Marriage & Personal Matters in India

Family law in India is personal-law based: marriage, divorce, maintenance and succession are governed by the law of the parties’ religion (Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Parsi) or by the secular Special Marriage Act 1954, all administered through the Family Courts. This page covers the civil family-law lifecycle – marriage and registration, divorce, maintenance and alimony, matrimonial property, and children (custody, guardianship and relocation) – and protection from domestic violence, the civil and criminal routes that sit alongside it. Two framework points matter throughout: the criminal law was recodified from 1 July 2024, so the old Indian Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code citations have changed (cruelty, formerly IPC 498A, is now BNS Sections 85 and 86; maintenance, formerly CrPC 125, is now BNSS Section 144); and a Uniform Civil Code has begun at state level, with Uttarakhand the first to bring one into force (27 January 2025). For cross-border families, India’s non-accession to the Hague child-abduction convention shapes how custody and relocation are handled between India and the UAE. This is general information; family matters are fact-specific and the law varies by personal law and state, so take advice on the specific situation.

A single guide to the family-law lifecycle in India – marriage, divorce, maintenance, children and protection from domestic violence – including for NRI and India–UAE families.

At a glance

• System: Personal-law based – Hindu, Muslim, Christian and Parsi laws, plus the secular Special Marriage Act 1954; administered by Family Courts (Family Courts Act 1984)
• Marriage: Registration under the applicable Act; the Foreign Marriage Act 1969 for marriages abroad
• Divorce: Mutual consent (e.g. Section 13B, Hindu Marriage Act, with a cooling-off period that can be waived) and contested (grounds under each personal law); judicial separation
• Maintenance: Interim (HMA Section 24), permanent alimony (HMA Section 25, HAMA), and the secular summary remedy under former CrPC 125, now BNSS Section 144
• Children: Custody and guardianship under the Guardians and Wards Act 1890 and the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act 1956, on the welfare-of-the-child principle
• Domestic violence: Civil protection under the PWDVA 2005 (protection, residence, monetary and custody orders) and the criminal route (cruelty – BNS Sections 85–86; dowry)
• Cross-border: Foreign-decree recognition (Section 13, CPC); India is not a party to the Hague child-abduction convention – relevant to India–UAE custody and relocation

1. The framework – personal law, the Family Courts and the 2024 recodification

India has no single family code. Instead, the core questions – who may marry, on what grounds a marriage may be dissolved, who is entitled to maintenance, and how children and property are dealt with – are answered by the personal law of the parties: the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 (and allied Hindu statutes) for Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs; Muslim personal law (the Shariat Application Act 1937 and the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act 1939); the Indian Christian Marriage Act 1872 and the Divorce Act 1869 for Christians; and the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act 1936 for Parsis. Couples of any or mixed faiths can marry and divorce under the secular Special Marriage Act 1954. Most contested family matters are heard by Family Courts under the Family Courts Act 1984, which are designed to be less formal and to encourage settlement.

Two framework developments now run across the whole field. First, the criminal law was recodified with effect from 1 July 2024: the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act were replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 (BNS), the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 (BNSS) and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023 (BSA). Provisions that family practitioners rely on have been renumbered – most importantly, the offence of cruelty by a husband or his relatives (formerly IPC Section 498A) is now Sections 85 and 86 of the BNS (Section 85 the offence, Section 86 the definition), and the summary maintenance remedy (formerly CrPC Section 125) is now Section 144 of the BNSS. The substance is largely carried over, but the citations must be stated correctly. Second, a Uniform Civil Code has begun to appear at state level: Uttarakhand became the first state to bring a UCC into force, on 27 January 2025, standardising marriage, divorce, succession and inheritance in that state and making registration of marriages and live-in relationships compulsory. Other states are considering similar codes. The UCC does not change the personal-law position elsewhere, but its applicability should be checked for families connected to a state that has enacted one.

2. Marriage and its registration

A valid marriage in India is solemnised under the parties’ applicable law and is best registered, both for proof and because registration is increasingly required for practical purposes – visas, name changes, bank and immigration matters, and (in states with a UCC) by law. Registration routes follow the marriage law used: under the Hindu Marriage Act, the Special Marriage Act (the civil and interfaith route, which involves a notice period), the Indian Christian Marriage Act or the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act. Indian nationals marrying abroad, or marrying a foreign national, may use the Foreign Marriage Act 1969, and a foreign marriage often needs attestation and recognition steps to be relied on in India or in a third country such as the UAE. Couples sometimes also put pre- or post-marital arrangements in place; while the enforceability of such agreements in India is more limited than in some other jurisdictions, they can record intentions on property and finances and are increasingly used by cross-border couples.

3. Divorce and judicial separation

Indian law recognises both mutual-consent and contested divorce. The mutual-consent route – for Hindus, Section 13B of the Hindu Marriage Act, with equivalents under the other laws – is the faster and less adversarial path: the parties file jointly, and after a statutory cooling-off period (six months under Section 13B), a second motion leads to the decree. The Supreme Court has confirmed that the cooling-off period can be waived in appropriate cases, which is particularly useful for NRI couples who cannot easily make repeated court appearances. A contested divorce proceeds on the grounds available under the relevant personal law – which differ by religion but commonly include cruelty, desertion, adultery and, in some laws, conversion or mental disorder – and is necessarily slower and more evidence-intensive. Where divorce is not sought or not yet available, judicial separation allows the parties to live apart with the court’s sanction while the marriage subsists. Throughout, the Family Courts encourage settlement and mediation, and a negotiated resolution recorded in a consent decree is often the most durable outcome.

