Ohio Annulment Laws: Grounds, Deadlines and How to File (2026)

Yes. An Ohio court of common pleas can annul a marriage for any of six causes listed in Ohio Revised Code (R.C.) 3105.31, each of which must have existed at the time of the marriage. R.C. 3105.32 sets who may file for each cause and the deadline, and four of the six causes carry a two-year time limit.

Information last verified on 2026-10-08. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers civil annulment under Ohio Revised Code Chapter 3105 (sections 3105.03, 3105.21, 3105.31, 3105.32 and 3105.34), the marriage-age rules in sections 3101.01 and 3101.02, and the parentage presumption in section 3111.03. It does not cover divorce or dissolution in depth, how child support or spousal support amounts are set, religious annulment, or other states' law. For ending a valid marriage, see Ohio divorce laws.

What Ohio calls an annulment

Ohio law speaks of annulling a marriage and of a "judgment of nullity." R.C. 3105.31 opens with the core rule:

"A marriage may be annulled for any of the following causes existing at the time of the marriage:"

Six lettered causes follow, (A) through (F). R.C. 3105.32 then pairs each cause with the people who may bring the case and the time limit for doing so. In a 2014 decision, Ohio's Tenth District Court of Appeals noted that both sections were enacted in 1963 and had not been revised (Patel v. Patel, 2014-Ohio-2150).

The key point for most readers is timing. An annulment rests on a defect that existed when the couple married. A divorce, by contrast, ends a valid marriage on the grounds in R.C. 3105.01.

The six grounds for annulment in Ohio

The table below pairs each cause in R.C. 3105.31 with the filing rules in R.C. 3105.32.

The parent-or-guardian route for an underage marriage comes from R.C. 3105.32(A), which allows the case:

"by the party to the marriage who was married under the age at which persons may be joined in marriage as established by section 3101.01 of the Revised Code, within two years after arriving at such age; or by a parent, guardian, or other person having charge of such party at any time before such party has arrived at such age"

Intoxication at the time of the wedding is not one of the six causes listed in R.C. 3105.31.

Void or voidable: how Ohio's statute is written

Many states sort annulment grounds into "void" marriages and "voidable" ones. Ohio's annulment sections do not use those labels for the six causes. They simply list causes for which a marriage "may be annulled."

R.C. 3105.34 does refer to both ideas, speaking of a court that determines "a marriage is void or that a judgment of nullity ought to be granted." This page does not classify any Ohio cause as void from the start. How Ohio courts treat that question is a matter of case law this page does not cover.

Separately, R.C. 3101.01(A) sets conditions for who may marry in Ohio, including a minimum age, a kinship limit ("not nearer of kin than second cousins"), and not having a husband or wife living. Close kinship is not one of the six lettered causes in R.C. 3105.31, and this page does not cover how Ohio courts treat a marriage between close relatives.

Fraud as a ground: what courts have required

Fraud is the cause people ask about most. In M.K. v. K.M., 2024-Ohio-5147, the Ninth District Court of Appeals stated that the fraud must go to a matter essential to the marriage relationship itself or affecting the legality of the union. False statements about finances were not enough.

The same opinion required the fraud to be proved by clear and convincing evidence. The two-year clock in R.C. 3105.32(D) starts when the aggrieved party discovers the facts that make up the fraud, not on the wedding date.

Living together as husband or wife after learning the truth defeats the claim. R.C. 3105.31(D) excludes a party who, "with full knowledge of the facts constituting the fraud, cohabited with the other as husband or wife."

Non-consummation

R.C. 3105.31(F) allows an annulment where "the marriage between the parties was never consummated although otherwise valid." The aggrieved party must file within two years from the date of the marriage (R.C. 3105.32(F)).

The statute itself states no cohabitation exception for this cause. In Patel v. Patel, 2014-Ohio-2150, the Tenth District applied an earlier decision, Lang v. Reetz-Lang (10th Dist. 1985), which spoke of some fault on the part of the defendant, and read it as satisfied where the parties knowingly did not consummate the marriage. A lawyer can explain how the court in your county applies it.

Underage marriage and Ohio's 2019 age rule

Under R.C. 3101.01(A) and 3101.02, as amended by House Bill 511 (132nd General Assembly) effective April 8, 2019, the minimum marriage age in Ohio is 18. Seventeen-year-olds may marry only with juvenile court consent. R.C. 3101.02 provides:

"If both persons to be joined in marriage are the age of seventeen years, they may be joined in marriage only if the juvenile court has filed a consent to the marriage under section 3101.04 of the Revised Code."

If only one person is 17, the other may be no more than four years older. The underage annulment cause in R.C. 3105.31(A) is tied to the age set in R.C. 3101.01, and the filing rules in R.C. 3105.32(A) let either the underage party or a parent or guardian bring the case on the deadlines shown in the table above.

