Pehlivan & Güven Law FirmPublished:
For a marriage to be valid, the Turkish Civil Code No. 4721 requires a specific form to be followed. For a marriage to be validly concluded, it is not enough that the parties have the capacity to marry and that there are no impediments to marriage. The formal requirements of marriage must also be met.
The formal requirements of marriage are regulated in Articles 134 to 144 of the Turkish Civil Code (TMK), in the Marriage Regulation and in the Civil Registration Services Law No. 5490. Articles 134 to 143 of the Turkish Civil Code regulate the marriage of Turkish citizens before the competent Turkish authorities.
For the marriage of foreigners before the competent Turkish authorities or consular marriages, the relevant provisions of the Marriage Regulation apply through the reference in Article 144 of the Turkish Civil Code. Article 22 of the Civil Registration Services Law, entitled "Authority to Conduct Marriages", also specifies the authorities competent to marry Turkish citizens and foreigners in Türkiye.
The 1985 Marriage Regulation granted foreign missions the authority to marry their own citizens in Türkiye. Today, the authorities competent to marry foreigners in Türkiye must be determined under the Marriage Regulation (applicable through the reference in TMK Art. 144), the Civil Registration Services Law and the bilateral consular conventions concluded between Türkiye and other states.
The official authorities competent for the marriages of Turkish citizens are specified in the Turkish Civil Code, the Civil Registration Services Law and the Marriage Regulation. Under these provisions, marriages are conducted in places with a municipality by the mayor or the official the mayor has assigned to marriage duties, and in villages by the village headman (muhtar).
The authority to conduct marriages is regulated in the Marriage Regulation and the Civil Registration Services Law through the reference in TMK Art. 144. This authority is limited to the metropolitan municipality boundaries for metropolitan mayors and municipal marriage offices within the metropolitan area; to the boundaries of the provincial, district and town municipalities within their jurisdiction for other mayors or the officials they assign; and to the boundaries of the village for village headmen. Civil registry officers may be given the duty and authority of marriage officer in more than one village or town, or throughout an entire district.
Where one of the persons marrying is a foreigner, municipal marriage offices and civil registry directorates are competent to conduct the marriage. Accordingly, village headmen and muftis do not have the authority to marry foreigners.
Article 12 of the Marriage Regulation also regulates the marriage of foreigners in Türkiye. Under paragraph 1 of Article 12 of the Regulation, a Turkish citizen and a foreigner, or two foreigners of different nationalities, may marry in Türkiye only before a competent Turkish marriage officer.
Paragraph 2 of Article 12 of the Marriage Regulation gives two foreigners who are citizens of the same state the right to choose the competent authority for their marriage. Under this provision, two foreigners who are citizens of the same state may marry before the competent Turkish authorities or, if their national law so authorises, before that state's missions in Türkiye.
The 1985 Marriage Regulation granted foreign missions the authority to marry their own citizens in Türkiye. In Turkish law, the marriage of foreigners before their missions in Türkiye is called a "diplomatic marriage", a "consulate marriage" or a "consular marriage".
Marriage with a foreign national is carried out by the couple wishing to marry applying to the marriage office with the required documents. To marry a foreign national, the parties must apply, with the required documents, to the marriage office of the place where one of them resides. The application to marry in Türkiye may also be made by the parties' representative. However, the parties must be present in person at the wedding ceremony.
Capacity to marry and the conditions of marriage are governed by the parties' national law. For example, if one of the persons marrying is an Iranian citizen, both whether that person meets the conditions of marriage and whether they have the capacity to marry are determined under Iranian law. If the other party is Turkish, their capacity and conditions to marry are determined under Turkish law.
As the form of marriage is governed by the law of the place where the marriage takes place, parties who marry in Türkiye marry in the form required by Turkish law even if both of them are foreigners.
The documents required for marriage with a foreign national are regulated in Article 20 of the Marriage Regulation. Under this provision, the documents required for marriage with a foreign national are as follows:
✦ Foreigners have certain procedures to complete after the marriage. For these procedures, foreigners must apply to their own country's consulates in Türkiye. The parties' marital status on their identity documents must be changed to married. In addition, if the woman's surname has changed, this change must be made on her identity card and, if she is a foreigner, her passport must also be renewed. A foreigner who marries in Türkiye must notify their country's consulate in Türkiye and ensure that the marriage is entered in the civil and family register in their own country. Likewise, a Turkish citizen who marries in a foreign country must notify the Turkish consulate in the country where they married within 1 month of the marriage.
✦ In addition, a foreign person who marries a Turkish citizen may apply for Turkish citizenship 3 years after the marriage, provided that they live within the family union and do not engage in any activity incompatible with the family union. For more detailed information on this subject, see our article entitled "Becoming a Turkish Citizen Through Marriage".
