If you are 18, 19 or 20 and marrying in Fiji, you do not need your parents' consent. The rule that says you do was repealed in July 2009. Fiji's minimum marriage age is now 18 for both parties, with no parental-consent step above that age — and marrying someone under 18 is an offence.
This matters because the old rule is still being published. It appears on consular pages, on resort marriage-requirement pages, and on legal databases hosting a consolidation of the Marriage Act that predates the amendment. If a venue or a celebrant tells you that an under-21 couple needs a signed parental consent form, they are working from a repealed section.
This article is a guideline only. Confirm current requirements with the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Fiji (Ministry of Justice), before you lodge anything. Last reviewed 8 October 2026.
What did the law say before 2009?
Fiji's Marriage Act [Cap 50], as originally enacted, set different ages for each party and added a consent layer above them:
- Section 12 permitted marriage where the male was "of the age of eighteen years or upwards" and the female "of the age of sixteen years or upwards".
- Section 13 required a party under 21 to obtain prior consent from the father, or from the mother if the father was dead or outside Fiji, with a Commissioner or magistrate able to consent if neither parent could or would.
- Section 14 dealt with how that consent was attested.
- Section 2 defined a "minor" as a person under 21.
That is the architecture every stale page is still describing.
What changed in 2009?
The Marriage Act (Amendment) Decree 2009 rewrote it. Signed on 20 July 2009 and published in the Government Gazette on 24 July 2009, it made four changes that matter here.
| Change | Effect |
|---|---|
| Section 12 substituted (Decree s. 3) | A person may marry if they are "of the age of eighteen years or upwards" — the same age for both parties |
| Sections 13 and 14 repealed (Decree s. 4) | The under-21 parental consent requirement, and the provision attesting that consent, are gone |
| Section 2 definition amended (Decree s. 2) | A "minor" is now a person under 18, not under 21 |
| Section 31 replaced (Decree, renumbered as s. 29) | Creates offences around marrying a minor, with a penalty of a fine up to $500, imprisonment up to two years, or both |
The new offence provision covers three things: wilfully and unlawfully marrying a person under 18; inducing or attempting to induce a marriage officer or another person to solemnise a marriage knowing one party is a minor; and abetting or assisting either of those knowing a party is a minor.
A transitional saving (Decree s. 12) preserved special licences granted before commencement where the female party was 16 or 17 at the time of the grant, provided the male party was 18 or over. Seventeen years on, that is of historical interest only.
So is there any parental consent requirement in Fiji today?
Not for anyone aged 18 or over. There is no published parental consent requirement for an 18-, 19- or 20-year-old, no prescribed consent form that attaches to a live section of the Act, and no court or Registrar-General override route to describe — because there is nothing to override.
For anyone under 18, consent is not the question. The marriage cannot proceed at all, and solemnising it, procuring it, or assisting it are offences under the amended Act.
That is a cleaner position than most destinations, including some of Fiji's Pacific neighbours. Samoa's Marriage Ordinance 1961, for comparison, still requires written consent for a party under 21 (ss. 10–11), with a District Court Judge able to grant an exemption.
Which sources are still wrong, and why?
Three categories, and recognising them saves you an argument with a venue.
Consolidated legislation that predates the amendment. Online consolidations of the Marriage Act [Cap 50] still circulate showing the original ss. 12, 13 and 14 — male 18, female 16, consent under 21. The sections are printed as live law. They are not.
Consular and embassy pages. Some overseas Fijian mission pages describing marriage requirements still carry the under-21 consent line. Diplomatic pages are often written once and rarely revised.
Resort marriage-requirement pages. Several Fiji resorts publish a marriage checklist that includes parental consent for under-21s, copied from an older source. Resorts are not legal authorities on this, and the good ones will check if you ask them to.
The practical test is simple: if a page states that a female can marry at 16 in Fiji, everything else on it about age is from before July 2009. That single detail dates the source.
What do you actually need to produce?
Age is now the easy part. The paperwork is the real work, and it is the same whether you are 19 or 49.
What you will be dealing with is the licence route, not an age route. Fiji's standard notice process under the Marriage Act requires notice to a district registrar or to the Registrar-General, a seven-day residence declaration in the district, and the notice posted for 21 consecutive days before a certificate issues — which is why almost every destination wedding uses the special licence under s. 21 instead. That licence is granted by the Registrar-General on a joint application by both parties, attested by the Registrar-General or a district registrar, on payment of the prescribed fee, and authorises a marriage within a period of no more than 28 days. The prescribed form notes that the seven-day residence declaration is not required for a special licence application.
Our documents checklist is in every document you need for a Fiji marriage licence, the licence mechanics are in do you need a marriage licence in Fiji, and the arrival timing question is answered in how long before the wedding do you need to be in Fiji.
One further note on witnesses, because it is the other figure people repeat. Section 25(1) requires the marriage to be solemnised "in the presence of two or more witnesses", who sign the certificate. The consolidated text we can see does not state a minimum witness age in that section. Given that the same consolidation is demonstrably out of date on marriage age, treat any witness-age claim you read — including ours — as something to confirm with the Registrar-General. Our fuller treatment is in witnesses at a Fiji wedding: who qualifies and how many.
What should a couple in their late teens or early twenties do?
- Stop looking for a consent form. There isn't one.
- Confirm the current position with the Registrar-General in writing, and keep the reply. It is useful if a venue pushes back.
- Put the special licence at the front of your timeline, because the 28-day window is what actually constrains your dates.
- If a supplier insists on parental consent, ask them which section of the Act they are relying on. The answer will be s. 13, and s. 13 no longer exists.
- Appoint your celebrant early. Registered celebrants and ministers such as those listed under Celebrant Fiji, Satya Nand and Daniel Kenneth Dimmock deal with the Registrar-General routinely.
Venues with an on-site coordinator will usually carry the paperwork for you — The Pearl Resort at Pacific Harbour, Yatule Resort & Spa at Natadola, Tokoriki Island Resort and Lomani Island Resort & Spa in the Mamanucas all publish on-site coordination. Ask each one directly whether their published marriage requirements have been reviewed since 2009.
Next step: work through how to get legally married in Fiji, check the Fiji wedding legal FAQ for the questions around this one, and browse venues by region starting in Nadi.
