Faith of Life and State

Declaration of responsibility for life and marital status

The preferred means of proof to prove the life and marital status of a person do not require the person in charge of the Civil Registry. Therefore, to avoid unjustified delays, life can be proven by the appearance of the subject and civil status by declaration of the subject himself before the body that carries out the procedure without the need to go to the Civil Registry.

Certificate of life and marital status

If you need a faith of life, it will be enough for you to appear before the official of the administrative unit that processes the procedure in question with your DNI; If you represent a third party, you must attach your DNI and medical certificate with an issue date of less than 15 days stating that the person is alive and cannot appear in person due to mobility difficulties or illness.

If you need a proof of life and marital status Both for a procedure in the Public Administration and for a religious marriage, or registration of de facto unions, it will suffice that you present before the administrative unit that processes the procedure, the model of responsible declaration, having to take into account the legal consequences that they suppose providing false information to the Public Administration.

Model responsible declaration

To make the declaration we propose the following model:

Responsible declaration of faith of life and marital status

More information

Regulations faith of life and marital status

On June 24, 2022, the General Directorate of Legal Security and Public Faith, belonging to the Ministry of Justice, issued an informative circular sent to all the Autonomous Communities, in relation to the request for certificates of faith of life and status in the civil registers; in this sense, said circular specifies that "In order for a person to prove that they are alive, it is enough for them to appear before the corresponding body so that said circumstance can be considered accredited, or through the granting of a notarial act of presence". Likewise, for elderly people who cannot fend for themselves to travel to the body before which the procedure must be carried out and proof of life, it would also be enough for a third party to appear with a medical certificate dated no less than 15 days, in which it is stated that the person for whom the life certificate is to be issued is disabled and alive.

With regard to the faith of life and status, in articles 363 and 364 of the current Civil Registry Regulations, it is stated that: "Marital status is accredited by a sworn statement or solemn affirmation of the subject himself or by an act of notoriety, without the official bodies being able to demand other different means of proof".

The certificate of proof of life or of proof of life and status, is not the only means of proof, nor is it the preferred one, to prove life, since, in addition to the appropriate notarial certificates of presence or notoriety, life can proven by appearance of the subject and marital status by declaration of the subject.

Likewise, it is highlighted that "these last means of proof are not only possible but also preferable to the others indicated, - according to article 363 of the Civil Registry Regulations -, whose application and dissemination among all the Administration bodies must be increased to avoid unjustified delays and damages to needy sectors of society. These means of preferential proof do not require the person in charge of the Civil Registry, so the requirement of his intervention not only does not comply with the law, but also hinders and slows down the processes and tasks that do fall within these registries”.