Recognition of marriage as invalid - procedure and rules, grounds and consequences

Can a marriage be annulled one month after the wedding? Considering that a little time has passed since the painting, I would not want to go through a divorce. Further life together is impossible, and it practically never happened. What to do and where to go in such a situation? Thank you.

The Family Code of the Russian Federation does not contain a rule according to which annulment of a marriage is possible. To resolve this situation, there are the following options:

Recognition of marriage as invalid.
Dissolution of the concluded union.

Let's take a closer look at these methods.

Institute of marriage

Marriage is not just a beautiful ceremony taking place in a solemn atmosphere, but also one of the most important legal events in a person’s life. From the point of view of law, marriage is a legal fact that gives rise to the family and property rights of spouses and the accompanying responsibilities.

Due to its social significance, a marriage union is recognized and protected by the state only if it is registered as a civil act. Rights and obligations arise for the husband and wife from the moment the union is registered.

Formalization is necessary to ensure the rights of husband and wife in family and civil relations, as well as third parties entering into legal relations with them, to protect public interests and morality.

The future legal regime of the property of a man and a woman, mutual obligations to support each other, alimony rights, inheritance and much more are determined by the fact of marriage registration in the registry office.

The church ceremony is beautiful and moral, but from the standpoint of the law it does not give rise to legal consequences, since Russia is a secular state, and the church is not an organization authorized to register acts of civil status.

The only competent authorities authorized by the state to register marital relations are the civil registry offices.

There is only one exception to this rule. Outside Russia, the diplomatic and consular missions of our country have the right to register family relationships.

Why can't a divorce be annulled?

It is impossible to cancel the fact of divorce that has already taken place, because:

such legal transactions do not have retroactive effect;
According to the Family Code of the Russian Federation, a person cannot be forced to live with another, and the annulment of a divorce can be considered precisely as coercion.

If the spouses got divorced, and then realized that they got carried away and want to restore family relationships not only morally, but also legally, they have the right to remarry. The law does not limit the number of remarriages, or, in fact, the number of divorces.

Conditions for marriage

To get married, Russian citizens need to fulfill only two conditions:

reach the age at which the law allows marriage;
express voluntary consent.

Compliance with these requirements is checked by a registry office employee when accepting an application from the bride and groom. Consent is verified by the application itself, and age is verified using identity documents.

Marrying a foreigner on Russian territory has its own characteristics. In relation to a foreign spouse, his personal law applies, that is, the conditions under which he can start a family are determined by the law of the country of his citizenship.

However, circumstances preventing marriage are determined by Russian law. If he simultaneously holds Russian citizenship, then Russian rules apply. Several citizenships allow a foreigner to choose which right should be taken into account when formalizing family relations in our country.

The same rules apply when considering the issue of recognizing as illegitimate a union concluded with a foreign citizen.

Who can ask the court to declare a marriage illegal?

If it is necessary to invalidate a family union in which one or both participants have not reached the age of majority, then the right to file a claim with the judicial authorities is granted to both the minor himself and his parents, guardians and the prosecutor. Adult, capable citizens file an application to have their marriage declared illegal on their own.

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If it was concluded under the pressure of threats or deception, then, in addition to the injured spouse, a prosecutor can file a claim in court. In the case where the marriage was concluded with a person infected with HIV or suffering from a sexually transmitted disease, only the injured party can demand recognition of invalidity. A union concluded between blood relatives, an adoptive parent and an adopted person, and with an incapacitated person can be annulled by one of the spouses, representatives of the guardianship authorities, or a prosecutor.

If the reasons specified in the claim are considered by the court to be legitimate for declaring the marriage illegal, then it will be considered as such from the date of its official registration. Since the marriage of two people has been declared null and void, its termination does not entail any rights or obligations. Spouses whose marriage has been declared illegal will not be able to inherit each other’s property, claim living space, receive a pension due to the loss of a breadwinner, and much more. If a marriage contract has been drawn up and executed between a husband and wife, all its conditions are canceled after the annulment of their union.

An exception to the rules may be the division of jointly acquired property, if any. The party affected by the conclusion of such a marriage has the right to moral and material compensation for the harm caused to it. But a child born to a couple both before the day the marriage was annulled and within 300 days after that has exactly the same rights as children born in a legal marriage.

What are the grounds for declaring a marriage invalid?

