Book 1 — Marriage

Marriage is a legal contract by which a man and a woman mutually consent to unite in a
common and enduring conjugal life. Its purpose is fidelity, virtue and the creation of a
stable family, under the supervision of both spouses according to the provisions of this
Moudawana.

Chapter I: Of Engagement

Engagement is the reciprocal promise of marriage between a man and a woman.
Engagement takes place through the expression by the two parties of a reciprocal
promise to marry by any accepted means, including the reading of the Sura of Al Fatiha
from the Holy Koran and the customary exchange of presents.

The two parties are considered to be in an engagement period until the marriage is
officially registered. Each party has the right to break off the engagement.

No compensation is due for breaking off the engagement. However, if one of the parties
causes any harm to the other, the injured party may ask for compensation from the
other.

Either party may recover the presents he or she offered to the other provided that the
breaking off of the engagement was not his or her decision. Presents are returned in the
state in which they were initially offered or reimbursed according to their value,
depending on the circumstances.

If the engaged man pays the dowry or part of it and the engagement is broken off, or if
one of the parties dies during the engagement period, he or his inheritors recovers what
the latter initially offered in its original state, something comparable, or something of
equivalent value. If the engaged woman refuses to reimburse the money with which she
bought furniture, the person responsible for breaking off the engagement assumes the
loss between the value of the furniture and the amount of money initially paid.

Chapter II: Of Marriage

1. Marriage is legally concluded by an offer expressed by one of the parties and
acceptance by the other, in any accepted expression from which the meaning of
marriage is inferred verbally or conventionally.

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. Persons unable to speak may legally write their consent if they are literate, and if they
cannot write, any clear sign understood by the other party and the witnesses is legally
sufficient.

To be valid, the offer and acceptance must be:
1- expressed verbally whenever possible; otherwise, they must be written; or else
expressed by means of an unequivocal sign;
2- congruent and concurrent;
3- irrevocable and not restricted by a condition or a suspensive or nullifying deadline.

Any marriage contract concluded under duress or by fraud is subject to the provisions of
Articles 63 and 66 below.

The conditions required to contract marriage are:
1- The legal capacity of both spouses to marry;
2- No intention or agreement to cancel the dowry;
3- A marital tutor, if required;
4- The hearing and notarized statement by two adouls (public notaries) of the offer and
acceptance pronounced by the two spouses;
5- The absence of any legal impediments.

Moroccans living abroad may conclude their marriage according to the local
administrative procedures of their country of residence, provided that the conditions of
consent, capacity, and the marital tutor if required are all fulfilled, and that there are no
legal impediments to the marriage nor cancellation of the dowry; and this in the
presence of two Muslim witnesses and subject to the provisions of Article 21 below.

Moroccans who have concluded their marriage according to the laws of their country of
residence must submit a copy of the marriage contract within three months of its
conclusion to the Moroccan consular section of the consular district where the marriage
contract was concluded. In the absence of a Moroccan Consulate, the copy must be
sent within the same deadline to the appropriate department at the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs.
The appropriate department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will transmit this copy to
the Civil Status Officer and to the Family Court at the birthplaces of both spouses.
If both or one of the spouses was not born in Morocco, the copy will be transmitted to
the Family Court in Rabat and to the Attorney General’s Office at the Court of First
Instance in Rabat.

A marriage contract is the accepted legal proof of marriage.

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If for reasons of force majeure the marriage contract was not officially registered in due
time, the court may take into consideration all legal evidence and expertise;
During its enquiry the court shall take into consideration the existence of children or a
pregnancy from the conjugal relationship, and whether the petition was brought during
the couple’s lifetimes;

Petitions for recognition of a marriage are admissible within an interim period not to
exceed five years from the date this law goes into effect.

