Egypt’s highest court has issued a landmark ruling regarding a long-debated legal question over the recognition of Baha’i marriages, overturning a previous Family Court judgment that had validated a marriage contract between two followers of the faith.
In its decision, the Court of Cassation stated that the Baha’i faith "is not considered one of the divinely revealed religions recognised by the Egyptian state", and therefore "cannot be registered or acknowledged in official documents issued by government agencies", especially those concerning civil status matters.
The ruling effectively nullifies a Family Court decision that had affirmed the validity of a 1981 marriage between two Baha’is.
The case originated in 2020, when a woman filed a lawsuit before the Heliopolis Family Court seeking recognition of her decades-old marriage contract, which had been notarized with mention of both parties’ Baha’i affiliation. The lower court ruled in her favour, recognising the marriage as valid.
That decision was later challenged by the Minister of Interior, the Minister of Justice, and the head of the Civil Status Authority in their official capacities.
The Court of Appeals, however, dismissed the challenge on procedural grounds, ruling that the appeal had been filed after the legal deadline.
Government authorities then took the case to the Court of Cassation in a final attempt to overturn the ruling.
The Public Prosecution submitted a memorandum recommending rejection of the appeal, but the Court chose to proceed and ultimately issued its definitive judgment.
In its reasoning, the Court examined the constitutional principle of freedom of belief, affirming that it "guarantees an individual’s right to embrace whatever religious principles and beliefs they choose", but claimed that such freedom "must not result in disrupting the public order or undermining the stability of the state".
The Court said that its conclusion "does not conflict with the principle of freedom of belief guaranteed by the Egyptian Constitution", clarifying that this freedom, while protected, is "constrained by the requirements of public order and the state’s stability".
On that basis, the previous Family Court ruling recognizing the marriage was annulled.
There are an estimated 2000-7000 Baha'i's in Egypt
The case has reignited debate over the religious freedom and legal status of the community, which is not officially recognised by the state.
With the Bahá’í world headquarters in Haifa in Israel, previously at war with Egypt, former Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser viewed the community as "foreign" and "un-Egyptian", and in 1960 issued a presidential decree banning all Bahá’í activities, dissolving their institutions, and confiscating their property
The community has therefore long faced difficulties in matters of marriage, identification documents, employment and inheritance.
Rights groups say discrimination by the Egyptian state constitutes a "civil death" for Baha'i Egyptians.