Marriage at the Registry Office

The necessary ingredients for a valid marriage according to Shariah are the following:

1) Proposal (ijaab) from the female (herself or her guardian/agent whom she appoints on her behalf) or male, and acceptance (qabul) from the male or female, and that this proposal and acceptance is heard and understood,

2) The presence of two male witnesses or one male and two female witnesses, and that they here and understand the proposal and acceptance.

Imam al-Quduri (Allah have mercy on him) states in his al-Mukhtasar:

“Marriage is contracted by proposal and acceptance, in two statements, both of them expressing the past tense, or one of them expressing the past and the other the future, such as one saying, “Marry (your daughter) to me” and the other saying, “I have married (her) to you”. The marriage of Muslims is not contracted without the presence of two free, adult, sane, Muslim male witnesses, or one man and two women, whether they be morally upright (adil) or non-upright.” (Mukhtasar al-Quduri, 2/140)

Imam al-Haskafi (Allah have mercy on him) states in his famous Durr al-Mukhtar:

“Nikah is contracted by proposal and acceptance….And it is a condition that each of the contracting parties are able to hear the statement of the other…..The presence of two free, adult witnesses, who are able to hear and understand the statements of the relevant parties simultaneously is also a condition…” (Durr al-Mukhatar)

The Mahr (dowry), however, is the woman’s right and should be stipulated prior to the marriage, but it does not have an effect on the validly of the marriage.

As such, if the above mentioned necessary factors are met, Nikah will be valid according to Shariah, even if it was carried out in a registry office.

However, it is a great Sunnah of our beloved Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him & give him peace) to precede the contract of marriage with a sermon (khutba) in which there is praise for Allah Almighty, salutations on the beloved of Allah, and the recitation of certain verses from the Qur’an that emphasise the importance of acquiring the fear of Allah (taqwa).

Also, it is a Sunnah to announce and advertise the marriage as much as possible, and by having an Islamic ceremony in the Masjid this will somewhat be achieved.

Imam al-Haskafi (Allah have mercy on him) states:

“It is preferable (mandub) to announce the contract of marriage (as much as possible, m) and precede it with a sermon, and that it is performed in a Masjid on a Friday.” (Durr al-Mukhtar)

Therefore, in your situation, as you have mentioned that the necessary proposal of marriage and acceptance were carried out, and two male witnesses were present and they understood what was happening, thus the marriage according to Shariah is valid.

However, it would now be advisable to perform an Islamic ceremony, so that you receive the rewards of implementing the Sunnah, and that it brings about Barakah in your marriage.

And Allah Knows Best