The marriage contract is concluded in the presence of the parties. However, delegation
to a proxy is possible with the authorization of the Family Affairs Judge in charge of
marriage under the following conditions:
1- Special circumstances that prevent the delegating party to be personally present to
conclude the marriage contract;
2- A delegation for the marriage contract drawn up by a notary or public authority, or a
private contract with the notarized signature of the delegating party;
3- The proxy must have reached the age of legal majority, enjoy full civil capacity,
and fulfil the conditions of tutelage if designated by the marital tutor;
4- The delegating party must indicate in the delegation the name of the other spouse,
his/her personal information, and all other information that she or he judges useful to
include;
5- The delegation must include the amount of the dowry payable in advance or in the
future. The delegating party must also specify the conditions that she or he wants to
stipulate in the marriage contract and the conditions that she or he is willing to accept
from the other party;
6- The delegation must be certified by the judge once he verifies that it meets all of the
required conditions.

A judge may not validate the marriage of a person under his tutelage to himself or to any
of his ascendants or descendants.

Title Two: Of Capacity, Tutelage and the Dowry
Chapter I: Of Capacity and Tutelage in Marriage

Men and women acquire the capacity to marry when they are of sound mind and have
completed eighteen full Gregorian years of age.

The Family Affairs Judge in charge of marriage may authorize the marriage of a girl or
boy below the legal age of marriage as stipulated in preceding Article 19, in a well-
substantiated decision explaining the interest and reasons justifying the marriage, after
having heard the parents of the minor who has not yet reached the age of capacity or
his/her legal tutor, with the assistance of medical expertise or after having conducted a
social enquiry.

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The decree granting the petition to marry for a minor who has not reached the age of
legal capacity for marriage is not open to appeal.

The marriage of a minor is contingent on the consent of his/her legal tutor.
The legal tutor’s consent is expressed by signing, along with the minor, the marriage
authorization petition and being present during the conclusion of the marriage contract.
If the minor’s legal tutor refuses to consent, the Family Affairs Judge rules on the matter.

The two spouses acquire, pursuant to preceding Article 20, the civil capacity to bring suit
on matters pertaining to the rights and obligations created by the marriage contract.
The court may, upon request from one of the spouses or his/her legal tutor, determine
the financial obligations of the husband in question as well as payment methods.

The Family Affairs Judge in charge of marriage may authorize the marriage of a mentally
disabled person after presentation by one or several medical experts of a report on the
state of the person’s disability.

The judge informs the other party of the findings and officially records the notice.
The other party must be of legal majority and explicitly consent in an official record to
marrying a disabled person.

Marital tutelage is the woman’s right, which she exercises upon reaching majority
according to her choice and interests.

The woman of legal majority may conclude her marriage contract herself or delegate this
power to her father or one of her relatives.

Chapter II: Of the Dowry

The dowry is that which the husband gives to his wife as an expression of his desire to
marry her and to build a stable family based on affection and good amicable relations
between husband and wife. Its legitimacy is based on its moral and symbolic value
rather than its material value.

The dowry amount is specified upon the conclusion of the marriage contract, and in the
event it is not specified, the marriage is deemed one of “entrustment.”

If the husband and wife do not agree on the amount of dowry during the marriage of

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“entrustment”, the court shall determine its amount by taking into consideration the
social background of both the husband and wife.

Anything that constitutes a source of legal commitment can serve as a dowry, and the
dowry should be modest.

The dowry is the woman’s property to use as she wishes, and the husband has no right
to ask her for furniture or anything else in exchange for the dowry he gave her.

The husband and wife may agree on the immediate or deferred payment of the dowry
within a fixed deadline, be it for the entire amount or for part of it.

The dowry is paid on the fixed deadline. The wife may ask for the payment of the dowry
before starting conjugal life. When conjugal life commences before payment of the
dowry, it becomes a debt on the husband.

The wife’s right to the totality of the dowry vests with the consummation of the marriage
or if she dies before the husband does. She has the right to half of the dowry if divorce
occurs before the marriage is consummated. She has no right to the dowry before the
marriage is consummated:
1- When the marriage contract is nullified;
2- When the marriage contract is rejected because of a defect in the wife or because of
a defect in the husband;
3- When divorce occurs in a marriage of “entrustment.”

