Marriage Steps

STEPS 1 THROUGH 3 BELOW MUST BE COMPLETED IN THE PROPER ORDER FOR A VALID MARRIAGE:

1. OBTAIN A MARRIAGE LICENSE:

For public and confidential marriage licenses, both parties must appear together in our office, show authentic government issued photo identification, provide this information on the application, and take an oath at our office. Both the public marriage license and the confidential marriage license may be used in any county in California. You may complete the online marriage license application prior to coming into our office.

2. SOLEMNIZE THE MARRIAGE (THE CEREMONY):

The hardcopy marriage license will be given to you at our service counter, you must then solemnize your marriage with a ceremony within 90 days of the issuance date. No particular form for the ceremony of marriage is required, except that the parties shall declare, in the presence of the person solemnizing the marriage and necessary witnesses, that they take each other as lawful spouses. 

3. REGISTER THE MARRIAGE:

The person solemnizing the marriage shall return the marriage license to the county of issuance, not later than 10 days after the ceremony for registration. The marriage license will be void if there are any alterations, erasures, strikeovers, or correction fluids on the document. If this should happen, a Duplicate Marriage License will be required to be purchased for a $25.00 fee.

OPTIONAL:

If a party wishes to change their name with social security, they will need to complete an application. Applications can be obtained from www.socialsecurity.gov or the address below. The application must be submitted with a certified copy of the marriage certificate by mail or in person to:

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
825 Riverside Parkway, Suite 1000
West Sacramento, CA 95605
916-373-3850
800-772-1213