Annulment of a concluded marriage may occur if one of the following facts is revealed:

Registration was carried out without the consent of one of the spouses, as a result of deception, delusion, pressure, physical or mental violence of one or both persons entering into marriage.
One of the spouses or both were minors at the time of the marriage, or had not reached the age for marriage accepted by local governments.
If one of the spouses has a valid marriage, in this case the last marriage will be declared invalid,
Close relationship between husband and wife,
The presence of a mental disorder in one of the spouses and his recognition as incompetent,
The fact of concealment of information about the presence of a sexually transmitted or HIV disease in one of the spouses was revealed.
A fictitious marriage is characterized by the absence of one or both spouses of a true desire to start a family.

The presence of one of the above conditions is already sufficient grounds for declaring a marriage invalid. In practice, a combination of several conditions is often encountered at once.

Marriage Goals

A fictitious marriage is understood as a marriage whose purpose is not to create a family. The goal may be to obtain various kinds of benefits and privileges, as well as material gain. From a legal point of view, a fictitious marriage can be equated to an imaginary transaction, since it is concluded in pursuit of goals different from those issued. He is registered only on paper, without the desire to continue family life in the future. Various arguments, including the testimony of witnesses, can be used as evidence of the fictitiousness of the marriage.

Criteria

Among the striking criteria for a fictitious marriage are

The duration of the marriage relationship
Lack of common life and economy,
Lack of common children
Other evidence of the falsity of the marriage.

Annulment of marriage

A fictitious marriage can be annulled, but in practice this is not easy to do, especially in a situation where only one party considered the marriage to be fictitious.

Registration of marriage with a mentally ill person.

A citizen with mental disorders is not able to bear the consequences of his actions. Therefore, a marriage concluded with a mentally ill person can be declared invalid, subject to proof of the person’s incapacity in court. If such a court decision is not presented, then the marriage can be recognized as legal.

Polygamy/polyandry

On the territory of the Russian Federation, only monogamous marriages are recognized as legal; polygamy and polyandry are not allowed. Based on the Family Code of the Russian Federation, citizens can be in a family relationship with only one person. Violation of this principle leads to the recognition of the marriage union as invalid.

Marriage between relatives

In Russia, registration of marriages between direct relatives in an ascending or descending line, between full-blooded and half-blooded brothers and sisters, between adoptive parents and adopted children is prohibited.

Underage marriage

Concealing the age of under 18 when entering into a marriage will result in annulment of the marriage. If the marriage of minor children is a way to protect the interests of the child, then permission from local authorities is required to lower the age of marriage, which must be supported by relevant documents.

Forced marriage

It is possible to forcibly persuade a person to enter into marriage using threats, methods of mental or physical violence, as well as deception or induction into a state of alcohol or drug intoxication. To prove the fact of forced marriage, a forensic examination of a mental and psychological nature is appointed.

Concealment of dangerous diseases (HIV or sexually transmitted diseases)

Concealing information about the presence of health-threatening diseases can be grounds for ending a marriage. In addition, knowingly exposing yourself to the risk of contracting HIV and sexually transmitted diseases is a criminal offense in Russia.

How to invalidate a marriage

An invalid marriage acquires this status only through judicial proceedings. The independent decision of the spouses on the illegality of the marriage is not recognized as legally significant.

While the legal process to establish the legality of the marriage is ongoing, the spouses retain their status, rights and obligations.

Who can demand the annulment of a marriage?

The following persons may submit a request to have a marriage declared invalid:

one of the spouses, if the conclusion of such a marriage violated his legal rights;
relatives of spouses - parents, guardians, adoptive parents or other legal representatives. This is relevant for situations where one or both spouses are minors;
a representative of the guardianship and trusteeship authorities, if the rights of minors are clearly violated;
an employee of the prosecutor's office, if any violations of the law are associated with the conclusion of this marriage;

Regardless of the status of the applicant, in order for the marriage to be declared invalid, he must provide all the reasons for this.

Procedure

Marriage relations are recognized as fictitious in accordance with the established procedure:

preparation of necessary documentation;
collecting all evidence;
filing a claim;
payment of state duty;
sending a package of papers to the court office;
conducting a trial with the participation of the parties;
obtaining a verdict;
if the claim is satisfied, it is transferred to the registry office to enter into the database a record that the marriage was declared invalid.

Marriage relations cease to exist from the moment this fact is registered in the registry office. Immediately after the verdict is announced in court, the barracks are not annulled.

Statement of claim for recognition of marriage as invalid

The court can declare a marriage invalid only on the basis of a statement of claim filed by the interested party. When drawing up this document, it is necessary to follow generally accepted rules.

Although the request is drawn up in free form, it must contain a list of mandatory information:

name of the judicial authority;
identification data of the applicant and parties (full name, address and contacts);
information about the body that registered the relationship;
data from the marriage certificate;
wording of the request;
a statement of the reasons for its satisfaction;
link to supporting documents and legislative provisions;
list of attached papers;
dating and signature.