How to file for an annulment in Ohio

Court. Annulment cases go to the court of common pleas. R.C. 3105.03 provides that the court "shall hear and determine the case, whether the marriage took place, or the cause of divorce or annulment occurred, within or without the state." In counties with a domestic relations division, that division handles these cases.

Residency. R.C. 3105.03 sets the residency rule:

"The plaintiff in actions for divorce and annulment shall have been a resident of the state at least six months immediately before filing the complaint."

Forms and self-help. This page did not confirm a statewide Supreme Court of Ohio form for annulment. The domestic relations court or clerk of courts in your county can tell you what that court requires.

Name. When a court determines that a marriage is void or a judgment of nullity should be granted, R.C. 3105.34 lets it, in its discretion, "restore any name that the person had before the marriage," whether or not the complaint asked for it.

Children after an Ohio annulment

An annulment does not leave children without court orders. R.C. 3105.21(A) provides:

"Upon satisfactory proof of the causes in the complaint for divorce, annulment, or legal separation, the court of common pleas shall make an order for the disposition, care, and maintenance of the children of the marriage"

Ohio's parentage statute also reaches children of annulled marriages. Under R.C. 3111.03(A)(1), a man is presumed to be the father of a child "born during the marriage or is born within three hundred days after the marriage is terminated by death, annulment, divorce, or dissolution." R.C. 3111.03(A)(2) extends the presumption to certain attempted marriages solemnized in apparent compliance with law that could be declared invalid.

For how custody is decided, see Ohio child custody laws.

Property and spousal support: an open question

Ohio's property-division statute, R.C. 3105.171(B), and its spousal-support statute, R.C. 3105.18(B), are written in terms of divorce and legal separation. R.C. 3105.171(B) begins: "In divorce proceedings, the court shall, and in legal separation proceedings upon the request of either spouse, the court may, determine what constitutes marital property and what constitutes separate property."

Annulment is not named in those provisions. This page does not resolve whether, or how, an Ohio court divides property or orders support when it annuls a marriage. If property, debts or support are at stake, that is a question for an Ohio family lawyer before you choose between annulment and divorce.

Annulment vs. divorce in Ohio

An annulment rests on one of the six causes in R.C. 3105.31 that existed at the time of the marriage. A divorce ends a valid marriage on the grounds in R.C. 3105.01. Both use the same six-month state residency rule in R.C. 3105.03. For divorce grounds and procedure, see Ohio divorce laws.

If you are not sure a legal marriage was ever formed, our page on Ohio common-law marriage explains how Ohio treats informal unions. In general, a religious annulment granted by a faith community and a civil annulment granted by a court are separate processes, and one does not produce the other.

To request copies of court records from a past case, see Ohio marriage and divorce records.

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about annulment under the Ohio Revised Code, not legal advice. The information was last verified on 2026-10-08, and the statute text relied on was read from a published compilation of the 2025 Ohio Revised Code and checked against Ohio court opinions. Laws and court practice change. For advice about your situation, consult a lawyer licensed in Ohio or contact the domestic relations court in your county.

Related

• Annulment laws in every state
• Ohio divorce laws
• Ohio common-law marriage
• Ohio child custody laws
• Ohio marriage and divorce records

Last updated: 2026-10-08.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you get an annulment in Ohio?

Yes. R.C. 3105.31 lets a court annul a marriage for six causes that existed at the time of the marriage: underage, a prior marriage still in force, adjudicated mental incompetence, fraud, force, or non-consummation.

How long do you have to get an annulment in Ohio?

It depends on the cause. Under R.C. 3105.32, fraud must be raised within two years after it is discovered, force and non-consummation within two years from the marriage date, and an underage party has two years after reaching marriageable age.

Is lying grounds for annulment in Ohio?

Only fraud that goes to a matter essential to the marriage relationship itself or affecting the legality of the union. In M.K. v. K.M., 2024-Ohio-5147, the Ninth District stated that false statements about finances were not enough and required clear and convincing evidence.

Do you have to live in Ohio to get an annulment?

The plaintiff must have been an Ohio resident for at least six months immediately before filing the complaint (R.C. 3105.03). The marriage itself may have taken place outside Ohio.

Can a bigamous marriage be annulled in Ohio?

Yes. R.C. 3105.31(B) covers a marriage where a former husband or wife of either party was living and that earlier marriage was still in force. Either party may file during the life of the other, or the former spouse may file (R.C. 3105.32(B)).

What happens to children when an Ohio marriage is annulled?

The court must make orders for the disposition, care and maintenance of the children of the marriage (R.C. 3105.21(A)). The parentage presumption in R.C. 3111.03(A)(1) covers a child born within 300 days after the marriage is terminated by annulment.

Can I get my maiden name back with an Ohio annulment?

The court may, in its discretion, restore any name a person had before the marriage as part of the judgment, even if the complaint did not request it (R.C. 3105.34).