From I’lān to Official Record: Contextualizing Marriage Registration as a Substantive Validity Requirement in Indonesian Islamic Family Law

This article discusses the controversy surrounding the legal status of marriage registration among Muslim families in Indonesia, where a gap persists between Islamic understanding and the provisions of positive law. Although unregistered marriages continue to occur due to reasons such as pregnancy, secret polygamy, and so on—with all their negative consequences—many people still view marriage registration as merely a formality, not a requirement for the validity of the marriage. Using a normative-juridical and philosophical research design, this study critically analyzes primary sources (the Qur’an, Sunnah, and the Compilation of Islamic Law) and secondary literature. Through an integrative approach involving thematic interpretation, analysis of maqāṣid al-sharī’ah and maqāṣid al-usrah, as well as legal harmonization, this study argues that marriage registration must be a substantive requirement (a condition of validity), not merely a formality. By contextualizing the Prophet’s era—where i’lān (public announcement through a walimah) was necessary—to the needs of modern society, the marriage certificate (registration) is logically and functionally equivalent in Indonesia’s complex, educated, and mobile society. Supported by the Islamic principle of seeking public interest (jalb al-maṣāliḥ) and obedience to those in authority (ulī al-amr), this study concludes that marriage registration is an essential supplementary Islamic law to protect family members—particularly the rights of wives and children—ensure legal certainty, and realize the noble objectives of marriage in Islam. This study provides a holistic and integrative framework to bridge theoretical dualism, offering a solid foundation for legal practitioners, policymakers, and society.