Kuwait made three significant changes to family law in 2025 and 2026: the marriage age rose to eighteen, a new domestic violence framework took effect, and paternity and name correction claims moved to a specialised committee. In this article, Attorney Meshari Obeid Alenezi explains each change and what it means for families in Kuwait, including expatriate families.
The three instruments
| Instrument | Subject | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| Decree-Law 10/2025 | Amends Article 26 of the Personal Status Law | 16 March 2025 |
| Decree-Law 11/2026 | Protection from domestic violence, 31 articles | 15 March 2026 |
| Decree-Law 53/2026 | Paternity claims and name correction, 20 articles | On publication; issued 5 April 2026 |
Marriage age raised to eighteen
- The rule: a marriage contract may not be documented or ratified for a person who has not reached eighteen years of age at the time of documentation.
- Scope: the text is general and applies to both parties.
- Basis: the constitutional protection of family, motherhood and childhood, consistency with Islamic law, and Kuwait’s international obligations including the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
- What is prohibited: documentation and ratification, which covers both drafting the contract initially and formally endorsing one drafted earlier.
- Why this matters practically: an undocumented marriage leaves maintenance, filiation, inheritance and civil records without a straightforward route, and the burden falls hardest on the wife and children.
Protection from domestic violence — Decree-Law 11 of 2026
- Definition (Article 1): any act, omission or threat of either by a family member against one or more others causing physical, psychological, sexual or financial harm.
- Who is covered: spouses married under an official contract, relatives to the second degree, the children of one spouse from an official marriage, those linked by custody, and those in alternative family care.
- Protection orders (Articles 13 and 14): non-contact and non-harassment, temporary change of residence with the cost borne by the abuser, temporary spousal maintenance for three months, renewable, treatment costs, and police protection.
- Shelters and fund (Articles 5 and 6): shelters providing accommodation and psychological, social, health and legal support, and a fund supporting victims and their dependants.
- Mandatory reporting (Article 11): a person who knows of violence against a child or a person lacking capacity must report it.
- No reconciliation in cases of sexual abuse, violence against children or persons lacking capacity, or violence by children against their parents.
Penalties under the domestic violence law
| Conduct | Imprisonment | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| False report (Article 20) | Up to two years | Up to KD 500 |
| Breach of a protection order (Article 21) | One to three months | KD 500 to KD 1,000 |
| Breach with accompanying violence (Article 21) | Three to six months | KD 1,000 to KD 2,000 |
| Coercing a victim to withdraw (Article 18) | One week to six months | KD 100 to KD 1,000 |
Criminalising coercion to withdraw a complaint is among the most consequential provisions, because family pressure after a report is the most common reason cases collapse.
Paternity and name correction — Decree-Law 53 of 2026
- What it replaced: it repealed Law No. 10 of 2010 in its entirety, along with Articles 16 to 18 of Law No. 36 of 1969.
- A committee first: a standing committee at the Ministry of Justice now has jurisdiction, chaired by a judge of not less than the rank of court deputy, with a deputy chair, the director of the family prosecution, and representatives of the ministries of interior, foreign affairs and health and of the Public Authority for Civil Information.
- Jurisdiction (Article 4): establishing and denying direct and indirect filiation, and correcting or changing names and adding or removing surnames.
- DNA (Article 7): the committee may order genetic fingerprinting and other modern scientific methods, with strict confidentiality.
- Time limits: six months to complete a direct filiation request and refer it to court with a detailed report, three months for denial by li’an, and thirty days to file a grievance against a decision.
- Name changes: limited to one change per person.
- Penalty (Article 18): imprisonment up to five years and a fine up to KD 5,000, or either, for knowingly giving false statements before the committee or the court.
What families should do
- Document the marriage without delay, since informal arrangements create problems that surface years later.
- Do not treat a foreign ceremony as a solution to the age requirement, because documentation in Kuwait is still governed by it.
- Report violence early and keep evidence: medical reports, police records and messages support both a protection order and any later separation claim.
- Start with the committee in filiation and name matters, since going directly to court risks inadmissibility.
- Mind the thirty-day grievance period, because missing it can close the route permanently.
Frequently asked questions
We married abroad and one of us was under eighteen. Can we document it in Kuwait?
Documentation in Kuwait is governed by the amended Article 26, which bars documenting or ratifying a contract where a party had not reached eighteen at the time of documentation. Proving a marriage concluded abroad has its own judicial route, but it meets that requirement, so the file needs careful assessment of the dates and the ages before anything is filed.
I have a protection order and it has been breached. What happens?
Breach of a protection order is a separate offence carrying one to three months imprisonment and a fine of KD 500 to KD 1,000, increasing where violence accompanies it. Report each breach and record the date, time and witnesses, because every breach is assessed independently.
My family is pressuring me to withdraw the complaint. Is that lawful?
No. Article 18 criminalises coercing a victim to withdraw, with a penalty of up to six months and a fine of up to KD 1,000. Where the violence involves a child or is committed by children against a parent, reconciliation is excluded altogether, so a withdrawal has no effect.
Can I go straight to court in a paternity case?
The 2026 law gives the ministry committee jurisdiction to examine requests and to refer what warrants referral to the court with a detailed report. Bypassing that stage exposes the claim to inadmissibility, so the correct sequence is to complete the committee stage first.
If you need advice on a family matter in Kuwait, you may book an appointment with the office of Attorney Meshari Obeid Alenezi or call 22204490.
Disclaimer: this article provides general legal information and is not a substitute for specialised legal advice.
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