The current legislation of the Russian Federation provides for the possibility of restoring marital relations after their official termination. But in what cases is it possible to restore a marriage after a divorce and how can this be done?
- When can a marriage be restored without re-registering it?
- Cancellation of a judicial act declaring a person dead or missing
- Cancellation of a death record
- Contacting the Civil Registry Office
- In what cases is a marriage required to be registered again?
- Submitting an application through the State Services portal
- Registration of a marital union
When can a marriage be restored without re-registering it?
The circumstances under which a divorced marriage can be restored are listed in. So, this can be done if one of the spouses was declared dead or missing by the court, but his whereabouts were later established.
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In this case, both parties (both husband and wife) must agree to restore the marital union and not be in another marriage - otherwise they will face a completely legitimate refusal.
In accordance with , recognition of a person as missing (or dead) is carried out exclusively in court. Accordingly, if a person who was recognized as such appears, first of all, it is required to go to court in order to challenge this decision.
Is it possible to restore a marriage after a divorce?
Due to the following circumstances, the marriage is dissolved due to legal facts established in court. The procedure for divorce on such grounds is carried out in the usual manner, but if necessary, the union can be restored.
In the event of the appearance of a spouse declared dead
Declaring a spouse dead by court is a procedure based on the assumption of his death or the unknown fact of whether he is alive or dead.
In this regard, family law provides for the restoration of marriage in the event that the spouse turns up after some time or his place of residence is discovered.
If this happens, the court is obliged to cancel the previously made decision that the citizen has died, by virtue of Article and 46 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Termination of a court order entails the cancellation of the civil status record of a person’s death.
Consequently, the marriage can be restored on the basis of Article 26 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation, if there are no other obstacles, which will be discussed later in the article. To do this, you will have to go through a number of procedures, without which the resumption of marital relations is impossible.
Restoration of a marriage by the Civil Registry Office has retroactive effect. Therefore, the spouses are officially husband and wife from the moment of the initial state registration of the marriage, and not from the time of its restoration; a new entry on the creation of a social unit is not made.
In the event of the appearance of a spouse recognized by the court as missing
If a spouse is declared absent on the basis of a court order, this does not lead to an automatic divorce.
This provision of the law is quite logical and justified, since declaring a citizen as such does not mean that he has died. Therefore, it is likely that in the future his whereabouts will become known or he will return home.
Due to the uncertainty of the situation of the missing person, the law allows the single spouse to divorce in a simplified manner; to initiate this process, he must submit an application to the registry office.
Expert opinion
Maria Lokshina
Family law expert since 2010
If the location of a missing citizen is discovered or upon his return, the court, similar to the situation with the annulment of the declaration of death, cancels the previously made decision. Therefore, restoring the marriage in this case will also not be difficult if certain conditions are met.
The legislative body introduced a special norm into the Family Code of the Russian Federation. This is the subject of paragraph 1 of Article 26, which is an addition to the provisions of the chapter aimed at regulating issues of official separation.
Divorce due to the disappearance of a person or his death is possible only by a court decision. And to restore such a marriage, you will need to follow a couple of formal procedures.
Cancellation of a judicial act declaring a person dead or missing
To cancel a decision, you need to fill out an application in which you will need to indicate the following information:
- The name of the judicial authority to which the appeal is made.
- FULL NAME. and the address of the place of residence/stay of the citizen acting as the applicant.
- Document's name.
- Information that the citizen was declared missing (or dead) with reference to the relevant court decision.
- List of rights that have been lost and are subject to restoration.
- A request to the court to cancel a previously made decision.
- List of attached documentation.
- Date of filing the claim and signature.
The list of attached documentation usually includes:
- Identity document.
- A copy of the court decision declaring a person dead (or missing).
- Original receipt confirming payment of the state duty.
applications for cancellation of the decision to declare deceased/missing
If desired, the applicant may, at his discretion, supplement the list with other documents.
The completed application is submitted to the court, after which, within 5 working days, the judge must make a decision on its acceptance or refusal. If accepted for proceedings, the applicant will be summoned to the trial, where the judge will interview him (and witnesses, if any), and then make a decision.
