In short
Marital Affair is a discreet dating site for married and attached adults, and the UK is one of its two main countries. Joining and browsing are free; reading and replying to messages is paid. Adultery is not a crime in the UK. Scams go to Report Fraud on 0300 123 2040, or Police Scotland on 101, and NHS sexual health clinics are free and confidential.
| Report a scam (England, Wales, NI) | Report Fraud, 0300 123 2040 |
|---|---|
| Report a scam (Scotland) | Police Scotland, 101 |
| Intimate image abuse (adults) | Revenge Porn Helpline, help@revengepornhelpline.org.uk |
| Sexual health | NHS sexual health clinics: free and confidential |
| No-fault divorce (England and Wales) | In force since 6 April 2022 |
| Relationship counselling | Relate (England, Wales), Relationships Scotland, Relate NI |
Who you'll meet, and what it costs from the UK
The UK and the US are Marital Affair's two main countries, with smaller numbers of members in Australia, Canada, Ireland and South Africa. Because profiles are shared with partner sites in the same network, you may also hear from people who joined through another site. Everyone must be 18 or over, and the members area accepts sign-ups from Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man as well as Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Joining, building a profile and browsing are free; reading and replying to messages needs a paid membership. The prices page explains the options. Prices have so far been shown in US dollars, so your bank converts the charge, and some UK cards add a foreign transaction fee. Check the figure at checkout and your card's terms. Checkout also shows the billing name that will appear on your statement, and every membership renews until you cancel in Settings > Billing.
Is having an affair illegal in the UK?
No. Adultery is not a criminal offence in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. Its only legal weight is in divorce, and even there it now matters only in Scotland and Northern Ireland (see the table below).
What is illegal is what other people might do to you, or what you must never do to anyone else:
- Blackmail (called extortion in Scotland): demanding money or anything else with threats, including a threat to tell your partner.
- Fraud: taking money through lies, as romance scammers do.
- Intimate image abuse: sharing, or threatening to share, intimate images of someone without their consent. Each nation has its own law.
| Nation | Main law on sharing intimate images without consent |
|---|---|
| England and Wales | Sexual Offences Act 2003, section 66B, for incidents after 31 January 2024 (earlier cases fall under the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015) |
| Scotland | Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016, section 2 |
| Northern Ireland | Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2016, section 51 |
The Revenge Porn Helpline's summary of these laws covers threats to share as well as sharing. If anyone uses images or messages against you, the people to tell are below.
Reporting a scam or a threat
Where you report depends on which part of the UK you live in.
- England, Wales and Northern Ireland: Report Fraud (the service that replaced Action Fraud), online at reportfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040.
- Scotland: Police Scotland on 101.
- Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man: the island's own police service.
- In an emergency, or if you are in danger: 999.
If someone threatens to share intimate images or messages unless you pay, stop replying, keep the evidence and report it. Report Fraud has a page on sextortion explaining what to do. The Revenge Porn Helpline supports adults in the UK experiencing intimate image abuse, including webcam blackmail; you can email help@revengepornhelpline.org.uk. The helpline also operates StopNCII.org, which lets you create a digital fingerprint of an intimate image on your own device so that participating platforms can find and remove copies, without the image itself being uploaded.
Our safety page covers the warning signs, and the guide to scams and blackmail explains how these schemes usually run.
Sexual health: free and confidential on the NHS
NHS sexual health clinics are free to everyone, whatever your age, gender or sexuality, and you don't usually need a GP referral. Visits are confidential: the NHS says staff will not tell anyone what you discuss without your permission, and that includes your GP. Some GP surgeries and pharmacies offer sexual health services too.
Home testing kits, which let you take samples at home and post them off, depend on where you live:
| Where you live | Home testing, as of October 2026 |
|---|---|
| England | Depends on your local council's service |
| Wales | Free kits for anyone aged 16 or over |
| Scotland | Being rolled out; check with your health board |
| Northern Ireland | Ask your local sexual health clinic |
PrEP, medicine that protects against HIV, is free on the NHS from sexual health clinics. Our guide to sexual health with a new partner covers testing, protection and what to do quickly if a condom fails.
