Photo by Mary Dougherty Photography
Marriage License Is Required.
I always require a marriage license when officiating a wedding. If your ceremony uses words like "married, marriage, spouse, husband, wife, wedding, wed, bride, groom or any other word that implies marriage, " it requires a marriage license. Since most of the weddings I officiate are within New York State, this page focuses on NY State requirements. If your ceremony is to take place outside New York State, please check the requirements of that state.
If you were married to each other prior and now want to have a marriage ceremony in front of friends and family, I still require a marriage license. In New York, simply tell the issuing clerk you are already married and that this will be a second ceremony. There is a small box they check on the marriage license. Please direct any questions you may have to the issuing clerk.
Use the links below to determine procedures for obtaining a New York State Marriage license. You may get your license anywhere in the state. It does not need to be obtained in the city, township or county of your ceremony or of your residence. Please note that NYC ID requirements and fees are slightly different than the rest of the state.
Pay close attention to the time restraints for validity. You can get your license up to 60 days before your ceremony. It must be obtained at least 24 hours before your ceremony start time. Your ceremony must take place within the noted validity dates.
I will obtain the witness( signature(s) complete my portion, and mail the license back to the issuing clerk. The clerk will record your marriage with the state and will mail you back the official document you will need for name changes, insurance etc.
Renewal of vows, handfasting and commitment ceremonies do not require a marriage license as long as they do not use words that imply or indicate this is a marriage ceremony.
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Who can perform a marriage ceremony?
The excerpt below is taken from NY State Dept of Health’s website regarding marriage licenses and ceremonies. Use the link above on the left to go to the official site. I have added information about myself in purple.
Who can perform a marriage ceremony?To be valid, a marriage ceremony must be performed by any of the individuals specified in Section 11 of the New York State Domestic Relations Law. These include:
- The current or a former governor;
- the mayor of a city or village;
- the former mayor, the city clerk or one of the deputy city clerks of a city of more than one million inhabitants;
- a marriage officer appointed by the town or village board or the city common council;
- a justice or judge of the following courts: the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Southern, Eastern or Western Districts of New York, the New York State Court of Appeals, the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court, the New York State Supreme Court, the Court of Claims, the Family Court, a Surrogates Court, the Civil and Criminal Courts of New York City (including Housing judges of the Civil Court) and other courts of record;
- a village, town or county justice;
- a member of the clergy or minister who has been officially ordained and granted authority to perform marriage ceremonies from a governing church body in accordance with the rules and regulations of the church body;
- I was ordained as a priest in the Sanctuary of the Beloved, a recognized church in NY State. This is not an online ordination. Instead there were prerequisite reading assignments, a class and discussion, and an attunement. This is one of the many spiritual attunements I have had.
- a member of the clergy or minister who is not authorized by a governing church body but who has been chosen by a spiritual group to preside over their spiritual affairs;
- I am the leader of Sacred Space, a spiritual group that has met consistently since 2004.
- other officiants as specified by Section 11 of the Domestic Relations Law.