Answer By law4u team
Under Indian law, specifically the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (SMA), the couple does not necessarily need to live in the same city permanently, but they must fulfill specific jurisdictional requirements regarding their residence before initiating the court marriage process. To understand this clearly, it is important to look at how the statute governs the filing of the initial notice of intended marriage. Under Section 5 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (SMA), the parties who intend to marry must give notice in writing in the prescribed form to the Marriage Officer of the district in which at least one of the parties to the marriage has resided for a period of not less than thirty days immediately preceding the date on which such notice is given. This means that if one partner lives in Mumbai and the other lives in Delhi, they do not need to share the same city of residence beforehand. They can choose to file the notice in the district where either the bride or the groom has been living for the statutory period of thirty days. Once the notice is submitted to the Marriage Officer having jurisdiction over that specific district, the legal procedure commences in that office. During the mandatory thirty-day notice period specified under Section 6 of the SMA, the notice is published by the Marriage Officer to invite any objections from the public. Legally, the couple does not need to reside together in the same city during this waiting period, nor does the law require them to share a common residential address at any point prior to the solemnization of the marriage. However, both parties must personally appear before the Marriage Officer along with three witnesses on the designated date for the solemnization and registration of the marriage, as mandated by Section 12 of the SMA. Therefore, while physical presence is required in the selected marriage office on the day of registration, living in different cities prior to the application is legally permissible as long as the thirty-day residency condition is strictly satisfied in the district where the notice is filed. Furthermore, if both parties reside in completely different states or cities, they have the flexibility to choose the jurisdiction of either partner's current residence. For instance, if the male partner resides in Bengaluru and the female partner resides in Chennai, they can mutually decide to file the notice in Bengaluru if the male partner has lived there for the preceding thirty days, or in Chennai if the female partner has met the same residency criterion there. The Marriage Officer of that chosen district will then process the file. It is vital that the proof of residence submitted with the application, such as Aadhaar cards, voter ID, passport, or rent agreements, clearly establishes the thirty-day stay in that specific district. Failing to prove residence in the chosen district will lead to the rejection of the notice by the Marriage Officer, requiring the couple to refile in the correct jurisdiction where their residency is valid. In summary, a shared city of residence is not a mandatory prerequisite under the Special Marriage Act, 1954, but compliance with the single-district residency rule for at least one of the parties is absolutely mandatory for the initiation and successful completion of a court marriage in India.
