Israeli Registration of a Marriage Officiated Online–Important Update

This article addresses the registration of an online marriage. You may have seen media reports about marriage registrations in Israel that were officiated online. Such marriages were first officially recognized by the Interior Ministry at the end of 2020 and represent a dramatic development in the field of family law in Israel. This precedent may offer a solution for many Israeli citizens who cannot or do not wish to get married under religious law in the Holy Land. In this article, this new legal development will be explained thoroughly by attorney Anat Levi, an expert in family law from our office.

Our office specializes in family law and representation of clients before the Interior Ministry regarding issues of registering civil marriages in Israel. Our office offers comprehensive legal advice on arranging and officiating a civil marriage, registering it in Israel, obtaining legal status for foreign partners, and more.

2020 – the year when marriage officiated online was first registered in Israel

The year 2020 they brought many difficulties in all areas of life. The Coronavirus pandemic had many financial and health-related consequences and affected everyone. However, along with all the problems, 2020 also brought a few positive developments, one of which was announced just before the end of the year: the dramatic decision made by the Population Authority to permit Israeli registration of a civil marriage officiated online overseas without the spouses being physically present in the foreign country.

This news was first reported by the Kan Public Broadcasting Corporation on 30.12.2020 and then on several other news sites. The report was about the Population and Immigration Authority’s agreement to register the marriages of several Israeli couples, which were officiated in the state of Utah, USA. The ceremonies were held through a Zoom meeting (a platform with which everyone has become familiar in the past year), and the spouses were in Israel and did not leave its borders throughout the process.

After obtaining the signed marriage certificate, these couples turned to the Population Authority for official recognition of their marriage, expressed as a change in their status on their Israeli ID cards. Some couples’ status had already been changed to “married.” However, the Minister of Internal Affairs intervened and instructed Ministry officials to postpone the process for couples not officially registered as married. As a result, the issue is expected to reach the Supreme Court, which will rule on the question. The Attorney General was even petitioned to intervene, requiring the Minister of Internal Affairs to register the marriages. More developments are expected on the issue in the next few months.

On civil marriage in Israel

To understand the historical significance of the recognition of marriages officiated online, it is essential to know about the complicated issue of civil marriage in Israel. Israel does not recognize a marriage officiated on its territory but only a marriage performed under religious law. Until now, the closest thing to civil marriage in Israel was recognition of the spousal covenant, which was only relevant for a few couples.

Until now, Israeli couples who did not want to or could not marry under religious law but wished to be officially married generally had only two choices. The first is to officiate their marriage in another country, which allows Israelis to get married on their territory (such as Cyprus or the Czech Republic); the second is to perform the marriage in a country that will enable civil marriage by proxy. Until now, in most cases, these options required at least one of the partners to leave the country. Such travel was almost eliminated last year as the coronavirus pandemic greatly limited Israeli citizens’ entrance into foreign countries.

The procedure for recognition of civil marriage in Israel

There is a set procedure for the recognition of civil marriage in Israel. By the law and Interior Ministry regulations, marriage must be registered with a public document that verifies it. Presenting official documents from a foreign country that have been authenticated (usually with an apostille stamp) is usually enough to change the personal status of the spouses from single to married.

In the case we discussed above, such documents were presented. The marriage certificates came from the United States and had already been verified with an apostille stamp, and this met the legal requirements to register the marriage. Because some of these marriages have already been registered, a precedent seems to have been set, which will bring further developments. However, an appeal is being heard in court by couples whose marriages have not yet been registered. We will continue to follow the progress made on this critical issue and publish future updates.

May 1, 2024 – A new update to the Utah Marriage Laws

On May 1st, 2024, a drastic change was made to the Utah marriage Laws that had previously allowed for easy virtual marriages for Israelis. According to section 30-1-10 of the marriage laws in Utah, both parties must submit a signed affidavit to the county clerk,  making it difficult to engage in an online marriage successfully. This change comes directly from the 2024 81 Utah State General Assembly session and makes it significantly more difficult for Israelis to acquire an online marriage; however, it is still possible as long as the guidelines of Utah’s new legislation are followed. 

Contact an attorney specializing in family law and registering civil marriage with the Interior Ministry.

This article explains the crucial developments regarding Israeli civil marriage registration officiated online. For more questions and assistance on specific matters related to online marriage registration, see an expert family lawyer from our office. You can contact us at the phone numbers and email addresses below.

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03-3724722

055-9781688

office@lawoffice.org.il