Example of a statement of claim for declaring a marriage invalid: statement of claim for declaring a marriage invalid

Invalidity of a registered marriage

Family law does not contain provisions on how a marriage can be annulled in Russia. Instead of this term, the concept of declaring a marriage invalid is used.

Invalid – that is, a prisoner with violations of the norms of the Family Code of the Russian Federation, including those with signs of being fictitious.

A fictitious marriage is a union of two people, concluded formally, to achieve any benefits, but without the desire to create a real family.

Invalidity can only be established in court.

The court recognizes the union as invalid from the date of its registration if any of the following circumstances existed at its conclusion:

lack of voluntary consent of one of the spouses;
both or one of the spouses has not reached the legal age of marriage;
the husband or wife is in another registered and not dissolved marriage;
spouses are close relatives in relation to each other;
the bride and groom are the adoptive parent and the adopted child;
one of the couple is declared incompetent by a court decision;
one of the spouses knew, but hid from the other the presence of diseases established by paragraph 3 of Art. 15 IC RF.

Causes

Any union between spouses is valid and legal until a formal decision is made to dissolve it.

If the divorce has taken place, but the husband or wife wants to have the marriage declared invalid, they will first have to get the divorce decision canceled and the registration in the registry office annulled.

Please note: marriage implies a voluntary union of two people of legal age who have agreed to start a family voluntarily, without threats or coercion, and are fully aware of their actions.

In Russia there is also the principle of a single marriage: a husband cannot have several official wives and vice versa.

Be sure to read it! Decision on division of property acquired during marriage

Consequently, the stamp in the passport may be invalidated for the following reasons:

The alliance was concluded against the wishes of one of the parties.
Husband and wife are close relatives in direct lines: brothers and sisters, parents and children, grandparents and grandchildren. This applies to all half-relatives, as well as adopted children, since legally they have all the rights of relatives.
The spouses have not reached the required age.
The husband or wife is already married to other persons or this contract was concluded fictitiously.
The court declared one of the couple incompetent at the time of legalization of the relationship.
One of the parties was not informed to the other that he had AIDS or a sexually transmitted disease. The victim may even bring his significant other to justice.

Please note: the requirement to annul a marriage does not have a statute of limitations, with the exception of declaring one of the family members incompetent, which is given a year from the date of registration.

Fictitious marriage

This option is widespread among many people who want to receive any benefits, concessions, the opportunity to obtain citizenship or avoid conscription into the army. To do this, the couple legitimizes the relationship, receives a certificate and the opportunity to quickly achieve what they want.

By entering into a fictitious marriage, people lose the opportunity to create a full-fledged family, while deceiving the state. Its signs are the absence of any relationship between husband and wife: they do not live together, do not communicate, and do not run a joint household.

Please note: most problems in a fictitious marriage arise from the spouses themselves: for example, if the husband has not repaid the loan, the bank may demand this from the wife. (By the way, you can read about how loans are divided during a divorce here.)

Authority considering the request for annulment of marriage

As noted above, marriage registration is carried out administratively, by the registry office. Recognition of a union as invalid is possible only in court. The claim must be filed in court at the location of the other spouse - the defendant. The statute of limitations does not apply to this category of cases.

The case is being considered as a claim proceeding. An extract from the decision to declare the union invalid is sent by the court to the registry office.

A chance to save the marriage: filing an objection to the claim

The defendant in an annulment case may file an objection if he has evidence that the plaintiff is wrong. For example, if one of the parties wants to declare a family union invalid due to a sexually transmitted disease or AIDS, you can provide evidence that the other party simply did not know about the presence of such a disease.

To file an objection, a condition must be met such as a change in the circumstances that led to the trial before it began.

Nullity of marriage

In contrast to the conditions for concluding a family union, there are much more circumstances on the basis of which a marriage can be annulled. Partially they are associated with violation of the conditions of marriage, partially they have a completely different nature.

Lack of age or lack of consent of one of the spouses, that is, violation of the conditions of marriage, are grounds for declaring the marriage invalid.

Otherwise, why would they be introduced? How they could register a union with such violations is a separate question.

The Judicial Code names the following circumstances as additional grounds for recognizing the invalidity of a marriage (obstructive grounds):

the person has another registered marriage;
close relatives decided to start a family;
the adoptive parent decided to enter into a marriage relationship with the adopted child;
the bride or groom suffers from a mental disorder and is declared legally incompetent;
fictitiousness of the union.

A separate ground on which the interested spouse may demand that the marriage be declared invalid is fraud. Consisting in the fact that the future spouse hid from the other the presence of a sexual disease, HIV infection.

