but anyone under eighteen needs parental or judicial consent.

How common is child marriage in England and Wales

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), in 2018, 0.06% of marriages that took place in that year were individuals aged sixteen or seventeen. These figures do not reflect the true extent of the issue. These statistics only cover the registered ceremonies in England and Wales and do not include those married in non-registered marriages, such as religious ceremonies.

The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) produces figures related to any religious or civil ceremony of marriage, whether or not it is legally binding, but only in relation to forced marriages. This is where coercion is used or there are issues regarding the capacity of the victim under the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The latest figures show that 759 cases related to a possible forced marriage and/ or possible female genital mutilation that the FMU provided support to in 2020. Of these 259 cases, 750 related to forced marriage, 3 cases related to both forced marriage and female genital mutilation and 6 cases solely related to female genital mutilation. In addition to this:

  • 26% involved victims aged below eighteen
  • 37% involved victims aged eighteen to twenty five
  • 9% involved victims with mental capacity concerns
  • 79% involved female victims
  • 21% involved male victims

The FMU has described forced marriage as not a problem related to a specific one country, religion or culture.

What does the Act do?

The Act amends the previous legislation governing marriages and civil partnerships in England and Wales. It also impacts legal recognition of unions registered elsewhere where at least one of the participants was domiciled in England and Wales and expands the scope of legislation about forced marriages.

The Act makes it illegal for a person to arrange the marriage of a person under the age of eighteen in England and Wales in those circumstances where that is not already illegal.

If you would like to discuss your matter, please call 0121 705 7571 and speak to a member of our Family Team.

Amun Sunner
Paralegal – Family & Litigation Departments

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