Doha: The Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) has announced the launch of a pilot programme offering family documentation service electronically in the first phase.
This came following a plan of national initiative to develop justice systems and update all electronic services. The initiative comes within the plans to provide family documentation services online for achieving digital transformation, facilitating procedures, reducing time and ensuring data quality.
Head of the Family Documentation Department, Judge Dr. Khaled Al Roumi, said that the Department, within its digital project for documentation services, has begun to re-design procedures utilising modern technology in providing updated information to individuals and government agencies through direct electronic linkage by providing data in an easy-to-read manner electronically for individuals when used by other parties.
The Family Documentation Department launched the first package of the electronic family documentation initiative in an experimental manner in January, including the service of marriage contracts and the issuance of the marriage card electronically.
Accordingly, the marriage contract is currently issued electronically instead of the paper system through an integrated electronic system starting from the stage of application by the individual and is completed through the legal process authorised via smart devices.
The contract form is electronically signed by the parties of the contract.
After completing these electronic phases, the documents of the electronic marriage contract are also sent to the Documentation Department through the digital programme to be reviewed, approved and documented through the programme’s electronic platform.
The electronic marriage contract is then made available through the individual’s national authentication account on the family documentation portal, with the issuance of a paper copy of the contract based on an electronically filled out contract form including the authentication number. The contract paper will be a high quality of modern designs and secured in a way that cannot be tampered with, issued by the police presses.
In the same development plans, a new service is launched for issuing a marriage card, which is similar to the personal card in shape and comes within the procedures to facilitate individuals by using only the main data from the marriage contract and easy to use and carry when needed to be used by government agencies that have not yet have the direct link with SJC.
The card includes an electronic (barcode) containing all the data and is updated electronically to update the status of the marriage contract when it comes into effect or in case of the suspension of the contract due to a divorce certificate registered on the personal data.
This card comes as an alternative to a number of other services that were cancelled due to digital transformation of services, such as the service of ‘proving the continuity of marriage’ or ‘requesting an updated copy of the marriage contract and the accompanying request to bring witnesses’.
The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology has been linked on the electronic data exchange platform to provide a statement of the social status - married / divorced / single / widow - to the competent authorities to update their data through the platform and stop directing visitors (applicants) to submit an updated certificate proving the case.
Taking into account privacy and data protection according to its classification in the Supreme Judicial Council, where the Documentation Department was keen to issue a card linked to the contract number to be used by individuals without the need to present the comprehensive contract for all data.
Beneficiaries can apply for the service of issuing a marriage card for a previous contract and specify the receipt request by attending the Family Court headquarters or delivering the card as well as other services through the Qatar Post service.
Judge Khaled Al Roumi said that the aforementioned services are considered the first package of family documentation services, as the Department continues within the digital transformation project during the year to issue all its services to individuals on the electronic documentation portal. This will be in a way that makes it easier for visitors (applicants) and government agencies to obtain data related to the social situation, taking into account jurisdiction, confidentiality and protection Data privacy.