As can be seen from the above list, specific circumstances preventing the creation of a family union are established for the purpose of:

protection of property interests and morality (second marriage, union with an adoptive parent, close relative),
human health protection (marital age),
protection of individual rights (lack of consent).

Procedure

If there is at least one of the above circumstances, then in order to cancel the registration of the marriage, you should apply to the court at the place of residence of the defendant with a claim to declare the concluded union invalid.

All documents confirming the illegality of the marriage must be attached to the statement of claim.

Having considered the evidence, the court will make a decision, which within three days is sent to the relevant registry office, where the entry in the Civil Registration Book is cancelled.

Completion of this procedure means that the marriage did not lead to any legal consequences. That is, it will be considered that the marriage between these people did not exist at all.

Procedure for annulment of marriage

It is possible to recognize family relationships as illegal only through legal proceedings, the procedure for which is established by the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation. Until the court makes an appropriate decision, the union is considered legal.

The procedure for recognizing a marriage as invalid is as follows:

determine jurisdiction - to initiate the process, the interested person should contact the district court in the territory of residence of the spouse, with whom the relationship must be recognized as non-existent;
find out whether there are grounds for the appeal - if the reasons for the appeal are regarded as insufficient, consideration will be refused;
determine whether the applicant is a proper plaintiff, that is, whether he has the right to bring such claims.

Contents of the claim

An application for declaring the marriage union invalid is drawn up by the plaintiff, indicating the following data:

name of the addressee – district court;
information about the applicant;
information about the defendant;
the circumstances of entering into an invalid relationship;
references to violated norms of the RF IC;
petition to the court;
list of applications;
fee payment receipt;
date of preparation, signature of the applicant.

It is mandatory to attach to the claim a certificate issued by the civil registry office on the conclusion of a marriage and family relationship, the invalidity of which the plaintiff demands to recognize. In addition, if there are children in the disputed union, their evidence should also be attached.

The list of other documents attached to the claim depends on the grounds that, in the plaintiff’s opinion, became the reason for challenging the marriage:

in case of bigamy - a certificate of a marriage union not mentioned by the defendant;
in the presence of STDs, HIV, mental illness of a partner - medical reports, certificates;
witness statements, etc.

The application is drawn up in two copies for the participants, as well as one for the presiding judge.

The applicant also needs to pay a state fee, the amount of which is 300 rubles. The payment receipt is included in the package of documentation sent to the court.

Deadlines

You can file a claim for annulment of a marital relationship at any time. The law does not define a specific limitation period. However, there is an exception. If the reason for declaring the union illegal was the concealment by one of the partners of information about a sexually transmitted disease or HIV from which he suffers, then the period for initiating the process is one year from the moment when the conscientious spouse learned or should have learned about the partner’s disease.

The period for declaring a marriage invalid is one month. This period is set for the entry into force of a court decision. After this, the marriage and family union is recognized as invalid from the date of its registration in the civil registry office, that is, legally such relations are considered to have never existed.

Dissolution of marriage

If the marriage was carried out according to all the rules, and the law was not violated, regardless of the duration, such a union cannot be annulled. It will have to be terminated according to the general procedure.

With the consent of both spouses, this can be done through the registry office. You must contact the appropriate civil registry office, pay the state fee and jointly submit an application for divorce.

If agreement cannot be reached, you will have to get a divorce in court. To do this, you need to draw up and file a divorce petition in court. If there is a property dispute, you can make demands for the division of all joint property in the same claim. The law also allows you to initiate the division of property in separate court proceedings.

Recognition of divorce from a foreign citizen

Article 160 of the RF IC defines the rules for recognizing a family union registered between persons who have foreign and Russian citizenship in another state, as well as their dissolution. Therefore, a divorce from a person with foreign citizenship is carried out in accordance with the norms of family law. In a situation where the official termination of the relationship was carried out outside the territory of the country according to the laws of another country, the divorce must be recognized in the Russian Federation.

Important for the divorce procedure to take place is its acceptance by another state. Its confirmation is carried out by the authorized services of the country upon presentation of the required documentation. When the family is unable to come for the procedure, they should contact the consular or diplomatic office of the country where the marriage was registered.

How to properly withdraw an application for divorce?

To cancel the divorce process through the registry office, you must:

both spouses appear at the department where the application was submitted, but no later than within a month after filing the application;
submit a joint petition for refusal to divorce, which must indicate the reasons for such a decision;
Civil registry office employees review the submitted petition and make a decision either to stop the divorce process or to recognize the petition to cancel the divorce as invalid;
To finally stop the divorce process, a notarization is required - an agreement between the two parties on the termination of the divorce process with the signature and seal of a notary.

