Department Terms of Reference
1.Authenticate the endowment certificates, withdrawal of the same, changing its objectives, official notifications of wills and their withdrawal, certificate of death and succession, issuing a lineage list, marriage contracts in which the judge is the guardian of those who do not have a guardian, confirming marriage contracts according to the birth certificate of the eldest child, division of estate, divorce, khul’u and resumption of marriage certificates and similar certificates, declaration of Islam, confirmation of marriage contracts in connection with which judgments are passed or documents passed from abroad, marriage notification from abroad, no marriage certificates, authentication of amendments and additions to the aforesaid documents, pursuant to the request of the concerned parties and as per the law.
2.Issuing the legal division documents, distribution of shares to the legal heirs, issuing wills and endowment certificates, and withdrawal of the same.
The Department is specialized with Shariah authentication procedures according to the following conditions:
The judgment is specialized with the authentication of the following documents;
1)Endowment certificates, withdrawal of the same, and changing its spending channels.
2)Official notifications for wills and withdrawal of the same.
3)Certification of death and succession
4)Issuing a lineage statement.
5)Marriage contracts in which the judge is the guardian of those who do not have a guardian.
6)Confirming marriage contract according to the birth certificate of the eldest child
7)Authentication of amendments and additions to the documents set forth under the above items, pursuant to the request of the concerned parties and as per the law.
The authorized marriage officers are concerned with authenticating and documenting marriage contracts.
The authenticators are concerned with authenticating the following documents:
1)Division of estates
2)Divorce, khul’u and resumption of marriage certificates and similar certificates.
3)Confirming the marriage contracts for which judgments are passed or documents issued from abroad which satisfy the conditions according to the law.
4)Authentication of amendments on the documents set forth in the previous items, as per the request of the concerned parties and the law.
5)Declaration of Islam.
6)Notification of marriage form abroad.
7)No marriage certificates.
8)Other certificates under the Department’s specialization as per the provisions of the laws and regulations.
9)Authentication of amendments and additions to the documents set forth under the above items as per the request of the concerned parties and according to the law.
The organizational structure of Shariah Authentication Department consists of the following:
•Jaafari Authentication Documents Control, consisting of the following sections:
oMarriage and Divorce Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Marriage and Marriage Certifications Division
This division is concerned with issuing marriage contracts and marriage certifications.
•Divorce Division
This division is concerned with issuing divorce, khul’u and resumption of marriage certificates and similar certificates.
oInheritance Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Certification of Succession and Lineal Statement Division, specialized with the following;
1.Issuing certification of succession for the deceased.
2.Issuing the lineage statement for the endowers.
•Legal Division of Inheritance Division
This division is concerned with issuing the legal division document and distribution of shares to the heirs.
oWills, Endowments and Official Notifications Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Wills and Endowments Division
This division is concerned with issuing wills and endowments certificates and withdrawal of the same.
•Official Notifications Division, specialized with the following:
1.Issuing no marriage and continuation of marriage certificates.
2.Other certificates over which the Department is specialized according to the provisions of the laws and regulations.
•Marriage and Divorce Documents Control, consisting of the following sections:
oMarriage and Marriage Certifications Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Marriage Contracts Division
This division is concerned with issuing marriage contracts within the Department.
•Marriage Certifications Division
This division is concerned with issuing marriage certifications according to the court judgment or marriage contracts issued from abroad and certified by the official bodies.
oDivorce Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Divorce and Khul’u Division
This division is concerned with issuing divorce and khul’u certificates.
•Divorce and Khul’u Confirmation Division
This division is concerned with issuing certificates for confirming divorce and khul’u according to the court judgment or in the presence of both parties and witnesses testimony.
•Resumption of Marriage Division
This division is concerned with issuing resumption of marriage certificates and confirming the resumption of marriage in the presence of both parties or according to a court judgment.
oMarriage Officers Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Marriage Officers Committee Division concerned with the following:
1.Receiving the applications of marriage officers and presenting them to the Marriage Officers Committee.
