Apply In-Person

1. To apply for Marriage Exemption Certificate, you should submit your application to the Work Permit Department of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS). Please view the MLSS office details via this link:Link
2. Obtain the application form and the processing fee voucher from any of the MLSS offices. You can also download the form from the MLSS website through this link:Link
3. Complete the application form accordingly and attach all the required supporting documents to the form in a single file
4. Then visit any branch of the National Commercial Bank (NCB) to pay the processing fee and obtain the payment receipt.
5. Once your application form and all supporting information and documents have been completed, signed, stamped, and certified where required, both you and your spouse should go to the work permit department of the MLSS and submit your complete application including the payment receipt to the MLSS processing official
6. The MLSS official will review the entire application to ascertain that it is complete and meets the required standards
7. After a successful verification, the application will be processed and you will be issued the marriage exemption certificate
8. Collect the certificate and take it to the immigration authorities along with the passport of the non-Jamaican spouse for official endorsement

• Complete application form
• Birth certificate or certification of Jamaican spouse. (Both original and certified copy of the original.
• Marriage Certificate (Both original and certified copy of original).
• Passports of both husband and wife
• An affidavit signed by both husband and wife stating that they share a common matrimonial home in Jamaica. This must be certified by a Justice of the Peace.
• Two certified passport size photographs of the Non-Jamaican spouse.
• One certified passport-size photograph of Jamaican Spouse.
• Original and a certified copy of Decree Absolute if either or both the husband and wife have previously been divorced.
• Original and copy of death certificate if either party has died.
• Payment receipt

Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS)-Labour Division
Address: 1F North Street, Kingston Jamaica, West Indies
Tel: (876) 922-9500-9
Fax: (876) 922-6902/ (876) 922-0996
Contact details: Link

• A non-Jamaican who is married to a Jamaican spouse is eligible to apply for the marriage exemption certificate

• The processing fee is JMD 17250

• Non-Jamaican males are issued an Exemption Certificate which is valid over a three years period while Non-Jamaican females are issued a letter of Exemption which is valid for the duration of the marriage to the Jamaican spouse.

• Marriage Exemption Form:Link

Please attach sample completed documents that would help other people.

• The application is processed within one day

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
Attach videos using the following tag <&video type='website'>video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites.
Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver,
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

• A marriage should exceed one month before you apply and obtain the marriage exemption certificate
• You can renew the marriage exemption certificate at least one month before it expires

• Non-Jamaican information
• Jamaican information
• Marriage details
• Photographs and Signature

• It is required by Jamaican law that non-Jamaican national who is married to a Jamaican should obtain the Marriage Exemption Certificate

Enter other informations which might help.

Please explain what are other uses of obtaining this document/certificate.
e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

• MLSS: Link

More information which might help people.