If only one spouse wants to withdraw the application, then he will receive an unequivocal refusal. It will also be denied to stop the case if both spouses want it, but one of them is absent. In this case, it is necessary to send an application with a request to cancel the divorce proceedings to the court.

The application must not only indicate the reasons for maintaining the marriage, but also explain the absence of the second spouse, and also be sure to provide his opinion regarding the divorce. However, both spouses must attend the court hearing to consider the suspension of the divorce process.

In the case of a divorce through the court, the process can be stopped at any time before the judge makes a final decision.

So, if the claim for divorce has not yet been accepted for proceedings or has been accepted, but the case has not yet been considered, the spouse who has applied to the court with a request for divorce can submit an application to the court office, indicating the reasons for abandoning the claim.

Next, you will need to fill out a form with the details of the plaintiff and the case initiated based on his claim, familiarize yourself with the consequences of abandoning the claim and sign a full agreement with them, and the case will be terminated by a settlement agreement.

Only the initiator of the divorce process can file a motion to withdraw the claim. If both spouses filed an application for divorce, then both of them must also apply for the cancellation of their decision.

If the plaintiff decides to abandon the claim during the trial, he can directly declare this orally to the judge, or by filing a written petition. His statement will be entered into the minutes of the court hearing, and the proceedings will be terminated due to the fact that the plaintiff abandoned the claim.

As a rule, if spouses want to save the family, the court supports them in this decision.

How to get a divorce through court

When should you file for divorce in court?

The marriage is dissolved in court if you:

have minor children;
there is no mutual consent to divorce (regardless of the presence of joint minor children).

If you do not have minor children and there is mutual consent to divorce, or if your spouse has been sentenced to more than three years, is declared missing or incompetent, you need to contact the Civil Registry Office directly.

How to file for divorce in court?

To dissolve a marriage through court, you will need the following documents:

identification document;
statement of claim;
marriage registration certificate (if the original is lost, you must obtain a duplicate document from the civil registry office that carried out the state registration of the marriage);
an extract from the defendant’s house register (if the claim is filed at the defendant’s place of residence) or an extract from the plaintiff’s house register (if the claim is filed at the plaintiff’s place of residence);
birth certificates of minor children (notarized copies), if you have children;
receipt of payment of state duty;
power of attorney for a representative (if you are unable to submit documents in person. The power of attorney must be notarized).

Please note that according to the law, a woman who is pregnant or gave birth less than a year ago can only be divorced with her written consent.

You can file a claim for division of property along with the claim for divorce, or after.

The claim must be filed in court at the defendant’s place of residence. If you are unable to get to the defendant’s place of residence for health reasons or you have minor children living with you, you can go to court located near your home.

If you do not have a dispute about children and property disputes involving more than 50,000 rubles, you need to file a statement of claim in the magistrate’s court. If you have a dispute about children or property disputes that exceed the amount of 50,000 rubles, file a claim in the district court. You can challenge the decision of the magistrate’s court in a district court, or a district court in a city court.

If everything is in order with the documents submitted to the court, you will be given a date for consideration of your case within two weeks.

What happens in the courtroom?

If at a court hearing both spouses (in person or through representatives) come to a mutual agreement to dissolve the marriage, the court will issue a divorce decree after the first meeting. If one of the spouses refuses to divorce, the court will give a period of one to three months for reconciliation.

If the opinion does not change by the second meeting, the court will decide on divorce and issue a corresponding decree.

If the spouse (or his representative) who does not want to dissolve the marriage does not come to court three times, the marriage will be dissolved without his participation after the third meeting.

Do I need to go to the registry office then?

Yes need. Once you receive a court decision and it enters into legal force, you will no longer be considered husband and wife, but you will need to register the fact of divorce and obtain divorce certificates. You will need:

identification document;
statement;
a copy of the court decision on divorce (it must enter into legal force);
receipt of payment of state duty;
power of attorney for a representative (if you are unable to submit documents in person. The power of attorney must be notarized);
enhanced qualified electronic signature of both spouses (if the application is submitted through the government services portal).

Be sure to read it!
How to assess moral damage under the legislation of the Russian Federation? You can submit documents for divorce to the Moscow Civil Registry Office at your place of residence or at the place where your marriage was registered. If the application is joint and you do not have minor children together, the application can be submitted electronically on the public services portal. A divorce certificate will be issued on the day of application.

If the divorce has already been registered by one of the spouses, it is advisable (but not necessary!) for the second spouse to contact the same registry office department.

How to divorce a foreigner?

It is possible to dissolve a marriage with a citizen of another country or a stateless person permanently residing in the territory of another state both in Russia and abroad. But if your husband (your wife), despite foreign citizenship, permanently resides in Russia, you need to get a divorce on the territory of the Russian Federation.

