Annulment in New York: When a Marriage Can Be Undone

People ask about annulment for one of two reasons: the marriage was very short, or it began with a lie. Both are understandable instincts and both are usually wrong about what annulment is for.

In New York an annulment is not a faster divorce and not a cleaner one. It is a finding that the marriage was legally defective from the start, available only on grounds the legislature has specified, several of which expire.

What an annulment actually does

A divorce ends a valid marriage. An annulment declares that the marriage was void or voidable because something was wrong with it at the moment it was entered into — a prior spouse still living, an inability to consent, consent obtained by force or fraud.

The distinction matters legally and matters much less practically than people expect. The reason is Domestic Relations Law § 236, which by its own terms applies to actions for annulment and for a declaration of the nullity of a void marriage, not only to divorce. Property division and maintenance are on the table in an annulment exactly as they are in a divorce.

So an annulment does not rewind the finances. It changes the legal characterisation of the marriage, not the court’s authority over what the parties acquired during it.

Void and voidable are not the same thing

New York sorts defective marriages into two categories, and the difference changes what a party has to do about it.

Some marriages are void — legally no marriage at all from the beginning. Bigamous marriages and marriages between close relatives fall here. A void marriage does not require a decree to be invalid, though a party can still seek a judicial declaration of nullity, and in practice most do, because banks, insurers, immigration authorities and future spouses all want a document rather than an argument.

Other marriages are voidable. Domestic Relations Law § 7 lists them: a party under eighteen, a party unable to consent for want of understanding, physical incapacity, consent obtained by force, duress or fraud, and incurable mental illness for five years or more. The statutory language is the part worth reading closely — a voidable marriage is void from the time its nullity is declared by a court, not from the wedding.

That phrase carries real consequences. Until a court acts, a voidable marriage is a marriage in every respect: the spouses are married for tax purposes, for inheritance, for health coverage, for the automatic orders that attach in a matrimonial action. A party who believes their marriage is voidable and simply walks away from it is still married, sometimes years later, and discovers it at the worst moment — usually when trying to marry someone else.

The grounds, and who can raise them

DRL § 140 sets out the grounds. They are narrower than most people assume.

A former spouse still living. Where one party was already married and that spouse is still alive, the action may be brought by either party during the other’s lifetime, or by the former spouse.

One party under the age of consent. Brought by the underage party, a parent, a guardian or a next friend. It is barred where the parties freely cohabited as spouses after the younger one reached the age of consent.

Developmental disability or mental illness. Who may bring the action varies with which condition applies — an interested relative, the affected person after being restored to sound mind, or the other spouse where they did not know of the illness at the time of the marriage.

Physical incapacity. Where one party is physically incapable of entering the marriage and the incapacity is incurable. The action may be brought by the injured party, or by the incapable party where they did not know of the incapacity or of its incurability.

Force, duress or fraud. Consent obtained by any of the three. The action may be brought by the party whose consent was affected, or by a parent, guardian or interested relative.

Incurable mental illness for five years. Available where a spouse has been incurably mentally ill for a period of five years or more, brought by either party or their representative.

The deadlines that quietly close the door

Two of these grounds carry hard time limits, and they are the two people most often try to use.

Physical incapacity must be commenced before five years have expired since the marriage. The statute is explicit. After five years the ground is gone regardless of the facts.

Fraud is governed by the limitation for enforcing a civil remedy, which for fraud in New York is the greater of six years from when the claim accrued, or two years from when the plaintiff discovered the fraud or could with reasonable diligence have discovered it.

There is also a bar that operates independently of any clock. A marriage cannot be annulled for force, duress or fraud if the parties voluntarily cohabited as spouses after the force ceased, the duress lifted, or the fraud was discovered. Staying in the marriage after learning the truth forfeits the ground, however recent the discovery was.

A worked example

A couple marries in March 2023. In June 2024 one spouse discovers the other concealed an existing marriage that ended only weeks before the wedding, and had misrepresented their immigration status to obtain consent. They continue living together while working out what to do, and separate in December 2024. The deceived spouse consults a lawyer in early 2026.

On the clock alone the fraud ground is comfortably alive — six years from March 2023 runs to 2029, and two years from the June 2024 discovery runs to June 2026. Either measure leaves room.