It is important to note that the cancellation of a previously made decision will entail not only the restoration of the marital union, but also other rights and obligations of the citizen (for example, making alimony payments).
Grounds for restoration of marriage
The direct reason for the renewal of the union is the appearance of the spouse declared dead or missing in court. Family restoration is allowed with mutual consent of the parties.
Renewal is required if the marriage was dissolved on the basis of clause 2 of Art. 19 of the RF IC, which states that the spouse has the right to file an application for divorce alone in a simplified form, subject to the conditions being met.
A detailed acquaintance with the process will help you understand the essence:
- The spouse disappears for more than 12 months. This is the basis for filing a claim to declare the man missing.
- The court makes a decision. A month later, the woman receives an extract and applies to the registry office with an application to terminate the marriage.
- A divorce certificate is issued.
- The man announces himself. Recognition presupposes that a person can be discovered and retains the right to family reunification, subject to all conditions being met.
- The complainant files an application to cancel the court decision.
- After receiving the new decision and its copy, a joint application to renew the marriage is submitted to the registry office.
Finally, a new registration document is issued.
Unlike remarriage, when remarried, the “marriage period” continues. These are completely different procedures, and in the latter case, the period of cohabitation is calculated from the date of the union, as if it had not been dissolved.
When is it impossible to restore a marriage?
The procedure is prohibited if the spouse is in a new marriage or does not agree with the restoration. If there is mutual agreement and there are no other registered relationships, the registry office will accept the documents and issue a new certificate.
Who can act as a plaintiff?
The procedure begins with filing an application to annul the previous decision. The plaintiff has the right to act as a disappeared person, recognized as dead, or his legal representative.
Relatives, social security authorities or the administration have the right to annul the decision. Unlike the court, where it is enough for one person to apply and provide evidence, a joint application is submitted to the registry office.
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Cancellation of a death record
When the court decision is made, the citizen must contact the civil registry office with a written request to cancel the death record. An application for cancellation of an act must be filled out on a standard form, which can be obtained from the authorized body.
The application form must include the following information:
- Name of the body to which the appeal is made.
- FULL NAME. the person acting as the applicant, his contact phone number, residence address and passport information.
- No. of the act entry that needs to be cancelled.
- The reason why such a need arose.
- A list of data about the person in respect of whom a record was made that is currently subject to cancellation (full name, date of birth, address of residence).
- List of attached documentation.
- Date of.
At the end of the application there must be a signature (with a transcript).
Civil registry office staff will review the application, and if they have no additional questions (for example, regarding the accuracy of the documentation provided), the entry will be cancelled.
What happens to the property after the marriage is restored?
What was acquired jointly regains this status and is the state of the two spouses. This rule is specified in Art. 34 of the RF IC, which specifies in detail what common property is. Regarding those objects that were the personal property of the missing/deceased person, the following rules apply:
- According to Art. 44 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, everything that was under the control of the manager is returned to the owner on the basis of a court decision. The management agreement is terminated and ownership is restored.
- In Part 2 of Art. 46 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation states that a person previously recognized as dead has the right to demand the return of property transferred free of charge to a relative or other citizen by inheritance.
Attention
There are some exceptions to the general rule. If funds and securities were to be transferred, and the recipient did not know that the person was alive, then the money and securities cannot be reclaimed forcibly. This is due to the fact that the recipient was mistaken in good faith. This rule is enshrined in paragraph 3 of Art. 302 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.
Contacting the Civil Registry Office
After the representative of the judicial authority has made a decision, and it has entered into legal force, and the death record has been cancelled, the next step is to contact the civil registry office.
Before contacting the authorized body, citizens will need to prepare the established list of documentation, namely:
- Identity documents of both parties.
- Judicial decision.
- Certificate of termination of marital relations.
- Statement.
The application must be filled out on a standard form, which can be obtained directly from the civil registry office.
After receiving an application from the spouses, employees of the authorized body will consider them, and then, if no additional obstacles arise, they will restore the union.
In this case, the marriage will be considered concluded not from the moment of its restoration, but from the initial registration.
What difficulties may arise?
After the marriage is restored, all rights and obligations of the found spouse are resumed. Children no longer receive survivor benefits.