In Russia, the procedure for divorcing a foreigner is no different from divorcing a citizen of the Russian Federation. Except that all documents in a foreign language must be legalized (unless otherwise provided by international treaties of the Russian Federation) and translated into Russian. The accuracy of the translation must be certified by a Russian notary.

If you decide to get a divorce on the territory of a foreign state, do not forget that the marriage will be dissolved according to the laws of that state. If they do not contradict the laws of the Russian Federation, the divorce will be considered valid in Russia. However, the document will need to be legalized for further use on the territory of the Russian Federation (affix an apostille or undergo consular legalization).

Can a marriage be declared invalid?

Yes, a marriage can be declared invalid (this is not the same as a divorce. In this case, you are freed from all legal obligations of the former spouses. For example, you do not have to divide property equally) if:

one of the spouses concealed the fact that he had previously been married and did not dissolve it;
the marriage was fictitious;
one of the spouses entered into a forced marriage;
one of the spouses at the time of marriage was a minor and did not have permission to marry;
spouses are immediate family members;
the spouses are the adoptive parent and the adopted child;
one of the spouses was declared incompetent by the court at the time of marriage;
one of the spouses hid the presence of a sexually transmitted disease or HIV infection from the other.

We changed our minds about getting a divorce, but the decision has already been made. what to do?

In order for the court or the registry office to agree to cancel the divorce, the applicant must indicate the reasons for changing the previously made decision. They can be varied and depend on the individual nuances of the current situation.

The objection that will be filed with the registry office or a judicial authority to cancel the claim can reflect the following wording:

I want to save my family;
I want to find a compromise;
I want to raise children together.

However, seasoned gossip reporters have questioned the report. Gossip Cop doesn’t know how they could find out such intimate details of the meeting. Unless the paparazzi were hiding under the bed.

Life is unpredictable. Just yesterday two people were a loving married couple, but today they are planning to live separately and are filing for divorce. Even those who have not gone through such situations understand how difficult it is mentally.

What to do if you are not seriously planning to get a divorce, and your application is already in court? Or, worse, the trial took place and a decision was made that was undesirable for you? It happens that after reconciliation, spouses simply ignore notices from the court, and then suddenly it turns out that their marriage has already been dissolved.

Consequences of invalid marriage

Unlike the dissolution of a marriage, the consequence of which is the preservation of certain rights and obligations for the former spouses, the invalidity of a marriage does not entail the preservation of any family rights. Moreover, an invalid union does not give rise to them, that is, the legal status of the former spouses is, as it were, restored at the time of premarital relations.

Jointly acquired property passes from the regime of common property of spouses to the regime of shared property. If a marriage contract has been concluded, it is declared invalid.

At the same time, the insurance company provides a number of preferences to a conscientious spouse.

Firstly, the court has the right to award him maintenance from his ex-spouse.
Secondly, the judge can divide the common property according to the rules established by the Investigative Committee.
Thirdly, the judge has the right to partially or fully preserve the provisions of the marriage contract in the interests of the conscientious spouse.
Fourthly, the spouse can keep the surname received during marriage registration.
Fifthly, the “injured” party has the right to demand compensation for moral and material damage from the unscrupulous spouse.

The annulment of a marriage does not affect the rights of children born into it. A child born before the expiration of three hundred days from the date of annulment of the union is considered to be born during the marriage relationship and fully enjoys the rights granted to him.

Since parental rights and responsibilities are not related to the fact of registration of a marriage, declaring it invalid does not affect the rights and responsibilities of former spouses in relation to their common children.

The marriage union is annulled from the date of its conclusion.

The difference between annulment and divorce

In fact, an alliance that existed only on paper is invalid. An annulment procedure can be applied to such relationships. Relations that actually exist and are registered in the registry office are terminated only:

after the death of a spouse;
after the divorce procedure.

At the same time, the couple who divorced the marriage cannot subsequently declare it invalid. However, the law provides for exceptional situations when a union is declared illegal after its dissolution. Such situations include:

registration of relations between relatives;
identifying a case of bigamy.

Unlike annulment, only the spouses themselves can dissolve a marital relationship. Other persons cannot file for divorce.

Possible situations

Forced marriage. Theoretically, gone are the days when parents decided who and with whom to marry. The law protects freedom of choice, recognizing such relationships as valid only if both chosen ones unite themselves in marriage completely voluntarily by mutual consent. However, in our time there are often cases when people are forced into marriage by threats, blackmail, beatings, and may also be pumped with drugs.

In this case, the prosecutor or the victim can begin the process of annulment of the marriage.

