Kuwait has taken a major step to protect the rights of adolescent girls and boys by raising the minimum legal age for marriage to 18 years. The new law, enacted under Decree-Law No. 10 of 2025, came into effect on 16 March 2025.
The law amends Article 26 of Law No. 51/1984 (Personal Status Law). It now prohibits the documentation or ratification of marriage contracts for anyone under 18. It also modifies Article 15 of the Jaafari Personal Status Law No. 124/2019. The same minimum age will now apply across this religious legal framework.
Previously, girls could marry at 15 and boys at 17 with parental or judicial consent.
