Bachelor/Single Status Certificate

Table of Contents

What Is A Bachelor Certificate?

A Bachelor Certificate is the Certificate which proves that a particular person is un- married and single in status. In India, there is no prior requirement to issue a show cause notice to prove singlehood of the spouse before getting married. Although, there is a provision to certify marriage under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (for Hindus) and the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (for Religion other than Hindu). However, if an Indian NRI wants to get married abroad there is a requirement to prove that he is single at the present time. Almost every European country and some Asian countries, like the Philippines, Malaysia, China and Indonesia, have provision to present the certificate of no marriage record (CENOMAR). Despite being known with different names, the motto of all of these docs is synonymous, i.e. to prove the singleness of an individual.

Do You Require This Certificate?

This certificate is required by only few people who fall under the category of:

Those Indian who are going to get married a foreign country citizen.

Those people who are going abroad for study and job purpose.

Those people who are hoping to start job in Military or CISF.

Why Do You need a Single Status Certificate?

The need of single status certificate falls under many criterion:

This certificate is a legal requirement of every country, which proves the fact that a person is unmarried.

It also helps to avoid crimes like polygamy and illegal marriages from happening.

Also a plain statement stating the marital status is not valid, and therefore need to undergo certificate attestation or certificate apostille which increases the authenticity of the Single Status Certificate.

The Attestation of Single Status Certificate makes the document legal and acceptable in every country.

What Documents Do You Require To Get Single Status Certificate?

The requirement of this document falls under two categories of people (a) Bachelor’s (b) Divorced/Widowed. However, all the documents are more the same but the latter has to submit some additional documents in contrast to the former applicant.

For Bachelors

An affidavit stating the affiant is single with more requisite details of address, identity and witnesses.

Address proof, like Bank Passbook, rental agreement, voter ID, Aadhar card etc.

Passport or visa.

Birth proof, like birth certificate, NABC, school certificate.

Parents’ proof, their voter ID, Aadhaar card.

For Divorced/Widowed- In addition to the foregone proofs, the divorced applicant have to submit:

Decree Absolute, if the applicant is legally divorced.

Death certificate, if the applicant’s former spouse is no more.

Which Authority Issues Single Status Certificate?

A Certificate of Bachelorhood/single-status/eligibility to get married can be issued by a competent court having jurisdiction of the area of the residential address of the applicant. However there are many institutions which play a vital role in issuing this certificate. They are as follows:

Notary – The notary is the rudimental block of the legal system. A notary is legalized by the government to verify the authenticity of documents. They verify the necessary documents, and then stamps and signs accordingly.

SDM – The Sub-Divisional Magistrate, or the Home Department is the head authority of the district subdivision. They SDM verifies the affidavit and puts the stamp on the document stating the certificate attestation as valid.

MEA – The Ministry of External Affairs is the topmost authority in the process of certificate attestation. Once the MEA stamp has been placed, the document is said to be authorized by the home government

Embassy – The Embassy is the institution that represents the foreign country. Most document authentication does not require Embassy approval. However, in the case of certain countries, certificate apostille has to be performed, and the document has to be stamped by the Embassy, after the MEA approval

What Is The Procedure To Get A Single Status Certificate?

There is a 7 steps required procedure to get your single status certificate. These steps are to be followed in a chronological way:

First you need to get an affidavit declaring your single status. (Other info like your Passport number, address, date of birth etc needs to be clearly mentioned).

Second you need to get a stamp from the Sub-district magistrate or District magistrate or Court. (None of these parties willingly provide the stamp).

Third you have to take it to the Home department and get it attested.

Fourthly you have to take this affidavit to the Ministry of External Affairs or branch office and get the apostle.

Fifth you need to take a demand draft.

Sixth you have to take this to the Indian embassy or to another foreign embassy where you wish to marry.

Seventh, your apostille should be done in ten days.

What Is The Format Of A Single Status Affidavit?

An affidavit is a series of statements confirmed by an oath or affirmation given by the applicant which is used as evidence in courts. A person needs to get an affidavit declaring that he is at present single. In order to write an affidavit following statements and formats are used which should be kept in mind such as;

I, Name, S/o Mr. Father’s name and Mothers name, residing at Address, INDIA. Do hereby solemnly affirm and declare as under:

That I am a Citizen of India.

That I was born on DD/MM/YYYY (DDTH Day of Month(eg) July YEAR (eg) Nineteen Hundred Eighty Four) at Birth place, State, INDIA.

I say that I am holding a valid Indian Passport bearing number (Passport number) issued at (Issuing place) and is valid from date of issue (Validity from) to date of expiry (Validity to).

I say that I am single/divorced and I have no living spouse at present either in India or abroad.

That I am eligible to marry an Indian or person of any other nationality according to Law.

I further state whatever stated herein above is correct to the best of my knowledge and is punishable under 193 (2), 199, 200 of IPC.

I am of sound health and in mentally fit condition.

Those above are my true and correct statements.

Solemnly declared at City, State, India on the date DD/MM/YYYY.

However the point to be noted is that the format keeps on changing from time to time as per the law. Therefore one must be updated with the current format. A sample of Single Status Affidavit is given below

How Much Money Is Required?

The cost of the process depends on the process. The only fixed fee is the one to be paid at the MEA. The rest of the cost varies from state to state, on the facilities obtained through the agency, the type; apostille or attestation, etc. However the minimum cost as per as the estimate are given below:

Fee for Notary – INR350
Fee for Attestation – INR105
Fee for Apostille – INR50

If you get the Home/SDM attestation and Apostille done via an authorised agent, they charge anywhere from INR2000-3000 depending upon the location.

How Much Time Does It Require?

The duration again depends on the procedure. The DM or SDM usually have long queues and complex bureaucratic procedures. Apart from this, certificate apostille and certificate attestation both take different amounts of time. It could take much longer for the affiant to go through these hurdles by themselves. However, if using the help of an Attestation and Apostille agency, it could be done faster and is normally done in 10 days.

Extra Information Which Might Help

It is advisable to follow the guidelines that certain authorities deem necessary. Those wishing to marry overseas will need special documentation. First, couples will have to present a declaration that is processed by your local office where marriage documents are produced. This must be from the state where you live in India. This statement will be recorded the fact that there has not been any marriage in recent years.

Due to the fact that these types of documents are sought for foreign involvement one will need the local or state registrars account or declaration to be authenticated to work abroad.

Go to the Civil Registry office where marriages are registered.

Present and submit required documents.

Complete a form and declare.

Pay the fee.