There are two ways to legally bring a marriage to an end: a divorce or an annulment. Although annulments of marriage are relatively rare in the UK, they are legally possible. Essentially, an annulment acknowledges and declares that the marriage has become or was always invalid, i.e. that it no longer or never validly existed. In contrast, a divorce is a legal process in which a valid marriage is dissolved. While a divorce legally ends or dissolves a marriage, an annulment can be used to declare the marriage null and void, as if the marriage never existed.  

Even though the outcome from obtaining a decree of nullity or decree absolute is broadly the same, such that you and your former spouse are each free to re-marry or enter into a civil partnership, the grounds for getting an annulment or a divorce are entirely different. This means that you don’t necessarily get a choice between applying for an annulment or a divorce, where you can only get an annulment in very limited circumstances.

In order to annul a marriage, you or your spouse must have either have lived in England or Wales for a period of no less than one year or had a permanent home in England or Wales for at least six months. You would also need to show either one of the following:  

•   The marriage was not legally valid in the first place, ie: it was ‘void’

•   The marriage was legally valid but meets one of the criteria that would make it ‘voidable’.

A void marriage, ie; one that will be considered by the Court as having never taken place, are the ones where, for example: 

•   You are closely related to the person you married

•   You or your ex were under the age of 16 when you married

•   You or your ex were already lawfully married or in a civil partnership when you married.

If a marriage was never legally valid, the law says that it never existed. That said, you may still need the paperwork, ie; a ‘decree of nullity’, to prove this if you want to get married again. In contrast, a marriage that is voidable, ie; that will be considered by the Court as capable of being annulled, will be treated as if it had existed up until a decree of nullity is granted. These are the ones where, for example: 

•   The marriage has not been consummated owing to either the incapacity or refusal of one party to consummate it, although this does not apply to same-sex couples

•   If one of you did not properly consent to the marriage, such as where you were forced into it or because you were not of sound mind

•   If one of you had a sexually transmitted disease at the time of the marriage

•   If the woman was pregnant by another man at the time of the marriage

•   If either party is in the process of transitioning to a different gender, or one of you did not know that the other person had an acquired gender at the time of the marriage.

Unlike divorce, where you have to wait for a year, you can apply to have a marriage annulled as soon as you get married, leaving you free to start over more quickly. However, annulments are a complex and misunderstood area of law, especially when it comes to dealing with financial separation, so specialist legal advice should always be sought.   

Legal disclaimer

The matters contained herein are intended to be for general information purposes only. This blog does not constitute legal advice, nor is it a complete or authoritative statement of the law in England and Wales and should not be treated as such. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the information is correct, no warranty, express or implied, is given as to its’ accuracy, and no liability is accepted for any error or omission. Before acting on any of the information contained herein, expert legal advice should always be sought.