U.S. Embassy in Qatar

Muslim Marriages

Muslim Marriages are performed at the Sharia Court, which is located on Al Rayyan Road near Mannai Ra in the Musheirib area. You must provide two witnesses for the marriage. Please note that the Sharia Court will only marry two Muslims. Even though marriages between Muslim men and Christian women are performed by Sharia courts in other Muslim countries, they are not performed in Qatar.

Non-Muslim Marriages

The only non-Muslim marriages granted official recognition by the State of Qatar are Christian marriages preformed by churches registered with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and by clergy recognized by the Ministry to perform non-Muslim marriages.

To obtain a Christian marriage in the State of Qatar, you must:

• Contact the Anglican, Catholic, Coptic, or Orthodox churches of Qatar and arrange a marriage ceremony. Following the ceremony, the church will issue a marriage certificate.
• Translate a copy of the marriage Certificate into Arabic through a translator recognized by the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry (QCCI). You can find one if you search the Business Library of the QCCI website.
• Register the marriage certificate and Arabic translation at the Office of Land Registration and Legalization at the Ministry of Justice’s office in the West Bay. The Ministry will stamp the back of the marriage certificate with a registration number and keep the copy and Arabic translation for its records. The office is located across from the City Center Mall next to the Kahramma building. For more information, please visit the Ministry’s website.

To learn how to use your Muslim or non-Muslim Qatari marriage certificate in the U.S., please visit our document authentications page.