My Name is Sheila Sharma. I have been married for 3 years now. I never really thought about getting a marriage certificate; because I didn’t realise the need for it as long as I know I'm married! That was then. But now that I have to travel abroad for a vacation with my husband, the problem of not having a marriage certificate hits home.

Quite simply, a marriage certificate download is required for application of Passport, which I did not have. So I had to find a quick way to get the certificate. I started looking up for info online, but was confused with the slew of information around. All I wanted was a simple, step-by-step guide; and essentially one which can be done from the comfort of my home. Because I dreaded going to government offices for any work at all. And the more I read up about the processes, the more confused I was. Also, having to make an appointment with the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, filling up forms, producing self-attested copies of this document-that document was too much like hard work for me! I needed guidance.

I wanted someone to do the legwork for me.

So, naturally, I called up my sister-in-law, who’s always been my go-to for everything. And this time too she didn’t disappoint. She told me about an ad for Marriage Certificate Registration she saw online. She said it was from a firm called MyAdvo. So, I went to their site and just clicked on the Request for Callback option.

MyAdvo’s customer service representative called me up within 8 hours of my request. She explained to me the process, the documents required, the fees and everything in great detail. And most importantly, I was assured I would be given the certificate the very same day it was processed. Now that’s what I'm talking about!

As instructed, I sent the documents they required from me. The rest, MyAdvo took care of it for me — drafting the application and arranging for appointment at the Sub-Divisional Magistrate’s office. So I went to the SDM’s office at the scheduled time(the very next day), along with my husband and two friends of ours as witnesses. And just like that, I got my certificate in a single day!

It couldn’t have been simpler. I thank MyAdvo for making the process such a breeze for me. I’m lucky I applied in Bangalore, as it took just a single day for the whole process to be finalised. I was told that all other states in India have different processing times.

Note: There's a fine by the government in case the marriage registration isn't done within 60-90 days of the marriage. Since I applied after 3 years of my marriage, I had to pay a penalty of Rs 500. But I availed the 50% discount MyAdvo offered me on the fee. I’m not complaining!

External Link: Court Marriage Procedure: Step by Step guide for court marriage registration.

(As sent by Sheila Sharma, 31 yrs, Bangalore)