So you’ve said yes and have a wedding date now what? I’m sure you have found wedding apps and timelines letting you know what needs to be done and when or you may have hired a wedding planner to take off some of the stress. One very important detail is to obtain a Marriage License.
So you might be wondering what is a marriage license and do I really need one.
YES, if you want to have a legal marriage or legally binding contract.
NO, if you only want a ceremony and will not be marrying legally. For more information go to the bottom of the page and see EXCEPTION.
If yes, you are required by the State of California to apply for a Marriage License which is valid for 90 days, meaning that your ceremony needs to take place before the Marriage License expires. You can apply for it online but it must be picked up within 15 days of submitting your application or you will have to re-apply because it vanishes from their system.
Important: Both of you have to pick up the license together at the same time and have a valid form of identification i.e. driver’s license, ID, or passport. You will be required to make an appointment online. If there are no appointments available when you apply check back the next morning as they only release 2 weeks’ worth of appointments at a time.
There are two types of Marriage Licenses:
- Confidential Marriage License $85 plus $14 for a certified copy
A certified copy is needed for legal purposes, i.e. name change, federal and state purposes, banks, credit cards, and immigration. If you pay for both of these at the same time you will not need to send in a separate request for a certified copy one will be mailed to you as long as you pay the additional $14 at the window when you pick up your marriage license. Even if you don’t think you need a certified copy it’s best to request it now because you will have to wait 6-8 weeks before you can even order one.
- Public Record Marriage License $91
This is a public record so you don’t need to pay for certified copies however the upside and the downside are that anyone can pull up this information, remember the public includes telemarketers, con artists, and identity thieves. Everyone will have access to your information and once it is public record it cannot be removed from public view. This is the preferred choice if you will be filing immigration documents.
EXCEPTION:
Some couples do not feel it is necessary to marry legally for their own personal reasons or beliefs. You would not be required to apply for a marriage license in this case. Some couples prefer to simply have a ceremony to profess their love and make their vows to one another in the presence of friends and family or sometimes no one else at all.
In this case, if you wanted to change your name and take that of your non-legal spouse, then you would just request a legal name change. A legal name change requires a petition to the court and takes up to 90 days. The name change has to appear in a local paper for a required amount of time before the court issues the name change. The process is easy and can even be free if you qualify for the waiver of fees.