If the spouse is not divorced. You live happily, your neighbors are jealous, when suddenly, like a bolt from the blue, you find out the news - your other half “forgot to get a divorce in a previous marriage,” or even manages to do it on two fronts. For example, a situation where a man lived in a “legal marriage” for several years " on two neighboring streets, allows both women to exercise the right to demand the annulment of the marriage as invalid: both the one that was concluded previously and the present one.

He is not who he says he is. It may happen that after registration you find out shocking facts about your spouse, for example, you will find a certificate from the KVD stating that he had HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases before the wedding, but did not say anything. If you cannot forgive this, file a claim statement. But hurry up - the validity period for this item is one year.

How to appeal a court decision on divorce?

The defendant has 1 month to appeal the court's decision. The countdown starts from the moment of announcement.

The right to appeal alone is not enough for the court to accept the claim for consideration. There must be a reason why the applicant believes that his interests have been violated.

The grounds for appealing a court decision may be one of the following factors:

the court did not provide time for reconciliation;
the court did not explain to the parties their rights during the divorce proceedings;
the case was not considered in full;
The hearing took place without the defendant, but he has good reasons for this. For example, at the time of the divorce process he was in the hospital and did not even know what was happening.

The appeal must be accompanied by documents and evidence in other physical form that confirm the legality of appealing the court decision.

If the appeal is successful, this does not mean that the divorce will be annulled. The case will be sent to a retrial and it will be decided whether to dissolve the marriage or not.

Arbitrage practice

As practice shows, official spouses often go to court to challenge paternity. If a man and a woman do not actually live with each other, but the wife is expecting a child, the baby will receive the information of her official husband. Moreover, the specialists of the Civil Registry Office cannot do otherwise.

Example. Citizen Ch. went to court to challenge paternity. She explained that she is currently married. But in fact, she has not lived with her husband for more than 2 years. From cohabitation with another man, she gave birth to a child. He was registered as the official husband. To travel outside the country, the father's consent is required, and in other cases the father's opinion is also required.

The issue is resolved without problems if both parties agree with the claims. Otherwise, the issue will have to be resolved through a DNA test.

A fictitious stamp in a passport is when both spouses, or one of them, did not get married in order to start a family.

The most common options for such a marriage are for the sake of registration or citizenship. One receives money, and the second receives the legal opportunity to register in a large city or obtain Russian citizenship.

One of the family members may enter into marriage for the sake of a career. Judicial practice knows cases in which a graduate student married the daughter of a professor before placement and, of course, he studied well and received a position as an assistant at a neighboring department.

Quite quickly, the clever boy from the provinces left his new family nest and did not appear at home, however, after some time he raised the issue of divorce, claiming, of course, to divide the property with the professor’s daughter.

In this situation, it is obvious that the young man left his family as soon as he received the position of assistant, and the injured wife had the right to demand a divorce, which was done, it was annulled and everyone was left with what they owned on the wedding day.

Some marriage swindlers immediately after registering a family sell everything to which they have rights: apartments, cars, dachas and disappear in an unknown direction.

Everything is so dramatic in an unequal marriage, when one is sincere, and the second is planning to receive a considerable inheritance in the near future, patiently waiting for the moment when the spouse no longer needs his wealth.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, you need to wipe away your tears quickly and, following fresh steps, file a statement of claim in court, collect evidence, witnesses, and involve experienced lawyers.

The sooner you take action, the more evidence you can collect.

It can be very difficult to prove its fictitiousness, because it affects intimate aspects and, of course, knowing this, a clever spouse will try to gain confidence before the court under any pretext. If he has evidence of joint housekeeping or marital relations, the court will not recognize the marriage as fictitious.

Is it possible to cancel a divorce in the registry office?

If a married couple files for divorce at the registry office, at least 1 month passes before the marriage is dissolved. During this period, the spouses may change their minds about getting a divorce. And if they do change their mind, they don’t even have to return to the registry office to pick up the submitted application - failure to appear on the day appointed for the divorce procedure is enough, and the divorce will not take place - clause 4 of Art. 33 Federal Law “On acts of civil status”. However, the state fee that the spouses paid when submitting the application is also not refundable.

But if at least one of the spouses appears on the day appointed for the divorce procedure, and the divorce takes place (data about the divorce will be entered in the civil registry books), it will no longer be possible to cancel it. The man and woman will have to submit a new application - for marriage.

Let's sum it up

Divorce methods

The possibility and specifics of canceling a divorce depend on where the application was submitted. According to Art. 19 of the RF IC, spouses can divorce through the registry office if both agree and there are no common minor children. In other cases, you will have to go to court, even if there are no disagreements between the parties, including regarding children.