4. Maintenance and alimony

Financial support on separation or divorce comes from more than one source, and the routes can overlap. Under the Hindu Marriage Act, a spouse may claim interim maintenance and litigation expenses during the proceedings under Section 24 (available to either spouse), and permanent alimony under Section 25 on or after the decree; the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act 1956 provides a separate maintenance right for a Hindu wife. Cutting across the personal laws is the secular summary remedy – historically Section 125 of the CrPC, now Section 144 of the BNSS – which allows a wife (including, on the Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling, a divorced Muslim woman), children and parents who are unable to maintain themselves to obtain a relatively swift maintenance order to prevent destitution, regardless of religion. Quantum is assessed on the parties’ means and standard of living, and the Supreme Court has laid down guidance requiring disclosure of income and assets and the avoidance of overlapping awards. Maintenance for children is a distinct entitlement, owed regardless of the parents’ own dispute. For cross-border families, a recurring question is whether a UAE-based NRI can be ordered to pay maintenance in India – the Indian court can make the order; the practical issue is enforcement against a person and assets abroad, which is addressed in the cross-border section below.

5. Matrimonial property and settlement

India does not have a community-of-property or automatic equal-division regime; ownership generally follows title, and a spouse does not acquire an automatic share in property held in the other’s sole name merely by reason of the marriage. What the courts do is resolve disputes over jointly held or jointly funded assets, order maintenance and alimony (which can be structured as a lump sum or periodic payments), and give effect to the parties’ own settlement. In practice, many matrimonial financial disputes are resolved by a negotiated memorandum of understanding translated into a consent decree, dealing with alimony, the matrimonial home, return of gifts and streedhan (the wife’s property), and the withdrawal of cross-claims. A clean, comprehensively drafted settlement is usually preferable to contested litigation over each asset, and is essential where the parties want finality and cross-border recognition.

6. Children – custody, guardianship and relocation

In any matter concerning a child, the welfare of the child is the paramount consideration – it overrides the asserted rights of either parent. Custody (with whom the child lives and how the other parent has contact) and guardianship (legal authority over the child and the child’s property) are governed principally by the Guardians and Wards Act 1890 (which applies across communities) and, for Hindus, the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act 1956. Indian courts increasingly favour arrangements that preserve the child’s relationship with both parents, including joint or shared custody and structured visitation, while keeping the welfare test central. Child support is a separate and continuing obligation. Where a parent wishes to relocate with a child – common in NRI families – the other parent’s consent is generally required, and a child’s passport and travel can be restricted pending the court’s decision.

This is where the India–UAE cross-border position is most acute. India is not a party to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, so the rapid “return” mechanism that operates between Convention countries is not available for a child wrongfully removed to or retained in India. Cross-border custody and relocation between India and the UAE therefore have to be handled through the courts of each country on welfare principles, often in parallel proceedings, rather than through an automatic international remedy. Families moving between the two jurisdictions should plan custody and travel arrangements with that gap firmly in mind, and obtain advice on both sides early.

7. Domestic violence and family protection

Protection from domestic violence runs on two tracks – a civil protective route and a criminal route – and they can operate together.

The civil route is the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 (PWDVA), a powerful and relatively quick remedy. It defines domestic violence broadly to include physical, sexual, verbal, emotional and economic abuse, and protects a woman in a domestic relationship (including wives and partners in relationships in the nature of marriage). On an application – which can be supported by a Domestic Incident Report prepared by a Protection Officer under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Rules 2006 – a Magistrate can grant a range of orders: a protection order (restraining further violence or contact), a residence order (protecting the woman’s right to remain in, or be provided with, the shared household), a monetary relief order (for expenses and losses), a custody order in respect of children, and compensation. These orders are designed to be obtained quickly, and breach of a protection order is itself an offence.

The criminal route addresses cruelty and dowry harassment. The offence of cruelty by a husband or his relatives – historically IPC Section 498A – is now Sections 85 and 86 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (Section 85 creating the offence, Section 86 defining cruelty), carrying imprisonment of up to three years and a fine; dowry-related offences continue under the Dowry Prohibition Act 1961 and the dowry-death provision (now Section 80 of the BNS). Because these are serious provisions that can be misused, the law and the courts have built in safeguards – preliminary scrutiny before arrest in cruelty matters, and the availability of anticipatory bail (now under Section 482 of the BNSS) and of quashing of unfounded complaints by the High Court. A respondent facing a complaint, and a complainant seeking protection, both benefit from careful, early handling. Many family disputes that involve allegations of violence are also capable of mediated resolution, and the courts will often explore that where it is safe and appropriate.

Safety note: anyone in immediate danger should contact the police on 112 or the Women Helpline on 181. This page is legal information about the available remedies, not emergency support.

8. NRI and cross-border family matters

For non-resident Indians and India–UAE families, several recurring issues sit on top of the domestic framework. An NRI can file for divorce in India where the jurisdictional connection exists, and the mutual-consent route (with the cooling-off waiver where eligible) is often the most practical. A foreign divorce decree can be recognised in India under Section 13 of the Code of Civil Procedure, but not automatically – recognition depends on the foreign court’s jurisdiction and the decree meeting the conditions of Section 13 (for example, that it was given on the merits and is not contrary to Indian law or natural justice); a decree that does not meet those conditions may not be recognised, and parties sometimes need parallel Indian proceedings. Maintenance ordered in India against a UAE-based spouse raises questions of cross-border enforcement against a person and assets abroad. And, as set out above, cross-border custody and relocation between India and the UAE are shaped by India’s non-accession to the Hague abduction convention. In each of these situations a coordinated India–UAE approach – aligning filings, recognition requirements and timing across both jurisdictions – tends to produce better outcomes than treating each side in isolation. Matters of wills, succession and inheritance are dealt with on our separate India succession page; this page touches them only where a family dispute affects estate planning.

Key points at a glance

Frequently asked questions