Divorce and separation: the law differs across the UK
None of this is legal advice, but the basic rules are worth knowing, because adultery plays a different part in each nation.
| Item | How a divorce is shown | Where adultery fits |
|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | No-fault divorce since 6 April 2022. You state the marriage has broken down; no blame is needed, couples can apply jointly, and a divorce can be contested only on limited grounds such as jurisdiction. At least 20 weeks must pass before applying for a conditional order. | Not needed. Allegations about a spouse's conduct were removed from the process. |
| Scotland | Irretrievable breakdown, shown by adultery, unreasonable behaviour, one year living apart with your spouse's consent, or two years apart without it. | Still one of the four ways to show breakdown. |
| Northern Ireland | Irretrievable breakdown, shown by adultery, unreasonable behaviour, two years' desertion, two years' separation with consent or five years' separation without it. | Still a fact, but it can't be relied on if the couple lived together for more than six months in total after the spouse found out. |
A divorce ends the marriage but doesn't settle the home, money or children. In England and Wales, anyone applying to court about children or finances is usually required to attend a mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAM) first, unless an exemption such as domestic abuse applies. GOV.UK's getting a divorce guide has the current steps and court fee.
Our guide to separation and divorce in the UK goes into the process in more detail. If either of you is considering it, speak to a family solicitor before acting.
Counselling and support in each nation
You don't need to have decided anything to talk to someone. Each part of the UK has its own relationship counselling charity, and all of them see people on their own as well as couples.
| Where you live | Relationship counselling | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| England | Relate | Individual and couples counselling, mostly online, fees set by household income |
| Wales | Relate Cymru | Relate's service in Wales |
| Scotland | Relationships Scotland | Counselling and family mediation; InfoLine 0345 119 2020 |
| Northern Ireland | Relate NI | Couples and individual counselling, family mediation and sex therapy |
If you feel overwhelmed, Samaritans answer on 116 123, free, at any time, and Shout offers support by text: send SHOUT to 85258. Our page on getting support lists more places to turn.
Keeping your account private
Discretion on the site comes down to a few choices you control. Checkout shows the billing name before you pay; account emails go to the address you register with; and your profile can be seen by members of partner sites in the same network. Our discretion page explains each of these, and the profile privacy guide covers choosing photos and details. If you are still deciding whether this is for you at all, questions to ask yourself first is the place to start.
Questions people ask
Is having an affair illegal in the UK?
No. Adultery is not a criminal offence anywhere in the UK. It matters legally only in divorce: in Scotland and Northern Ireland it is still one way to show a marriage has broken down, while in England and Wales no reason is needed. Blackmail, fraud and sharing or threatening to share intimate images are crimes, whatever the circumstances.
Will an NHS sexual health clinic tell my GP?
Not without your permission. The NHS says clinic staff will not tell anyone what you discuss, including your GP, unless you agree. You don't usually need a GP referral to go, and you can find your nearest clinic on the NHS website.
Does adultery matter in a UK divorce?
It depends where you live. In England and Wales you no longer have to give a reason. In Scotland and Northern Ireland, adultery is still one of the ways to show a marriage has broken down, alongside separation and other facts. Whether it affects money is a separate question for a solicitor.
Are prices shown in pounds?
Prices have so far been shown in US dollars. Check the amount at checkout before you confirm; your bank converts it and may add a foreign transaction fee, which your card's terms will set out.
Can I join from Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man?
Yes, the members area accepts sign-ups from the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. Reporting works differently there: Report Fraud covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland only, so on the islands contact the island's own police if you are targeted by a scam or threat.
Keep reading
- Is Marital Affair legit? Who runs it and what you payWho runs Marital Affair, how long it has existed, what it costs and what is and isn't checked.
- Thinking about an affair? Questions to ask yourself firstWhat you want, what you could lose, who else is affected: questions worth asking before an affair, and where to get support.
- Scams, blackmail and fake profiles on affair sitesRomance fraud, sextortion and fake profiles: the warning signs, what to do and where to report it.
- What affair dating sites cost, and how billing worksMemberships, credits, trials and extras: what affair sites cost, how renewal works and what your statement shows.
Sources
- Report Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting Centre
- Sextortion — Report Fraud
- Revenge Porn Helpline
- Intimate image abuse laws — Revenge Porn Helpline
- StopNCII.org
- Find a sexual health clinic — NHS
- Visiting an STI clinic — NHS
- Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) — NHS
- New divorce laws will come into force from 6 April 2022 — GOV.UK
- Getting a divorce — GOV.UK
- Divorce and legal separation: Scotland — European e-Justice Portal
- Divorce and legal separation: Northern Ireland — European e-Justice Portal
- Children and Families Act 2014, section 10 (MIAMs) — legislation.gov.uk
- Counselling services — Relate
- Relate Cymru
- Relationships Scotland
- Relate NI
- Samaritans
- Shout
Checked 18 October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.