The law also allows for unilateral divorce through the registry office, regardless of the presence or absence of the consent of the second spouse or children.

One of the spouses can submit an application to the registry office if the second:

Declared incompetent or missing;
Convicted of a crime for a term of three years.

In this case, an application is submitted in Form No. 11. The registry office employees notify the second spouse about it, if he is in the MLS, or the guardian of the incapacitated person.

Legal consequences of a void marriage

A marriage that is declared invalid entails completely different legal consequences compared to a divorced marriage:

Divorced marriage	the husband and wife return to the original status that was in effect before the marriage, and all mutual rights and obligations between them cease.
Marriage declared invalid	husband and wife acquire the status of divorced spouses, who, despite the termination of marital relations, retain some rights and obligations towards each other (for example, property and alimony).

The consequences of declaring a marriage invalid will be:

loss of legal force of the marriage contract;
loss of the right to maintenance from a spouse, the right to pension payments in the event of the loss of a breadwinner;
loss of the right to inheritance after the death of a spouse;
loss of the right to use the spouse’s living space;
return of premarital surnames;
invalidation of the regime of joint property of spouses.

The essence of the claim

The initiator of declaring a marriage illegal is any entity or authorized body. The main document is drawn up in writing and filled out by hand.

A statement of claim does not always imply a long stay in a legal relationship. If the deception is discovered immediately after registration, the deceived partner has the right to file a claim immediately.

The newlyweds collect evidence to confirm that there are no signs of an affair. SMS correspondence, data confirming the defendant’s dishonest behavior, and testimony of other persons serve as confirmation. The claim is filed at the defendant’s place of residence.

Procedure for filling out a claim

The application is drawn up in accordance with civil procedure legislation. A sample on how to correctly fill out an application contains the Civil and Family Codes.

What does the claim consist of:

Document header. Information about the location of the court, the plaintiff, the defendant. Data about third parties.
The main part: the situation is described, evidence of the applicant’s law-abidingness is given, and the articles that are the reason for declaring the marriage invalid are indicated.
The pleading part. The applicant writes down all the requirements.
Additional part. Documents are attached to the application, which are an argument for satisfying the plaintiff’s demands.

The spouse submitting the application must date it and leave a signature. A statement of claim has the right to be filed by a trustee if he has a power of attorney certified by a notary.

Where to submit?

Civil cases to prove the invalidity of a marriage are considered by city and district courts. The applicant chooses the authority taking into account the actual residential address of the defendant. You can file a claim at your place of registration.

Documentation

Basic documents for filing a claim: certificate issued by the registry office, a copy of the applicant’s identity card, a receipt for payment of the state fee. The plaintiff presents other certificates and evidence of the defendant’s guilt.

Additional documents proving the fictitiousness of family ties:

a doctor's conclusion about the presence of a sexually transmitted disease in a partner;
a certificate confirming the absence of termination of relations with another person;
witness statements;
photo, video, audio confirmation.

The court considers the testimony of witnesses - written and oral.

State duty amount

All legal actions are subject to government fees. Their size depends on the applicant's requirements. If there is a request to quickly dissolve the marriage, without raising the issue of division of acquired property, payment is regulated by the Tax Code. The payment amount is about 300 rubles.

Who can initiate an annulment?

In Russia, only one body is authorized to cancel a marriage – the court. Not everyone can file a claim for annulment of marriage. The legislation provides a list of citizens who have the right to apply to the court to annul a marriage. Depending on the reason that serves as the basis for the annulment of the marriage, the following persons have the right to initiate the annulment process:

When a marriage is concluded between minors, the following may apply for its annulment: one of the parties to the marriage, a guardian, guardianship and trusteeship authorities, as well as the prosecutor's office. If at the time of initiating the annulment of the marriage the spouse has reached the age of majority, then only he alone is allowed to file an application with the court;
To cancel a marriage created without taking into account the wishes of the spouse, the spouse himself, deprived of the right to choose, or the prosecutor's office must apply;
the deceived partner or the previous spouse and other heirs from the first marriage can demand cancellation of the registration of the second marriage;
a marriage with an incapacitated spouse can be canceled on the basis of an application from his guardian, the second spouse or a representative of the prosecutor’s office;
To annul a marriage between close relatives, an application can be submitted by the partners themselves, other relatives if their rights have been violated, as well as representatives of the prosecutor’s office;
If the fact of infection with a sexually transmitted disease or HIV by one of the spouses is concealed, only the affected spouse can apply.

The person responsible for its registration and who is directly guilty of violating the conditions for creating a family does not have the right to file a claim.

Statement of claim for annulment of marriage (sample)