Marriage Act 1961 Section 21 - Consent by magistrate or Judge and dispensation with consent to be ineffective after 3 months etc.
Marriage Act 1961
In force on 5 Jan 2026Marriage Act 1961 Section 21
Consent by magistrate or Judge and dispensation with consent to be ineffective after 3 months etc.
AI explainer
MA1961 s.21
AI-generated summary for education only. Verify against the source law text.
21 Consent by magistrate or Judge and dispensation with consent to be ineffective after 3 months etc.
Section titled “21 Consent by magistrate or Judge and dispensation with consent to be ineffective after 3 months etc.”(1) A consent to a marriage given by a magistrate or a Judge in place of the consent of another person ceases to have effect if the marriage does not take place within 3 months after the date of the consent.
(2) A dispensation with the consent of a person to a marriage ceases to have effect if:
(a) the marriage does not take place within 3 months after the date of the dispensation; or
(b) before the marriage takes place, the person whose consent has been dispensed with notifies, by writing signed by the person or in any other prescribed manner, the person to whom notice of the intended marriage has been given under this Act or, in the case of an intended marriage under Division 3 of Part V, the authorised celebrant by whom the marriage is intended to be solemnised, that the first‑mentioned person does not consent to the marriage.
(3) Where a consent by a magistrate or a Judge or a dispensation with the consent of a person by a prescribed authority has ceased to have effect, the provisions of this Act apply as if the consent had not been given or dispensed with, as the case may be.