Civil status

The marital status is the situation of natural persons determined by their family relationships, originating from marriage or kinship, which establishes certain rights and duties.

Different legal systems

Certain legal systems may make different marital status distinctions. For example, certain cultures do not recognize the right to divorce, while others even consider intermediate forms of ending a marriage (such as marital separation).

In the same way, in certain countries different forms of marriage are contemplated, such as homosexual marriage or polygamy, which leads to different nuances of marital status.

The civil status is made up of a series of facts and acts that are so important and transcendental in the life of people that the law takes them into consideration, in a careful way, to form with them, so to speak, the Legal history of the person.

States generally keep a public registry with citizens' basic personal data, including marital status. This record is called civil registration.

Marital statuses

Although the distinctions of the marital status of a person can be variable from one state to another, the most common enumeration of marital statuses is the following:

• Single/a
• Married/a
• Free union or de facto union
• Separated/a
• Divorced
• Widow.

Regulation by country

Chile

In Chile, civil status is defined in article 304 of the Civil Code, as the quality of an individual, insofar as it enables him to exercise certain rights or contract certain civil obligations.

Manuel Somarriva defines it as the situation of an individual in society, which derives mainly from his family relationships, and which enables him to exercise rights and contract civil obligations.

In Chile there are six civil states:

• Single
• Married
• Civilian survivor
• Judicial separation
• Divorced
• Viudo(a)

Columbia

“Article 42. (...) The law shall determine the civil status of persons and the consequent rights and duties. ”

CP. 91

“The Constitution has considered that it corresponds to the legislature, as a representative at every historical moment of popular sovereignty, to establish the legal regulations of the civil state that, given the specific social situations of each moment, better harmonize the tension that may exist between the protection of marriage and the right of persons to claim their true affiliation. However, the Legislator does not have absolute discretion because it must respect the Constitution, since it is a rule of law (CP Art. 4). ”

C-109/95

In Colombia there are two civil states:

• Single
• Married

In Colombia, the Marital Union in Fact has recently been recognized by the Supreme Court of Justice as a third marital status.

Spain

Marital status in Spain is perceived as: permanent or relatively stable situations that determine the qualities of the person and predetermine the individual's ability to act.

According to articles 325 "Acts concerning the marital status of persons shall be recorded in the Registry intended for this purpose" and 326 "The Civil Status Registry will include the registrations or annotations of births, marriages, emancipations, recognitions and legitimations, of functions, naturalizations and residence and will be in charge of the municipal judges or other officials of the civil order in Spain and of consular or diplomatic agents abroad "of the Spanish Civil Code must be recorded in the Civil Registry.

Examples of marital status:

• Marriage and filiation
  • Single/a
  • Married/a
  • Viudo/a
  • Divorced
• Age (old or younger)
• Judicially declared incapacity
• Nationality and civil neighbourhood

Marital status determines the individual's ability to act and is limited by:

• Age
• Incapacity

Mexico

In the United States of Mexico there are two civil statuses:

• Single
• Married

Uruguay

In Uruguay there are seven civil states:

• Single
• Married
• Divorced
• Viudo
• natural child
• legitimate child
• father/mother

Venezuelan

In Venezuela there are four civil states:

• Single/a
• Married/a
• Divorced
• Viudo/a

Paraguayan

In Paraguay there are four marital statuses:

• Single/a
• Married/a
• Divorced
• Viudo/a