The District Court of Feldkirch has declared a marriage between a 19-year-old man and his 16-year-old cousin null and void. The couple wed in Serbia in September 2025 before the woman moved to Austria, prompting a lawsuit from prosecutors.
The ruling follows strict Austrian laws enacted in August 2025 that prohibit marriage for anyone under 18 and ban unions between cousins. The couple challenged these restrictions at the , docket G 81/2026, seeking to overturn the ban.
The Constitutional Court upheld the law, ruling it consistent with the . Judges justified the decision by citing a vital public interest in protecting minors and preventing child or forced marriages across the country.