Kenya - Replace Lost, Stolen or Damaged Divorce Certificate

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Procedure

• A divorce decree is an official document from the court that grants the termination of a marriage. It includes specific details of the divorce.
• A divorce certificate is issued by the registrar of marriage office. It shows that a divorce occurred but not all the same information as a divorce decree.

Apply In-Person:
In Kenya

1. Where Divorce Certificate has been lost, destroyed, or defaced, or the particulars thereon have become illegible, either divorcee or their children of legal age shall apply for a duplicate with the Registrar of marriage where the divorce decree was registered, and the divorce certificate issued.
2. Applicants should ensure that they bring copies of the divorce certificate or divorce decree and the identification documents of both divorcees to be able to proceed with the filing of the application.
3. Submit the documents mentioned above to be validated by the Registrar of marriage, who will then issue the applicant the appropriate search form to legibly complete, and submit to the registrar’s office for processing.
4. Upon receipt of the application, the Registrar will check for discrepancies or ineligibility in the application documents. If a discrepancy that cannot be immediately corrected exists in any of the documents, the application and all the submitted documents will be returned to the applicant and should not be re-submitted until the discrepancy has been rectified.
5. The application shall be accompanied by a prescribed fee as may be determined by the Registrar's office. All payments shall be made as per the Department's preferable payment mode.
6. Once the application is filed, applicants will be required to wait for a specific period before their certificate is processed and made available for withdrawal.
7. Where a Registrar is satisfied with the circumstances as to such loss or destruction, shall draw up a duplicate divorce certificate to be withdrawn by the applicant.
8. After the lapse of the processing time, the applicant should check the outcome of the application at the specific Registrar's office to collect the duplicate divorce certificate against his/her identity card and the acknowledgment slip.
9. If the divorce certificate is damaged or defaced, or the particulars thereon have become illegible the applicant will be required to surrender the damaged certificate before he is issued a duplicate divorce certificate.

For Abroad Application

1. Applicants should visit the nearest Kenya Diplomatic (embassy/ consulate/ High Commission) and express their interest at the front desk.
2. Submit the supporting documentation as listed under the “Required Documents” section below to be validated by the embassy staff and obtain a search application form.
3. Along with the completed application form, submit the required documents and pay the required application fee, which varies from one embassy to another. At the time of submission, a waiting card/slip as an acknowledgment will be issued to the applicant.
4. Processing of the certificate takes 03 months; however, this period may vary from one embassy to another.
5. The application file is then forwarded to Kenya's centralized production center (Registrar of Marriage offices) for processing. Upon successful processing, the duplicate divorce certificate is returned to the embassy/consulate where the application was filed to be issued/ collected by the client against the waiting card/slip and identity document.

Please Note
Applicants who want their processed duplicate divorce certificate sent to them by post are advised to attach one of the following to their request(s):

• A registered self-addressed envelope with the appropriate stamps (letter recommendée);
• A pre-paid envelope from any recognized courier service provider.
• Please note; Not all embassies offer the post/mail return service (please consult with the embassy)

NOTE: You can file your application via mail, in some embassies, please confirm with your embassy, if they offer this service since not all embassies offer the service. E.g. Kenya’s embassy in the United State of America.

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Required Documents

In Kenya Requirements

• Duly complement and signed Search Form.
• Copies of the divorce certificate.
• Identification documents of both spouses and the applicant

Abroad application requirements:

• Two (2) duly filled search forms
• Two (2) photocopies of the lost/damaged divorce certificate.
• Two (2) photocopies of the photo page of the applicant’s passport.
• Two (2) photocopies of the applicant’s National Identity Card.
• Proof of payment (Bank deposit)
• Any other supporting documents as requested.

Office Locations & Contacts

Registrar of Marriages – Head Office
Office of the Attorney General
Ground Floor, Sheria House, Harambee Avenue,
Nairobi, Kenya
P.O. Box 40112, 00100,
Nairobi, Kenya.
Tel No. +254-20- 2227461-9/ 2251355/ 0700-072929/ 0732- 529995
Email: [email protected] / [email protected]
Website Link
Kenya’s Diplomatic Missions Contact Details

Judiciary of Kenya - Headquarters 
Supreme Court Building
City Hall Way, Nairobi,
Kenya.
P.O. Box 30041 – 00100, Nairobi
Tel. 0730 181600/1700/1800
[email protected]
Website Link

Eligibility

• Either divorcee or a child of either divorcee of legal age is eligible to apply.

Fees

• Please consult with the Registrar of Marriage – Offices

Note: if the application is filed abroad, the applicant will be charged application fees and postal fee that varies from one consulate/embassy to another; please consult with the nearest Kenya mission for more information.

Validity

• A divorce certificate is valid forever, however in the event of re-marriage then the divorce certificate losses its validity.

Documents to Use

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Sample Documents

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Processing Time

• The time around for processing the application in Kenya is approximately 2 months, while for an abroad application is within 3 months or more.

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
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Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
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sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is dkisplayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

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e.g. The state office holds birth records since January 1908.

Required Information

• Name & address of the applicant
• Telephone number
• Full name of both divorcees at the time of the dirvorce.
• Place of birth date of birth
• Father’s full name
• Mother’s full name
• Date of registration entry number (the figure shown within the certificate at the top left-hand side)
• other particulars which could help to trace this entry/entry
• Declaration by the applicant

Need for the Document

• A divorce certificate is issued by the registrar of marriage office. It shows that a divorce occurred legally as stipulated by the law court of Kenya.
•  It can be used to prove a divorce without revealing the terms of the divorce order or to quickly prove a marriage has been dissolved in case of pending re-marriage

Information which might help

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Other uses of the Document/Certificate

Please explain what are other uses for obtaining this document/certificate.
e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

External Links

Kenya -MatrimonialCausesAct_Cap152

Others

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