Saudi Gazette reportRIYADH —

The regulations, consisting of 41 articles, took effect on Friday, marking a significant step in enhancing the legal framework governing family affairs.

The regulations authorize the Minister of Justice to establish the necessary procedures for hearing cases related to marriage contracts conducted without prior approval from the relevant authorities.

This process will be coordinated with the concerned entities, and additional regulations may be introduced as needed based on judicial applications and evolving legal requirements.

The regulations mandate that marriage contracts between non-Muslims be officially documented, whether the couple shares the same nationality or not.

The new framework ensures that a wife's right to request marriage annulment due to a condition in the husband that prevents marital relations is not waived simply because she did not immediately pursue legal action.

Additionally, privacy between spouses is considered compromised if an observer who can distinguish relationships is present.

The law also upholds the mother's right to child custody if the child is under two years old, even if she remarries a man unrelated to the child.

The Saudi Cabinet first approved the Personal Status Law in March 2022, with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman emphasizing that the legislation is derived from Islamic principles and aligned with international best practices.

The legislation sets the legal age of marriage at 18, reinforces a woman’s right to financial support from her husband, and grants her the ability to request a marriage annulment based on specific circumstances.

The Personal Status Law is part of a broader legal reform initiative announced by the Crown Prince in February 2021. This initiative includes four key legal frameworks: Personal Status Law, Civil Transactions Law, Penal Code for Discretionary Sanctions, and Law of Evidence.