Take a look at the following fiddle: http://jsfiddle.net/yvanavermaet/v5Vvs/
Steps to make it work: - Added "require" class to the input fields (you've already added the minlength validation) - Called the validate function on the form to activate the validation on submit (standard behaviour)
$("#the_form").validate();
Is this what you were looking for? If not, let me know.