Affidavit of Non-Marriage / Single Status (India)

An Affidavit of Non-Marriage / Single Status in India formalises the family arrangement between the parties, fixing their respective duties and entitlements.

The legal basis for the affidavit derives from the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) 2023, which treats admissions as relevant evidence. A sworn declaration before a Notary Public is an admission on oath that the deponent has never entered into any form of marriage — civil, religious, customary, or otherwise — under any personal law applicable in India: the Hindu Marriage Act 1955, the Special Marriage Act 1954, the Indian Christian Marriage Act 1872, the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act 1936, or Muslim Personal Law.

India does not maintain a centralised national database of marriages or a universal marriage registration system. While the Registration of Births and Deaths Act 1969 (amended by the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act 2023) provides for compulsory registration of births and deaths, marriage registration remains governed by personal law and state-level rules, and a significant proportion of marriages — particularly in rural areas — go unregistered. This absence of a centralised negative record (i.e., a government certificate that a person has not married) makes the self-sworn affidavit the standard mechanism for proving single status in India.

For international use, the affidavit acquires additional legal force through apostille authentication by the Ministry of External Affairs under the Hague Convention of 1961 (Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents). India joined the Apostille Convention in 2005, and the MEA operates Regional Authentication Centres in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Chandigarh, and Bhopal for apostille processing. An apostilled affidavit of non-marriage is recognised in all 120+ Apostille Convention member countries without further embassy attestation.

A false Affidavit of Non-Marriage — sworn by a person who is already married — constitutes perjury under Section 193 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 (Section 229, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023), punishable with imprisonment up to seven years. Additionally, if a married person uses a false affidavit to contract a second marriage, they commit bigamy under Section 494 IPC (Section 82 BNS), punishable with imprisonment up to seven years, and the second marriage is void ab initio under Indian matrimonial law.

An Affidavit of Non-Marriage or Single Status Certificate is required in India whenever a person needs to formally establish their never-married status for a foreign authority, employer, government institution, or financial institution that cannot independently verify Indian marital records.

Visa and immigration applications: Many countries require unmarried Indian visa applicants to provide a notarised affidavit of non-marriage as part of their application. Gulf Cooperation Council countries — particularly the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman — routinely require this affidavit for employment visa and residence permit applications. European Schengen visa applications and family reunification applications for several EU member states also require proof of single status from Indian applicants.

Overseas employment through ECR passport categories: Indian workers holding Emigration Clearance Required (ECR) passports travelling to the 18 ECR countries (including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, Malaysia, and others) for employment must clear the Protectorate of Emigrants. The emigration clearance process under the Emigration Act 1983 requires various declarations, including a declaration of marital status, and an affidavit of non-marriage is standard for unmarried workers in domestic service, healthcare, and construction categories.

Foreign marriage registration: When an Indian citizen intends to marry abroad — whether a foreign national or another Indian national — the receiving country's marriage registration authority typically requires evidence that the Indian party is free to marry. An Affidavit of Non-Marriage, apostilled by the MEA, is the standard document for this purpose. Some countries (Germany, France, and the Netherlands) additionally require a Certificate of No Impediment to Marriage issued by the District Magistrate or a consular officer.

Bank account opening for NRIs and foreign workers: Some Indian banks and financial institutions require unmarried NRI account holders and foreign workers to provide affidavits of non-marriage as part of enhanced KYC for NRE/NRO accounts and certain investment products.

MGNREGA and state welfare scheme eligibility: Several state government welfare schemes — including spinster allowances, distress relief for single women, and certain housing scheme categories — require beneficiaries to prove their single status. An affidavit of non-marriage from a Notary Public, supported by a BDO or Tehsildar's acknowledgement, establishes single status for these purposes.

A legally effective Affidavit of Non-Marriage or Single Status in India must contain all elements necessary to satisfy the requirements of Indian notarisation standards and the Apostille Convention for international use.

Deponent's complete personal details: The affidavit must include the deponent's full legal name as on their Indian passport (for international use) or Aadhaar card (for domestic use), date of birth in DD/MM/YYYY format, age at time of execution, father's name (and mother's name where required by the receiving country), permanent residential address in India, and current residential address if different. For international use, the deponent's Indian passport number and nationality (Indian) should be stated to assist foreign authorities in identifying the deponent.

Unambiguous declaration of never-married status: The core of the affidavit is a clear, unequivocal declaration that the deponent has never been married — whether by religious ceremony (Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, or Parsi), civil registration under the Special Marriage Act 1954, customary marriage, or any other form of marriage recognised under Indian law or any foreign law. The declaration should state that the deponent is not currently, and has never been, the spouse of any person living or deceased.

Declaration of no pending matrimonial proceedings: The affidavit should also declare that no matrimonial proceeding — whether a petition for divorce, judicial separation, nullity, or restitution of conjugal rights — is pending against the deponent in any court, since such proceedings presuppose a prior marriage. This declaration is particularly important for visa and immigration authorities that conduct database checks.

Absence of children born in wedlock: For some Gulf country visa applications and adoption-related purposes, the affidavit should additionally declare that the deponent has no children born of a previous marriage. This element is not required for all purposes and should be included only where the receiving authority's requirements specifically call for it.

Purpose and intended use: The affidavit should state the specific purpose for which it is being executed — for example, 'for the purpose of [employment visa application / foreign marriage registration / ECR emigration clearance] in [country name]'. This specificity is recommended by the MEA's apostille guidelines and by the receiving country's immigration authorities, who prefer context-specific declarations.

Notarisation formalities: The affidavit must be executed on non-judicial stamp paper (₹100 or state-prescribed value), physically signed by the deponent in the presence of a Notary Public registered under the Notaries Act 1952. The Notary must affix their official stamp and signature and record their registration number, date, and place of attestation. A Notary registered under the Central Government's list is preferred for international use.

MEA Apostille for international use: For submission to authorities in Apostille Convention member countries, the notarised affidavit must be apostilled by the MEA. The apostille is affixed on the reverse of the document or as a separate sheet. The e-apostille system (digital apostille) is now operational in India for most document types. Processing typically takes 1 to 3 working days at an MEA Regional Authentication Centre. The forms-legal.com Affidavit of Non-Marriage / Single Status (India) template covers the mandatory elements under the Oaths Act, 1969.