In short
Article 406 lists three causes of voidability and no more. The marriage is voidable when contracted by the minor between eighteen and twenty-one, if the express permission of those called by law to give it did not intervene; by the guardian with their ward, while the former has not rendered the guardianship’s final accounts nor been released from the office; and by the party whose consent, at the moment of celebration, is vitiated by error in the identity of the person they marry. Note that last one: of all the defects of the will, the Code admits one here, error, and only about identity. Article 408 closes the list of who may challenge: those called to supply the minor’s consent, or the minor themselves represented by the ministerio público if those do not file in time; the ward, represented by the ministerio público; or the spouse suffering the defect in their consent, whose heirs may substitute them if they had already filed before dying. Article 409 sets a human limit: the marriage of the minor who married without authorisation may not be challenged if one of the spouses is pregnant or the couple’s child has been born. Article 410 sets the clock: the action expires one year from the celebration if the cause was known then, and if the fact becomes known later, the term begins to run from when it is learned. And Article 411 lists how the action is extinguished and the marriage confirmed before that term runs out, including the quietest of all: there is tacit confirmation when the entitled spouse, after the cause of annulment ceases, continues marital life with the other.
What is it?
They are Articles 406 and 408 to 411 of the Civil Code of 2020: when a marriage is voidable, who may challenge it, within what term, and how it becomes confirmed.
Who can do it?
The spouse whose consent was vitiated, the minor married without permission and those who should have given it, and the ward.
Requirements
- The marriage of the minor between eighteen and twenty-one contracted without the express permission of those who should give it is voidable.Verified against the official source
- Also the guardian’s with their ward, while the final accounts are unrendered and the office unreleased.Verified against the official source
- Also one where consent is vitiated by error in the identity of the person one marries.Verified against the official source
- Only those supplying the minor’s consent, the minor or ward through the ministerio público, and the spouse suffering the defect may challenge it.Verified against the official source
- The minor’s marriage may not be challenged if one spouse is pregnant or the couple’s child has been born.Verified against the official source
- The action expires one year from celebration if the cause was known then; if learned later, the term runs from then.Verified against the official source
- There is tacit confirmation when the entitled spouse, the cause having ceased, continues marital life with the other.Verified against the official source
Documents you need
Cost
Step by step
Step 1: Check it fits the three causes
Article 406: the minor without permission, the guardian with their ward, or error in the person’s identity.
Step 2: Only error, and only identity
Paragraph (c) admits a single defect of the will, and only about the person’s identity.
Step 3: Check you are entitled
Article 408: the list is closed and the ministerio público represents the minor and the ward.
Step 4: Count the year
Article 410: it expires a year from the celebration if the cause was already known then.
Step 5: Or from when you learned it
The same article: if the fact is learned later, the term begins running from then.
Step 6: Careful about continuing marital life
Article 411: doing so after the cause ceases confirms the marriage and extinguishes the action.
Step 7: Pregnancy closes the door
Article 409: the minor’s marriage may not be challenged if there is a pregnancy or the couple’s child was born.
Where to do it
These articles describe no procedure before any agency. The Code does not define here what continuing marital life means, which is what produces Article 411’s tacit confirmation. It does not say how long "oportunamente" is in Article 408(a), the term after which the minor may act represented by the ministerio público. It does not say before which forum the action is filed, with what pleading or at what fee. The only term it sets is Article 410’s one-year caducidad, which is a deadline to sue and not a processing time. And it does not say here what the judgment does: that is the following section, covered separately on this site.
How long it takes
What to do if something goes wrong
This route works as the opposite of nullity, and that is almost everything to understand. Nullity never prescribes and almost anyone with an interest may seek it; voidability expires in a year and the list of who may bring it is short and closed. So the first thing is to watch the clock. Article 410 says the action expires one year from the celebration if the cause was known at that moment, and that if the fact constituting the impediment becomes known later, the term begins running from then. That second half saves many cases, above all error about identity, which tends to be discovered late. The second point, and the one that quietly kills the most actions, is Article 411. It lists four ways of confirming the marriage before the term runs out, and the fourth requires signing nothing and saying nothing: there is tacit confirmation when the entitled spouse, after the cause of annulment ceases, continues marital life with the other. That is, finding out and carrying on closes the door. The article does not define what continuing marital life means, and it is not defined here on its behalf. The other three ways are equally concrete: the minor reaching twenty-one without the validity having been challenged; another person bringing the challenge, the minor opposing it, and having cohabited for more than a year or procreated children; and the guardian’s rendered accounts being approved. Third, two limits worth knowing before planning anything. Article 406(c) admits only one defect of consent — error, and only about the person’s identity — so other deceptions do not come through this door. And Article 409 closes the challenge to the minor’s marriage entirely if one of the spouses is pregnant or the couple’s child has already been born. MiPRFácil does not represent anyone in court and gives no legal advice.
Common mistakes
- Continuing marital life after learning the cause: Article 411 treats it as tacit confirmation.
- Counting the year always from the wedding: if the fact was learned later, the term runs from then.
- Alleging any deception: Article 406(c) admits only error about the person’s identity.
- Confusing voidability with nullity, which is imprescriptible and has other claimants.
- Believing anyone may challenge: Article 408 closes the list.
- Forgetting the ministerio público represents the minor and the ward in this action.
- Trying to challenge the minor’s marriage with a pregnancy or child born: Article 409 bars it.
- Treating the action as alive after the guardian’s accounts are approved: that extinguishes it.
Frequently asked questions
I found out and we stayed together. May I still void it?
Article 411 says there is tacit confirmation when the entitled spouse, the cause having ceased, continues marital life with the other.
From when does the year run?
From the celebration if the cause was already known; if learned later, from then. So says Article 410.
Does any deception work to void the marriage?
No. Article 406 admits only consent vitiated by error in the identity of the person one marries.
I married at nineteen without permission. May it be challenged?
Article 406 makes it voidable, but Article 409 bars it if one spouse is pregnant or the couple’s child was born.
Official sources
These are the government pages this guide is based on.
- Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico
Poder Judicial
bvirtualogp.pr.gov
Last verified
September 12, 2026
MiPRFácil is an independent informational website and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the Government of Puerto Rico or any government agency.
MiPRFácil does not submit applications on your behalf.
Was this guide helpful?
Did you find out-of-date information?
The action to declare a marriage null is imprescriptible: it never expires
Article 405 of the Civil Code of 2020 makes the nullity action imprescriptible, and 404 opens it to anyone with a legitimate interest.
A null marriage contracted in good faith produces all its effects until the judgment
Article 412 of the Civil Code of 2020 keeps the marriage’s effects for the good-faith spouse until the nullity judgment becomes firm.
The Code imposes no wait between a dissolved marriage and the next one
Article 383 of the Civil Code of 2020 leaves former spouses fit to formalise a new marriage once the tie is dissolved by any cause.
A calculation error in a contract is corrected; it does not void the deal
Article 290 of the Civil Code of 2020 orders calculation errors rectified, and Articles 288 and 289 limit which errors do void.
Guardianship: how a guardian is appointed and what they can and cannot do
The four types of guardianship, the bond and its exemptions, and why the role does not begin until registration.
Performing the contract after the cause ends costs you the right to void it
Article 350 of the Civil Code of 2020 turns full or partial performance into tacit confirmation, and 351 extinguishes the action with it.
The absentee reappearing does not revive a marital tie already dissolved
Article 438 of the Civil Code of 2020 says the absentee’s reappearance does not revive the dissolved tie, even if the absence was involuntary.