2.Keeping the files of marriage officers.
3.Following up all matters relevant to their affairs and functions, according to the provisions of the law and the marriage officers regulation.
•Incoming and Outgoing Mail Division, specialized with the following:
1)Review of their records and register them in the records prepared for this purpose.
2)Delivery and receiving of the marriage contracts books from and to the marriage officers.
•Contracts Authentication Division, specialized with the following:
1.Authentication of the contracts issued by the marriage officers.
2.Approval and authentication of the signatures of marriage officers.
•Official Notifications Control, consisting of the following sections:
oWills and Endowments Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Wills Division
Specialized with issuing will certificates and withdrawal of the same.
•Endowments Division
Specialized with issuing endowments certificates and withdrawal of the same.
oInheritance Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Certification of Succession and Lineage Statement Division
Specialized with issuing the certifications of death and succession and issuing the lineage statement.
•Shariah Division of Inheritance Division
Specialized with issuing Shariah division documents and distribution of shares to the heirs.
oNotifications Section, consisting of the following divisions:
•Declaration of Islam Division
Specialized with issuing the declaration of Islam certificate.
•Miscellaneous Notifications Division, specialized with the following:
1.Issuing marriage notification certificates from abroad.
2.Issuing no marriage or continuation of marriage certificates.
3.Issuing other certificates under the specialization of the Department as per the laws and regulations.
Each of the five authentication offices as follows:
(Jahra Authentication Office – Hawally Authentication Office – Farawniya Authentication Office – Ahmadi Authentication Office- Mubarak Al Kabeer Authentication Office)
Consists of the following divisions:
•Secretarial Division, accountable to the office director directly, and specialized with the following;
1)Keeping the office records and documents, and delivering of official copies thereof to the concerned parties.
2)Receiving applications related to employment affairs of the office personnel, and completing them in coordination with the Secretarial Section of the head office of Shariah Authentications Department.
3)Keep the outgoing and incoming records.
4)Undertake typing works referred to it.
•Jaafari Shariah Documents Authentication Division, specialized with the following:
1.Issuing marriage contracts, divorce, khul’u and resumption of marriage certificates.
2.Certification of death, division of estate and issuing the lineage statement.
3.Issuing no marriage certificates and other miscellaneous certificates.
•Marriage and Divorce Documents Division, specialized with the following:
1.Issuing marriage contracts inside the office and authenticate the issued contracts by the marriage officers.
2.Issue marriage certificates according to the court judgment or according to marriage contracts issued from abroad and authenticated by the official bodies.
3.Issue divorce and khul’u certificates and similar certificates.
4.Issue divorce, marriage and khul’u confirmation certificates according to a court judgment or in the presence of both parties and the witness testimony.
5.Issuing resumption of marriage certificates and confirmation of resumption of marriage in the presence of both parties or according to a court judgment.
•Inheritance Division
This division is specialized with issuing the certification of death and succession, division of estate and issuing the lineage statement.
•Official Notifications Division, specialized with the following:
1.Issuing no marriage certificate and continuation of marriage certificate.
2.Issuing other certificates under specialization of the Department according to the provisions of the laws and regulations.
oLegal Affairs Section, accountable to the Department manager directly, and specialized with the following:
1.Provide the information requested form the Shariah Authentication Department for the cases filed against the Ministry of Justice in connection with the Department’s work.
2.Follow up the execution of enforceable judgments passed in connection with marriage and divorce and inheritance received by the Department, after verifying their satisfaction of all the legal requirements.
3.Cooperation with the Department sections and furnish them with the legal opinion to assist it to perform its task.
4.Express the legal opinion on other matters presented to it.
oArchive Section, directly accountable to the Department manager, concerned with the following:
1.Receiving the records, documents and indexes of the Department sections and divisional offices in the governorates, arrange and keep them.
