Photo courtesy of Egypt's cabinet
The bill will be submitted alongside two others—one covering Muslim personal status and another establishing a family support fund—with the government planning to send them to parliament in stages.
Officials said the draft aims to unify rules on issues such as marriage, divorce, custody, and inheritance for Egypt’s Christian communities, which have until now been governed by a patchwork of regulations.
The law is based on Article 3 of the Constitution, which states that Christian religious principles govern personal status matters for followers of those faiths.
A legal committee, formed under Prime Ministerial Decree No. 2172, drafted the bill over at least 35 meetings up to 20 April, consulting church representatives, legal experts, and lawmakers, according to the justice ministry.
Justice Minister Mahmoud El-Sherif said most provisions had broad agreement among the country’s main Christian denominations.
The draft applies to multiple churches, including Coptic Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Catholic, and Evangelical communities, while allowing for doctrinal differences in specific provisions.
It was also reviewed by the Supreme Judicial Council, the National Council for Human Rights, the National Council for Women, and the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood, in accordance with constitutional requirements. Observations from these bodies were incorporated into the final version.
The draft applies to multiple churches, including Coptic Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Catholic, and Evangelical communities, while allowing for doctrinal differences in specific provisions.
It also consolidates several existing legal instruments into a single framework to simplify procedures for courts and make the rules clearer for the public.
El-Sherif stressed that the draft law upholds the constitutional principle of equality before the law, ensuring that non-doctrinal matters—such as housing, custody, visitation, and related rights—are regulated uniformly for all citizens.
He added that these provisions are being aligned, where applicable, with parallel rules in the upcoming Muslim personal status law.
The minister also underscored that the draft law reflects full consensus among Egypt’s Christian denominations on both substantive and procedural provisions.
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