When the payment of the dowry before the marriage is consummated is in dispute, the
wife’s declaration takes precedence over the husband’s.
When the payment of the deferred dowry is in dispute, the husband must prove that he
has paid it. The dowry is not subject to prescription.

All possessions the wife brings with her to the marriage including furniture and
accompanying items are her property. When disputes arise concerning the remaining
household furnishings, the matter is decided according to general rules of evidence.
However, if neither the husband nor the wife presents any evidence, the husband under
oath claims those effects that men habitually use and the wife under oath claims those
effects that women habitually use. Objects commonly used by men and women will be,
upon the sworn word of both of the spouses, shared between them when neither of them
renounces his or her oath.

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 Title Three: Of Marriage Impediments

There are two categories of marriage impediments: permanent and temporary.

Chapter I: Of Permanent Impediments

Prohibited degrees of blood kinship relations, including a man’s ancestors, ascendants,
and descendants.

Forbidden degrees of kinship by marriage, including the wives’ ascendants at the
moment the marriage contract is concluded and their descendants if the marriage has
been consummated with the mother, as well as the lineal paternal wives and the direct
filial wives at the time of the marriage contract’s conclusion.

Impediments to marriage resulting from kinship by breastfeeding are the same as those
prohibited through blood kinship and kinship by marriage. Only the breastfed child – not
his or her brothers and sisters - is considered the child of the woman who breastfeeds
him or her and of her husband.

Breastfeeding is only an impediment to marriage if it occurred during the first two years
of the child’s life.

Chapter II: Of the Temporary Impediments

The temporary impediments to marriage are:
1- Marriage simultaneously to two sisters or to a woman and her paternal or maternal
aunt, be the relation one of blood kinship or breastfeeding;
2- Marriage to more than the legally authorized number of wives;
3- After three successive repudiations, unless the wife’s iddat (or legal waiting period)
has expired following the lawful conclusion and consummation of a marriage to another
man.

The remarriage of the thrice repudiated woman to another man annuls the three
previous repudiations pronounced by the first repudiating husband. The resumption of
marriage with this husband renews his right to repudiate her anew three times.
4- The marriage of a Muslim woman to a non-Muslim man, and the marriage of a Muslim
man to a non-Muslim woman unless she is of the Christian or Jewish faith;
5- A married woman or a woman who is observing the iddat (legal waiting period).

Polygamy is forbidden when there is the risk of inequity between the wives. It is also
forbidden when the wife stipulates in the marriage contract that her husband will not take

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another wife.

The court will not authorize polygamy:
- If an exceptional and objective justification is not proven.
- If the man does not have sufficient resources to support the two families and guarantee
all maintenance rights, accommodation and equality in all aspects of life.

In the absence of a stipulation by the wife in the marriage contract precluding polygamy,
the husband wishing to resort to it must petition the court for authorization.
The authorization petition should include the exceptional and objective motives that
justify the request, and attach a statement on the applicant’s financial situation.

The court summons the wife whose husband wishes to take another wife. When she
personally receives the summons and does not appear in court, or refuses to accept the
summons, the court sends her a formal notice by a process server instructing her that if
she does not appear at the hearing scheduled in the notice, the husband’s petition will
be decided in her absence.

The petition is also decided in the wife’s absence when it is impossible for the Public
Prosecutor Office to ascertain her permanent address or place of residence where the
summons may be delivered.

When the wife does not receive the summons due to the mala fide transmission of a
false address by the husband or the falsification of the wife’s name, the husband incurs,
upon request by the prejudiced wife, the penalties provided for in Article 361 of the
Penal Code.

The hearing takes place in the consultation room in the presence of both parties, and
both are heard in order to reach agreement and reconcile them after an examination of
the facts and the presentation of the requested justifications.

