Many people believe that they may have the option of annulling a marriage rather than going through a divorce, however, it is really important to understand the nature of the marriage before determining which is the best route to terminate it.

A marriage can be either void or voidable if it is not valid.

A marriage that is void where;

• The parties are within the prohibited degrees of relationship i.e. if the parties are related by blood, half blood or affinity (relationships by marriage). Please contact us for more details if you are unsure
• Either party is under the age of sixteen
• The parties have disregarded certain requirements as to the formation of the marriage
• Where a polygamous marriage entered outside England and Wales, that either party was domiciled in England and Wales at the time of the marriage

If any of the above exists, then the court would treat this marriage as though it did not ever take place. It will therefore not be legally recognised as a valid marriage and you do not need to make an application to Court to annul the marriage.

A marriage is voidable where;

• There is incapacity to consummate the marriage by either party (contact us for more details on this given that a impotent husband or wife can petition for an annulment on the basis of their own impotence unless they were aware of it at the time of the marriage or where it is unjust, in all the circumstances, to force a nullity decree against the responding party’s wishes). Please note same-sex couples cannot use this ground.
• Where there has been wilful refusal to consummate the marriage
• Where there has been a lack of consent to enter into the marriage such as undue pressure/duress, mistake or unsoundness of mind or otherwise
• Where one of the parties had a form of mental disorder within the meaning of the Mental Health Act 1983 of such a kind or to such an extent as to be unfitted for marriage.
• Where one of the parties had a venereal disease (sexually transmitted disease) at the time of the marriage and was able to communicate this to their prospective spouse
• If one of the parties was pregnant at the time of the marriage by someone other than their prospective spouse
• If, after the time of the marriage, an Interim Gender Recognition Certificate was issued to either party provided the proceedings for an annulment took place within six months of the issue of the Interim Gender Recognition Certificate
• The respondent is a person whose gender at the time of the marriage had become the acquired gender under the GRA 2004. The petitioner must satisfy the court that they were ignorant of this fact at the time of the marriage. 
• A marriage which results from the conversion of a civil partnership is voidable if any of the following applied at the date at which the marriage is treated as having subsisted, in accordance with Section 9(6) of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 (M(SSC)A 2013).

In the above circumstances, you would need to make an application to the Court to annul the marriage.

There is no requirement to wait for at least one year to petition for an annulment as there is with divorce, therefore you can commence an application within a year of marriage if you so wish. However, where you are relying upon the grounds of lack of consent, mental disorder, venereal disease, pregnancy or acquired gender, a petition must be presented within three years of the date of the marriage unless you have permission from the Court to commence proceedings after.

Where the ground relied upon is the issue of an interim gender recognition certificate under the Gender Recognition Act 2004 (GRA 2004) proceedings must be issued within six months of the issue of the certificate.

Where proceedings are commenced on the ground that at the time the Respondent was suffering from a mental disorder within the meaning of MeHA 1983 of such kind or to such an extent as to be unfitted for marriage, please contact us for advice on the restrictions on what you can do and what you are not permitted to do.

The overall procedure for applying for an annulment is very similar to the divorce procedure. The annulment petition can be found here. We suggest that if you are looking to commence these proceedings, you seek legal advice on the process from ourselves or from a family solicitor to avoid any issues and delay.

If you need further advice, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@boselegal.co.uk or text/call on 07539 744144.