Annulment in BC

Annulment in BC: ending a marriage that was never valid

A divorce ends a valid marriage. An annulment is different: it is a court declaration that the marriage was never legally valid in the first place. People often ask about annulment in BC hoping it offers a faster or quieter exit than divorce. The honest answer: civil annulments are rare, the grounds are narrow, and most people who ask about annulment end up getting a divorce instead. But for the marriages that genuinely qualify, the distinction matters.

SiLaw Group Family Lawyers is a boutique family law and mediation firm in South Surrey. Family law is the only kind of law we practise, and we serve clients in English and Punjabi. This page explains how annulment differs from divorce, what void and voidable mean, and the difference between a civil and a religious annulment. For the divorce route, see our complete divorce guide and our divorce services.

How is an annulment different from a divorce?

A divorce is granted under the Divorce Act on a single ground: breakdown of the marriage, most often shown by living separate and apart for at least one year (section 8). The divorce accepts that the marriage existed and ends it.

An annulment, called a claim for nullity in the court rules, asks the court to declare that a legally valid marriage never came into existence. A nullity claim proceeds as a family law case in the BC Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court Family Rules require the marriage certificate to be filed with the first document making the claim. Because the claim rests on a defect in the marriage itself, it does not depend on a period of separation. It depends on proving that something was legally wrong with the marriage from the start, and that is where most annulment hopes run into difficulty.

What makes a marriage invalid?

The starting rules about who can marry come from federal law, the Civil Marriage Act:

• Marriage requires the free and enlightened consent of two persons to be the spouse of each other (s. 2.1).
• No person under the age of 16 may contract marriage (s. 2.2).
• No person may contract a new marriage until every previous marriage has been dissolved by death or by divorce or declared null by a court order (s. 2.3).

Beyond those statutory basics, the detailed grounds on which a court will annul a marriage come largely from decisions of the courts rather than from a statute, and they are applied narrowly. The specific facts decide everything, which is why we assess annulment questions individually at a consultation.

What do void and voidable mean?

You will see these two words in almost everything written about annulment. In general terms, a void marriage is one the law treats as never having existed, because a fundamental requirement was missing. A voidable marriage is one that stands as valid unless and until a court annuls it at the request of one of the spouses. Which category a marriage falls into, and whether a court will act, depends on grounds developed in the case law, so treat the labels as a starting point for a conversation with a lawyer, not as a self-diagnosis.

Do paperwork problems make a marriage invalid?

Rarely. The BC Marriage Act governs how marriages are solemnized in this province: who may perform the ceremony, marriage licences, and the requirement of witnesses. It also sets consent requirements for the marriage of minors (s. 28) and restricts marriage under the age of 16 (s. 29). But the Act itself says that nothing in those two sections invalidates a marriage (s. 30). In other words, formal slip-ups around the ceremony are generally not a path to annulment. The serious questions are about consent and capacity, not paperwork.

Civil annulment vs religious annulment

These are two different things, and the difference catches people out:

• A civil annulment is a court order. It changes your legal marital status, with legal consequences that follow from the marriage being declared invalid.
• A religious annulment is granted by a religious authority under the rules of that faith. It can matter deeply for your standing within your religious community, including the ability to remarry within the faith, but it does not change your legal marital status. Federal law is blunt on this point: a new marriage requires every previous marriage to have been dissolved by death or divorce or declared null by a court order (Civil Marriage Act, s. 2.3).

Some clients need both, one for the law and one for their faith, and the two processes run separately. We handle the civil side and are happy to coordinate timing around the religious process.

If annulment is not available, divorce usually is

Most marriages that feel like mistakes are still legally valid marriages, and the exit is divorce. That is not the bad news it sounds like. If you and your spouse agree there is nothing to fight over, an uncontested divorce proceeds by desk order, without a hearing, and we handle simple ones for a flat fee of $2,200 plus GST and PST (as of August 2026). If there are issues to resolve first, mediation can get you to an agreement without a courtroom.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get an annulment because my marriage was short?

The length of the marriage is not what decides it. A marriage of a few weeks is still legally valid unless there was a defect recognized by law, and a short valid marriage ends by divorce, not annulment.

Is a religious annulment enough to remarry legally?

No. A religious annulment does not change your legal marital status. Before you can legally remarry, every previous marriage must have been dissolved by death or by divorce or declared null by a court order (Civil Marriage Act, s. 2.3).

Are annulments common in BC?

No. Civil annulments are rare, and the grounds are narrow and heavily fact-dependent. If your situation might qualify, it deserves a proper legal assessment early, because the same facts often affect other parts of your file.

My spouse was already married to someone else. What now?

Federal law prohibits a new marriage before every previous marriage has been dissolved or declared null (Civil Marriage Act, s. 2.3), so a prior existing marriage raises serious questions about the validity of yours. This is exactly the kind of situation to bring to a consultation, because the right remedy depends on the facts and on what you need to resolve, including property and support.

Talk to a lawyer about annulment or divorce for free

If you are wondering whether your marriage can be annulled, or you need the divorce done properly, the first 30 minutes are free, in English or Punjabi, by phone, video, or in person at Suite 201, 3108 Croydon Drive in South Surrey. Call (778) 381-9977 or book a free consultation through our website.

This page is legal information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, speak with a lawyer.