The court may authorize polygamy in a well-founded decision not open to appeal once it
establishes the existence of an objective and exceptional justification and puts into place
conditions benefiting the first wife and her children.

When the court confirms in the discussions that continuation of the conjugal relationship
is impossible, and where the wife whose husband wants to take another wife persists in
her request for a divorce, the court determines a sum of money corresponding to the first
wife’s full rights as well as those of their children that he is required to support.
The husband must pay the fixed sum of money within a maximum time limit of seven
days.
Upon submission of the requisite sum of money, the court issues the divorce decree.

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This decision is not open to appeal as concerns the dissolution of the marital
relationship.

The non submission of the requisite sum of money within the fixed deadline is
considered as a withdrawal of the polygamy authorization petition.
If the husband persists in his polygamy authorization petition, and the wife to whom he
wishes to join a co-wife refuses to consent and does not ask for divorce, the court
automatically applies the irreconcilable differences procedure in Articles 94 and 97
below.

If the polygamy authorisation petition is granted, the marriage with the future wife cannot
be concluded until the judge has informed her that the applicant husband is already
married and she has consented to this.

This notice and consent are recorded in an official report.

Title Four: Of Volitional Conditions in the Marriage Contract and their Effects

All conditions are binding except for those contrary to the terms and objectives of
marriage and to compulsory legal rules; such conditions are void while the contract
remains valid.

Conditions that confer a legitimate benefit on the person who drew them up are valid
and binding on the spouse who agreed to them. If facts or circumstances render the
material performance of a condition difficult, the person bound by it may ask the court for
a waiver or a modification of the condition, for as long as these facts or circumstances
exist, taking into consideration the provisions of preceding Article 40.

Each of the two spouses has an estate separate from the other. However, the two
spouses may, under the framework of the management of assets to be acquired during
the marriage, agree on their investment and distribution.

This agreement is indicated in a written document separate from the marriage contract.
The Adouls (public notaries) inform the two parties of these provisions at the time of the
marriage.

In the absence of such an agreement, recourse is made to general standards of
evidence, while taking into consideration the work of each spouse, the efforts made as
well as the responsibilities assumed in the development of the family assets.

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 Title Five: Of Marriage Categories and Provisions
Chapter I: Of the Valid Marriage and its Effects

When the marriage contract meets all legal requirements, and there are no impediments
to the marriage, the marriage is considered a valid one, and leads to the full implication
of rights and duties that the Sharia (religious law) establishes between the husband and
wife, children and relatives as stated in this Moudawana.

Section 1: Of the Husband and Wife

The mutual rights and duties between spouses are:
1- lawful cohabitation on the basis of good conjugal relations, justice, equality in case of
polygamy, mutual fidelity, virtue, and the preservation of family honour and their
children;
2- cohabitation, mutual respect, affection, and the preservation of the family interests;
3- the wife’s assuming with the husband the responsibility of managing and protecting
household affairs and the children’s education;
4- consultation on decisions concerning the management of family affairs, children, and
family planning;
5- good relations with each other’s parents and close relatives, respecting, visiting and
hosting them within accepted standards;
6- the right to inherit from each other.

When either spouse continually fails to fulfil his or her obligations in marriage, as
specified in the preceding article, the other party may compel the spouse to execute the
obligation or resort to the irreconcilable differences procedure provided for in Articles 94,
95, 96 and 97 below.

When either spouse evicts the other from the marital home without justification, the
Public Prosecutor shall intervene to return the evicted person to the house immediately
and shall take all necessary measures to guarantee his or her safety and protection.

