Kuwait Cabinet Approves Notarisation Reforms And Civil Code Amendment

The Kuwaiti Cabinet has approved draft legislation amending the country’s notarisation law and provisions of the Civil Code, introducing measures aimed at simplifying procedures, expanding digital services and strengthening protections for family and property rights.

 

The Cabinet approved the draft decree-law amending Law No. 10 of 2020 on notarisation during its weekly meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. The legislation was subsequently referred to Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

 

The proposed amendments seek to modernise notarisation services through closer coordination between government authorities, greater use of electronic procedures and stronger safeguards for official records and documents. The changes are intended to facilitate transactions without affecting existing legal rights or established positions.

 

A key reform would transfer responsibility for authenticating corporate documents from government notaries to the competent unit at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s Commercial Registry. The proposed system would also establish arrangements for exchanging records and information between the Commercial Registry and the Ministry of Justice.

 

The amendments would cover corporate documents including incorporation contracts, amendments, dissolution and liquidation documents, as well as withdrawal agreements. Mandatory notarisation of such documents at the Ministry of Justice would be removed, with authentication instead handled by the competent unit at the Commercial Registry.

 

The move is designed to reduce duplication between government bodies and streamline corporate procedures. The Ministry of Justice would continue handling corporate transactions until the new unit becomes operational under a joint decision by the Ministers of Justice and Commerce and Industry.

 

Documents that have already been notarised would retain their validity and full legal effect. The amendments would take effect six months after publication, allowing time for the necessary regulatory, administrative and technical preparations.

 

New Safeguards For Marriage And Divorce

 

The proposed legislation also introduces changes to notarisation procedures involving personal status matters, including marriage, divorce, marital separation, reconciliation and related proceedings.

 

Under the draft, a marriage contract could not be notarised unless both parties had completed a prescribed premarital qualification programme. The Minister of Justice would determine the programme’s content, duration, completion requirements and implementing authority, while the executive regulations would specify cases in which the requirement could be waived.

 

The Justice Minister, Nasser Al-Sumait, said the premarital qualification requirement was intended to improve awareness among prospective spouses of their rights, duties and responsibilities and contribute to greater family stability.

 

Couples seeking divorce or khula would also generally be required to first approach the Family Dispute Settlement Center. The procedure would provide an opportunity for reconciliation and require the prescribed period to pass without a settlement before the matter could proceed.

 

Exceptions would apply to final judicial rulings and personal status cases in which reconciliation is not legally permissible.

 

The Cabinet said the measures were intended to protect family rights, strengthen family stability and provide families with a meaningful opportunity to resolve disputes and preserve family cohesion.

 

Electronic And Remote Notarisation

 

The draft legislation would also give the Ministry of Justice greater scope to provide notarisation electronically. Notarisation could be conducted through the ministry’s electronic system or by video communication using approved mechanisms, alongside traditional personal attendance.

 

Electronic and remote notarisation of personal status matters would be subject to safeguards designed to ensure procedural integrity and verify the identities and consent of the parties. The cases in which personal attendance would remain mandatory would be determined separately.

 

The reforms would also strengthen electronic coordination between the Family Court Registry Department and the Notarisation Department.

 

Under the proposed system, final court rulings relating to marriage and separation could be automatically entered into notarisation records, reducing the need for separate administrative procedures and improving the consistency of official records.

 

Al-Sumait said the draft also provides for the notarisation of marriage, separation, revocation of divorce and legally prohibited breastfeeding matters. Where notarisation is not possible, the parties concerned would be required to approach the courts to safeguard legal rights and lineage.

 

Reform Of Jointly Owned Property

 

Separately, the Cabinet approved a draft decree-law amending Article 830 of the Civil Code, issued under Law Decree No. 67 of 1980, concerning jointly owned residential property.

 

The proposed amendment would give courts the power, subject to specified conditions, to order the continuation of joint ownership for a limited period where necessary to protect a co-owner who does not have another home.

 

The amendment would also provide an alternative to the sale of jointly owned property by public auction where physical division of the property is not possible.

 

Under the proposed mechanism, other co-owners could purchase the share of the party seeking partition at its fair value. This would allow the ownership arrangement to be resolved without necessarily forcing the entire property into a public auction.

 

Taken together, the proposed amendments represent a broader effort to modernise Kuwait’s legal and administrative framework by combining procedural simplification with digital integration and safeguards for family and property rights.