CIVIL (MARITAL) STATUS

DEFINITION:

The position or standing of a person in relation to marriage or the married state. Certain definitions associated with civil status are:

Marriage	Union between two members of the opposite sex of legal age and consent which is recognized by governmental and/or religious authorities in the country where the ceremony was realized
Never Married	Never having entered into marriage.
Widowed	Been in a married state and having your married spouse die during the period of marriage.
Legally Separated	Being in a marriage state and having applied to be separated from your spouse through legal recourse.
Annulled Marriage	To make/declare void or invalid a marriage, not by ending a marriage but by making it seem as it never happened (expunge).
Divorced	The legal dissolution of a marriage by the ending of the marriage.
Common-law partner	Union between two persons of legal age, who have not entered into marriage, but have agreed to a mutual commitment of a shared life and have been co-habiting together for a minimum of 1 year. Canada recognizes the following two types of common law relationships: - Opposite–sex partners: With all rights and obligations of a marriage except that there was no religious or legal ceremony to realize the union - Same-sex partners: A relationship between two members of the same sex of legal age and consent who have joined in a union. With all rights and obligations of an opposite-sex couple.