Section 2: Of Children

Children have the right to the following care from their parents:
1- Protection of their lives and health from conception until they come of legal age;
2- Ensuring respect of their identity and its preservation, particularly their name,
nationality and registration in the civil status record;
3- Paternity, custodial care and financial maintenance in conformity with the provisions
of the third book of this Moudawana;
4- Breastfeeding by the mother whenever possible;
5- All possible measures that guarantee the children’s natural development, with the
protection of their physical and psychological integrity, and care for their health

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through both prevention and treatment;
6- Religious guidance, proper education on sound noble principles of honesty in
statements and actions, prevention of violence against children that leads to physical
and psychological harm, and protection from any exploitation that might harm their
interests;
7- Providing them with education and training that will enable them to integrate
professional life and become useful citizens in society. To the extent possible, parents
must provide adequate circumstances for their children to pursue their studies
according to their physical and intellectual capacities.
In the event of divorce between the spouses, these duties are distributed between the
spouses according to the custody provisions.

In the event of the death of one or both spouses, these duties are incumbent upon the
custodian and the legal tutor, according to their respective responsibilities.
The disabled child enjoys, in addition to the abovementioned rights, the right to special
care for his condition, particularly adequate education and rehabilitation appropriate for
his disability in order to facilitate his integration into society.

The State is responsible for taking the necessary adequate measures to protect
children, and for guaranteeing and protecting their rights according to the law.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office shall monitor the application of the preceding provisions.

Section 3: Of Relatives

The marriage contract has effects that extend to each spouse’s relatives, including
marriage impediments due to kinship by marriage, breastfeeding, and affiliation.

Chapter II: Of the Invalid Marriage and its Effects

The invalid marriage is either null and void or defective.

Section 1: Of the Null and Void Marriage

The marriage is null and void when:
1- One of the fundamental conditions cited in Article 10 is not fulfilled;
2- If one of the marriage impediments cited in preceding Articles 35 to 39 exists between
the spouses;
3- Absence of congruence between the offer and the acceptance.

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Article 58
The court shall declare such a marriage invalid in accordance with the provisions of
preceding Article 57 the moment it gains knowledge of it, or upon the request of the
concerned party.

After consummation, this marriage results in payment of the dowry, and when good
intentions are present it also results in the acknowledgement of paternity as well as the
impediments that result from the marriage.

Section 2: Of the Defective Marriage

[Official Arabic source text — English rendering unavailable in this section]
تصرح المحكمة ببطالن الزواج تطبيقا ألحكام

The marriage is defective if one of the conditions for its validity is not fulfilled, in
accordance with Articles 60 and 61 below. Some of these marriages are annulled before
they are consummated and validated after consummation, while other marriages are
annulled before and after consummation.

The defective marriage is annulled before it is consummated and does not result in a
dowry when the dowry does not meet the legal conditions. The marriage may be
validated after it has been consummated by a dowry established by the court in
consideration of the social status of both spouses.

The marriage that is defective because of the contract is annulled before and after
consummation in the following cases:
- If the marriage was concluded when either spouse had a serious contagious disease,
unless the sick person was cured after the marriage;
- When the husband contracts the marriage in order to permit a woman who has been
repudiated three times to remarry her former husband;
- When the marriage took place without the presence of the marital tutor when his
presence is required;
- Repudiation and divorce in the preceding cases are valid if pronounced before the
annulment decree.

If the offer and acceptance are constrained by a deadline or a suspensive or nullifying
condition, the provisions of preceding Article 47 apply.

Either spouse who was placed under duress or deceived by fraud with the intent to
induce him or her to agree to the marriage, or by facts expressly stipulated as a
condition in the contract, can petition for the annulment of the marriage before or after
consummation within a period not to exceed two months from the date when the duress
was lifted, or she or he discovered the fraud. She or he has the right to demand
compensation.

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Article 64
The marriage which is annulled by virtue of preceding Articles 60 and 61 has no effects
before consummation, but after it consummation it has the same effects as a valid
marriage contract until the annulment decree is rendered.

