Annulment — void and voidable marriages and civil partnerships

Not every marriage is ended by divorce. Some were never legally valid in the first

place (void), and others were valid at the time but have grounds to be cancelled

(voidable). Annulment — a "nullity of marriage order" — is a separate route from

divorce, with different consequences. Here is how it works.

REVIEWED BY: Sean McNamara on 2026-08-31

Why annulment matters

Annulment is not a status symbol — it has real legal effects:

A void marriage is treated as never having existed at all
A voidable marriage is valid until the order is made final, then is annulled from that point (not from the wedding) — which matters for property, pensions and inheritance during the marriage
Either way, a nullity order lets you apply for financial remedy (money, property, pensions) in many cases — unlike a divorce, a nullity can open financial claims for people whose "marriage" was void, subject to the court's discretion

Void marriages — never valid

Under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, s.11, a marriage is void if:

It is within prohibited degrees of relationship (e.g. siblings, parent–child, certain in-laws)
Either party was under 16 at the time
The formalities were not followed (e.g. no valid ceremony, not in a licensed venue, no registrar/superintendent present)
A bigamous marriage — one party was already married

For civil partnerships, equivalent grounds exist under the Civil Partnership Act 2004 (s.49).

Voidable marriages — valid but cancellable

Under MCA 1973, s.12, a marriage is voidable if at the time of the ceremony:

It has not been consummated because of either party's incapacity or wilful refusal (consummation grounds do not apply to civil partnerships)
Lack of valid consent — duress, mistake, unsoundness of mind, or otherwise
Either party, though capable of giving valid consent, was suffering from a mental disorder making them unfit for marriage
The respondent was suffering from a communicable sexually transmitted infection at the time
The respondent was pregnant by another man at the time (or, for civil partnerships, equivalent provisions)

Two limits apply to voidable marriages:

1. The petition must be brought within 3 years of the ceremony (with limited judicial discretion to extend), and 2. The petitioner must generally show they were ignorant of the ground at the time, or that proceedings were started without unreasonable delay after discovering it (s.13 "knowledge of nullity" restrictions)

Procedure — surprisingly like divorce

Since the divorce reforms, nullity follows a similar two-stage structure:

1. You apply (online divorce service supports nullity applications) with a statement of the ground 2. The court considers whether the ground is made out — for void marriages there is usually no contested "reason"; for voidable grounds evidence is needed (e.g. medical evidence, evidence of consent) 3. A conditional order is made 4. After a 6-week (minimum) waiting period, you apply for the order to be made final (a "final order" / decree absolute equivalent) — MCA 1973, s.12B confirms a nullity order is first conditional and cannot be made final within 6 weeks

The court fee and much of the online process mirror divorce. You do not need to prove a breakdown of the marriage — annulment is about validity, not irretrievable breakdown.

Financial claims after annulment

On nullity you can still apply for financial remedy orders (lump sums, property adjustment, pensions) under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973
Even for a void marriage, courts have discretion to make certain financial orders (e.g. property adjustment, maintenance pending suit) in limited circumstances — this is a specialist area; get legal advice
If your "marriage" was void because of bigamy, you may still have claims under other doctrines (e.g. as a cohabitant/trust claimant) — see our cohabitation guides

When annulment is better than divorce

A short marriage where a validity defect exists (e.g. consent, ceremony defect)
Cases where divorce's irretrievable-breakdown machinery is unnecessary
Religious reasons (some faiths treat divorce and annulment differently)
Sometimes timing: annulment has no 20-week stage between application and conditional order being processed, though in practice timelines are similar

Common mistakes

Using annulment hoping to "wipe out" the marriage's financial history — voidable marriages are annulled from the date of the final order, so the marriage counts until then
Waiting more than 3 years after the ceremony to petition on a voidable ground
Assuming non-consummation alone is enough — it must be incapacity or wilful refusal, not mere choice
Confusing annulment with "declaring a marriage non-existent for benefits purposes" — check with the DWP/HMRC separately

Official links

Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, ss.11–13: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1973/18
Civil Partnership Act 2004: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/33
Apply for a nullity order (gov.uk): https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-nullity
Divorce and dissolution overview: https://www.gov.uk/divorce
Court forms and fees: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/family-court-forms

This page is general information, not legal advice. YourFamilyCase.co.uk is an independent information directory and is not affiliated with HMCTS or gov.uk.

Content verified against the official HMCTS court directory, gov.uk forms and fees pages, and the professional body registers (SRA, FMC, Bar Council). Last reviewed September 2026.