2.Issue true copies requested by the official authorities or individuals. The delivery date of the copy of document to its applicant shall be confirmed in a special register, who shall sign for receipt of the same.
oSecretarial Section, directly accountable to the Department manager, consisting of the following divisions:
•Personnel Affairs Division
This division is specialized with receiving the applications of the Department personnel in connection with employment affairs and their completion.
•Outgoing, Incoming Mail and Typing Division, specialized with the following:
1.Undertake all the outgoing and incoming works of the Department.
2.Undertake typing works referred to it by the concerned bodies.
-The Department manager undertakes general supervision over the Department, divisional offices in the governorates, distribution of administrative and clerical works to the personnel.
-The general assembly of the Court of First Instance shall delegate a judge to authenticate the documents related to personnel status affairs stated under clause (1) of article (2).
-Applications shall be submitted by those concerned to the Department manager or heads of divisional offices in the governorates, who shall refer them to the concerned employee for completion of the details, information and relevant papers on the same day, if possible, then present them to the documentation judge concerned with authenticating them to take the required action in this respect. As for the documents authenticated by the marriage officers or authenticators, they shall be presented to them directly to complete the authentication procedures after receiving the determined fees before authentication of the documents.
-The authentication subject shall be written in a document signed by the judge, marriage officer or authenticator – as per the case- the clerk issuing the same, those concerned and the witnesses, and shall be free of erasure or insertion. Its pages shall be numbered if it consists of several pages, which shall all be signed by the judge, marriage officer, or authenticator and the clerk. The document shall include, in addition to the details concerned with its subject, the following :
a.Date on which the authentication took place by year, month and day, written in words and numbers.
b.Name of the judge, marriage officer, or authenticator and the clerk issuing the same.
c.Indicate whether the authentication took place inside or outside the Department.
d.Names of the concerned parties, names of their parents, and paternal grandparents, and their surnames.
e.Method of verifying the identity of the concerned parties, and mention the witnesses, if any.
•If one of the concerned parties is blind, poor eyesight or mute, and is unable as a result of expressing his will, he should have a judicial assistant or designee to sign the document with him, who shall be considered as a witness. If he does not have a judicial assistant or designee, the judge, marriage officer or authenticator shall appoint a designee for him from among the Department personnel or others, whose task is confined to signing the document with him, for free. The appointment shall be confirmed in the document.
•If the endowment or will certificate is focussed on a property, viewing the official copy of the title deed should be confirmed, as well as prove its number and date in the document intended to be authenticated. If the property is unregistered under hte name of the transacting party, or has barrier of transaction, the judge shall refrain from conducting the authentication.
•The judge, marriage officer or authenticator, may transfer outside the Department to conduct the authentication if the condition of the party concerned does not allow him to attend. The transfer shall be confirmed in the document and records prepared in this respect. Other than the cases of endowment or other cases which should be authenticated in front of the judge, marriage officer or authenticator, he may appoint his designee to transfer from one of the employees.
•The Department shall keep the originals of the documents authenticated according to their numbers in files for each year separately.
•The office directors in the governorates supervise the works of the office personnel, distribution of jobs therein, and furnish the main Department with monthly reports on the works of the office, the obstacles it may have faced and propose the appropriate solutions for them.
•Every document shall be copied according to the number of the parties concerned, to be delivered to each one of them, after confirming on the copy the authentication number and date and stamped with the Department stamp.
•All copies of documents issued by the Department shall bear the statement (true copy) and signed by the Department manager or his designee.
•A register shall be prepared in the Department and its affiliated divisional office in the governorates for each type of authentications, and register the type of the document which shall be numbered in serial numbers, and indicate the name of the judge who authenticated the same, the name of the clerk who issued the same, and names of concerned parties and witnesses. The original of the document shall bear its registration number in this register.
•Alphabetical indexes shall be prepared in the Department and its divisional offices in the governorates in which the names of all parties concerned with the documents shall be written in alphabetical order, as well as the document number for each one of them and its date.