Title Six: Of the Formalities and Administrative Measures to Legalize a Marriage
Contract

[Official Arabic source text — English rendering unavailable in this section]
الزواج الذي يفسخ تطبيقا للمادتين 60و 61أعاله ،ال ينتج أي أثر قبل البناء ،وتترتب عنه بعد البناء آثار العقد الصحيح إلى أن يصدر الحكم بفسخه. القسم السادس :اإلجراءات اإلدارية والشكلية إلبرام عقد الزواج

I. A marriage contract record is created and maintained at the Court Clerk’s office at the
Family Court where the marriage is to be concluded, and it shall include the following
documents:
1- An application form requesting registration of the marriage contract. Its form and
content shall be specified in a decree by the Minister of Justice;
2- A copy of the birth certificate. The civil status officer shall mention in the margins of
this copy its date of issuance, specifying that it was issued for the purpose of marriage;
3- An administrative certificate for both of the engaged parties, whose content shall be
defined in a joint decree by the Ministers of Justice and Interior;
4- A medical certificate for each of the two engaged parties, whose content and
procedures for issuing shall be defined in a joint decree by the Ministers of Justice and
Health;
5- A marriage authorization is also required in the following cases:
- Marriage of persons not yet of legal age;
- Polygamy when the conditions required by this Moudawana are fulfilled;
- The marriage of a mentally disabled person;
- The marriage of persons who have converted to Islam and foreigners.
6- A certificate of capacity to marry or its equivalent for foreigners.

II. The Family Affairs Judge in charge of marriage records officially certifies the record
containing the abovementioned documents, and files it at the Court Clerk’s office under
its assigned number.

III: The Family Affairs Judge authorizes the two adouls (public notaries) to draw up the
marriage contract.

IV: The two adouls note in the marriage contract the declaration by both spouses
specifying whether or not they have been married previously. In case of a previous
marriage, the declaration must be accompanied by proof of the legality
of the marriage to be concluded.

If a person employs fraud to obtain the authorization or the certificate of capacity
mentioned in Clauses 5 and 6 of the preceding Article or to evade them, the dispositions
of Article 366 of the Penal Code will be applied to the author and his accomplices upon

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request by the injured party. The injured party has the right to ask for the annulment of
the marriage with compensation.

The marriage contract shall contain the following:
1- Mention of the judge’s authorization, its number, its date of issuance, and the number
of the marriage document record as well as the court where it was filed;
2- The family names, first names, country or place of residence, place of birth and age,
national identity card number or its equivalent, and nationality of both spouses;
3- The name of the marital tutor if required;
4- The offer and acceptance by the two contracting parties who exercise full capacity
and the ability to choose and discern;
5- In the case of marriage by proxy, the name and national identity card number of the
representative, and the date and place of issuance of the marriage delegation;
6- Mention of the legal status of the spouse who has been married previously;
7- The amount of the dowry in cases where it has been specified, denoting any amount
paid in advance or to be paid in future instalment(s), and whether it has been paid in
front of witnesses or if there is mere acknowledgement;
8- Conditions agreed upon by both parties;
9- The signatures of both spouses and the tutor when required;
10- The names of the two adouls (public notaries) and each one’s signature with the
date of the marriage contract;
11-The authentication of the marriage contract by the judge affixed with his seal.
The list of documents required to constitute the marriage record as well as their content
may be modified or completed by ministerial decree.

The contract is registered at the Family Court records. A summary of it is transmitted to
the Civil Status office at the birthplaces of both spouses, accompanied by a return
receipt within fifteen days after the judge has authenticated it.

If one or both spouses were not born in Morocco, the marriage contract summary is
transmitted to the Office of the Attorney General at the Court of First Instance in Rabat.
The civil status officer records the information from this summary in the margins of the
copy of the birth certificates of both spouses.

The format, content and information recorded as cited in the first paragraph above shall
be determined in a decree by the Minister of Justice.

The original marriage contract is remitted to the wife and a copy provided to the husband
once the judge authenticates it.

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 BOOK TWO: OF THE DISSOLUTION OF THE BONDS OF MATRIMONY AND ITS
EFFECTS
Title One: General Provisions