Couples who have children before getting married may inadvertently incur a fine due to an obscure legal stipulation.
One in of four couples have children before tying the knot, according to wedding vendor Hitched, and due to a specific provision in the Legitimacy Act 1976, they could face a fine.
In collaboration with Blacks Solicitors, Hitched warned parents that they are required by law to re-register their joint children after formalising their marriage.
Josie Kirk, an associate solicitor at Blacks Solicitors, said: “If the parents of a child get legally married after their child has been born, it then becomes a legal requirement in the UK to re-register their child’s birth.
“This is dictated by the Legitimacy Act 1976, which states that the birth must be re-registered in order to show the correct and updated status of the parents as ‘married’.
“The reason for this stems from the archaic rules regarding the ‘legitimacy’ of children, which, when the act was first put in place, impacted their rights to inheritance from their parents.
“Inheritance rules have long since changed and developed, however, despite many people not knowing about it, this particular law regarding the re-registration of a child’s birth is still in existence.
“Technically, if the child’s birth is not re-registered within three months, you can be fined. However, it is not known how frequently this rule is enforced, if at all.
“To re-register a child’s birth following the marriage of the child’s parents, Form LA1 must be completed and sent to the General Registry.”
Although the fine stands at a mere £2, wedding expert and editor of Hitched, Zoe Burke, points out that when the law was established, the amount was more substantial.
She said: “£2 might not sound like much, but back in 1976 the average weekly wage for a woman was only £45 and a pint cost around 20p – so it’s all subjective.”
Parents can re-register their children’s births online at no cost through the government’s website by clicking here.