Parents are not subject to child support obligations since the divorce has been annulled. The property rights of the spouses are also restored.
Each situation is individual, so it is advisable to get the help of a specialist. Contact a divorce lawyer for a free consultation on our website.
Based on Art. 26 of the RF IC allows restoration of marriage under certain circumstances. At the initiative of the parties, it is possible to renew the family union by contacting the judicial authority, and then the civil registry office.
In what cases is a marriage required to be registered again?
As mentioned above, it is possible to restore a dissolved marriage relationship if one of the spouses was recognized as missing or dead, but subsequently showed up and the parties expressed a corresponding desire. In other cases, citizens will need to go through the procedure of registering a marital union again (as the first time). In order to re-register a marriage, the parties are required to appear at the registry office or at the MFC, with the following package of documentation:
- Identification documents of the parties (passports).
- An application drawn up on a standard form.
- A document confirming the termination of a previously registered marriage relationship.
- The original receipt (check) for payment of the duty.
If we talk about the state duty, then as of 2021 its size is 350 rubles. Details for payment can be clarified directly with the authorized body, but payment can be made at any financial institution that provides such services.
The application must be filled out on Form No. 7 - it can be obtained from the authorized body directly in person, or by downloading it from the department’s website. The form will require the following information:
- Name of the authorized body to which the appeal is made.
- FULL NAME. sides
- Data about persons entering into a marital union (full name, date and place of birth, citizenship, nationality, education, residential address, passport information, marital status, details of the document confirming the breakup of the previous union).
- Last names that applicants want to keep (assign) to themselves after joining a family union.
- Document submission date.
Sample application for marriage (form No. 7):
Download the application in doc format
If one of the parties for some reason is unable to appear, then she is required to fill out an application in Form No. 8.
Documents for marital restitution
The legal side of restoring a marriage after a divorce begins with collecting all the necessary papers.
To file a petition with the district court, the plaintiff must prepare the following package of documents:
- the plaintiff’s passport, if available;
- ID card, if you lose your passport;
- application and receipts for payment of state duty;
- court decision on unilateral divorce;
- evidence documents.
To complete the process at the civil registry office, the following documents are needed:
- passports of spouses (or passport and identity card);
- a court ruling canceling the decision to dissolve the family union;
- statements of spouses expressing voluntary consent and desire to renew the marriage.
If your passport is lost, its restoration under different circumstances may take varying amounts of time, sometimes quite a long time. In such a situation, an application is submitted to the authorities of the Ministry of Internal Affairs with a request to issue a temporary identity card, which both the registry office and the court are obliged to accept instead of a passport. Representatives of the court authorities or the registry office may request additional documents on an individual basis.
Submitting an application through the State Services portal
In addition to contacting the registry office, citizens can use an alternative option - the help of the State Services portal. To do this, you must have an authorized account (otherwise you will need to spend additional time verifying your account).
If both applicants have an account, you will need to complete the following steps:
- Filling out an application
The application will need to provide information about the parties. It is important to take into account that the application will be general, but citizens must fill it out each from their personal account (personal account). In addition, one of the future spouses will have to choose a registry office and a date, and the second will have to confirm the choice of the first.
- Payment of state duty
Just as with a personal application, when processing documents through the portal, applicants will need to pay a state fee. If payment is made remotely (using one of the methods offered on the website), then you will need to deposit not 350 rubles as in the method described above, but 245 rubles.
When it is impossible to renew a divorced marriage
Due to certain circumstances, the marriage cannot be restored. This:
- divorce by mutual consent of husband and wife in court or the registry office (that is, not due to the fact that one of the spouses was declared dead or missing);
- the presence of one of the spouses of the other not dissolved marriage;
- lack of will of a man or woman to restore the family.
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Registration of a marital union
After the documents have been submitted (regardless of how this was done), citizens are required to appear at the authorized body for registration at the specified time. After registration of the marriage union, the spouses will be issued a certificate confirming this fact. In this case, the date of its re-registration will be considered the beginning of the family union.
If the certificate of registration of marriage relations is lost, it can be restored by contacting the department with an application and a receipt for payment of the state duty.
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