The problem is the six months of cohabitation after discovery. Voluntary cohabitation as spouses after the fraud came to light is a statutory bar, and the other side will raise it. The ground that looked strongest on the calendar is the one most exposed on the facts.

Meanwhile, that marriage lasted roughly twenty-one months. Suppose the higher earner’s retirement account grew $28,000 over that period through contributions and market gains. An annulment does not shelter it. Section 236 reaches annulment actions, so the $28,000 is analysed the same way it would be in a divorce.

Where this goes wrong

A short marriage is assumed to qualify

There is no ground in DRL § 140 for brevity. A marriage of three weeks with two competent, unmarried, honest adults is a valid marriage, and it ends by divorce. New York’s no-fault ground requires only a sworn statement that the relationship has broken down irretrievably for at least six months, which makes divorce the straightforward route for most short marriages.

Cohabitation continues after the discovery

This is the most common way a genuine fraud claim dies. The instinct after discovering a serious lie is to stay and try to repair things, and doing so extinguishes the ground. Anyone considering annulment on fraud needs to understand the consequence of the next few months before those months pass.

Annulment is expected to undo the finances

The belief that an annulment means the marriage “never happened,” and so nothing is divided and no support is owed, is the single most persistent misconception here. Section 236 applies. Equitable distribution applies, and so does the maintenance analysis. Choosing annulment for financial protection is choosing it for a benefit it does not confer.

A religious annulment is treated as a civil one

A religious tribunal may annul a marriage within its own tradition. That determination has no effect on marital status under New York law, and it does not dissolve the civil marriage. Both processes can be pursued, but one does not substitute for the other, and remarrying on the strength of a religious annulment alone creates a serious problem.

Annulment is chosen when divorce would be faster

Annulment grounds are contested far more often than no-fault divorce, because they require proving something about the other spouse’s conduct or capacity rather than simply attesting to a breakdown. A contested annulment can take considerably longer and cost considerably more than an uncontested divorce that reaches the same financial outcome.

When it is the right tool

Annulment earns its place in a narrow set of cases: a bigamous marriage, a marriage entered into under genuine duress, a marriage procured by a fraud going to the essence of the relationship and acted on promptly. In those situations the legal characterisation carries weight — for immigration consequences, for religious reasons, for a party who objects on principle to being recorded as divorced.

Outside that set, the honest advice is usually that divorce is the cleaner path to the same place. Which of the two fits is a question worth putting to a lawyer early, because the fraud clock and the cohabitation bar are both running while it goes unanswered.

Frequently asked questions

Is a short marriage easier to annul?

No. Length of marriage is not a ground. A brief marriage between two people who could legally consent is a valid marriage that ends by divorce.

Do we still divide property in an annulment?

Yes. DRL § 236 applies to annulment actions, so equitable distribution and maintenance are decided the same way they would be in a divorce.

My spouse lied to me before the wedding. Is that fraud?

Not every lie qualifies. The misrepresentation generally has to go to something essential to the marital relationship — matters such as an existing marriage, an intention never to have children, or concealing a fundamental fact the other party relied on. Disappointment about character or finances is usually not enough.

How long do I have to file?

It depends on the ground. Physical incapacity must be commenced within five years of the marriage. Fraud follows the civil fraud limitation — the greater of six years from accrual or two years from discovery. Other grounds have no fixed period but can be barred by cohabitation.

My spouse was already married. Am I automatically unmarried?

A bigamous marriage is void rather than voidable, so in legal terms it was never a valid marriage. Even so, it is worth obtaining a judicial declaration of nullity rather than relying on that status. Without a decree you have nothing to show a bank, an insurer, an immigration officer or a future spouse, and proving the point later is harder than establishing it now.

Does an annulment affect the children?

Children of an annulled marriage are legitimate under New York law, and custody and child support are decided on the same standards that apply in any other case.

A note on this article

This article describes New York law in general terms and is not legal advice. Whether annulment is available in a particular marriage depends on facts and timing that need to be reviewed individually. If you are weighing annulment against divorce in Queens or elsewhere in New York City, Aronov Law NY can tell you which one your situation actually supports.

Talk to Aronov Law NY

If you are deciding between annulment and divorce, call the office for a consultation before anything is filed.

Aronov Law NY
98-14 Queens Blvd, Queens, NY 11374
Phone: 718-206-1555