How Do I Get a Marriage License? (2024)

If the parties getting married are residents of Montgomery County and at least 18 years old, they will appear before the clerk and provide the following under oath:

• The full name of each party;
• The place of residence of each party;
• The age of each party;
• Whether the parties are related by blood or marriage and, if so, the degree of relationship;
• The marital status of each party; and
• Whether either party was married previously, and the date and place of each death or judicial determination that ended any former marriage.

The parties will then sign the Marriage Application Form and provide the clerk with the Social Security number of each party who has a Social Security number. (Please note the Marriage Application Form is not online because parties need to appear in person.)

Parties will need to bring a form of ID with them when they apply for a marriage license to prove their age.

If the applicants to be married do not live in Montgomery County and are unable to appear in person to apply, they may apply for a marriage license using a Non-Resident Marriage Application (PDF).

This form must be sworn to under oath and signed before a Clerk of the Court or comparable official where the applicants reside.

Mail this form along with a $55 money order payable to “Clerk of the Court,” to the License Department.

• While only one party is required to apply for a marriage license, each party must provide a copy of an official government-issued birth certificate or other official government-issued document or record demonstrating their age.

• Minors under the age of 17 are no longer permitted to get married.

• An individual 17 years old may not marry unless:

  • the individual has the consent of each living parent, guardian, or legal custodian of the minor person either in person or through an affidavit signed under the seal of a notary public; OR

  • if the individual does not have the required consent, a certificate from a licensed physician, licensed physician assistant, or certified nurse practitioner that states the woman to be married has been examined by the physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner and is found to be pregnant or has given birth to a child; AND

  • the individual presents a certified copy of an order granting authorization to marry in accordance with the provisions of Title 5, Subtitle 2A of the Family Law Article not earlier than 15 days after the order was issued. To obtain an order granting authorization to marry, a minor who is 17 years old may file a petition in the Circuit Court in the county in which the minor resides, and an evidentiary hearing on the petition must be held to determine if an order of authorization to marry may be granted.

Read the Law: Md. Code, Family Law §5-2A-01,5-2A-02, 5-2A-03, 5-2A-04

Marriage ceremonies are performed by appointment only. If you wish to hold your ceremony at the courthouse, please contact the License Department at 240-777-9460 or in person. You must obtain your marriage license before you may schedule a ceremony. The fee for the ceremony is $25 cash or money order.

Ceremony participants don’t need to take a number. They should arrive ten minutes early. The ceremony takes ten minutes and rings are optional. Witnesses are not needed. MAXIMUM capacity for a civil ceremony is TEN (10) people. Guests should wait in the lobby. You must be on time. Once the ceremony begins, no one is allowed in the ceremony room.

Certified copies of Marriage Licenses from 1993 forward are available from the Montgomery County Circuit Court.

You will need certified copies of your marriage license to use as a legal document of proof of your marriage for the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA), Social Security Administration, etc. You can make a request at any time for a Certified Copy of your Marriage License by completing the attached request (PDF) and sending it to the License Department.

If you are getting married at the court, you can purchase a certified copy of your marriage when you pay for the civil ceremony.

The cost of a Certified Copy is $5.50; a Non-Certified copy costs $.50.

For certified copies of Marriage Licenses before 1990 please contact the Maryland Archives at 410-260-6400 or online.

For copies of marriage licenses for marriages on or after January 1, 1990, contact the Maryland Vital Statistics Administration at 800-832-3277 or online.

Correction to marriage records must be requested in writing (along with supporting documentation — for example, a birth certificate to prove your name is spelled differently than what is shown on your marriage record). If the error was made by the License Department, there will be no charge for the correction. You would complete the Marriage License Correction Request form (PDF) and file it with the License Department.

If incorrect information was given at the time of your marriage application, then you must file a petition to correct a marriage record, with supporting documentation, with the Family Department along with a fee of $165. The Family Department will open a new suit, and it will be sent to the judge for an order to be issued.

If a couple has been married in another state or country and one of the parties is a citizen of Maryland, the couple may record the marriage ("foreign marriage") at the License Department. The parties must provide a certificate of marriage signed by the individual who performed the marriage or an official certified copy of the marriage record. There is no fee to record a foreign marriage.

Visit the U.S. Passports & International Travel page for information about planning for a marriage in a foreign country.

Fees for each of the following, except for ceremonies, may be paid in cash, money order, or Visa/Mastercard (credit cards can only be used when visiting the court in person). Personal Checks and American Express are not accepted.

• Marriage License (Resident/Non-Resident): $55.00 – NO REFUNDS
• Civil Ceremony (if being done at the court): $25.00 (cash or money order)
• Duplicate License (replacement license prior to marriage): $10.00
• Copy of License (non-certified): $.50

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