Courthouse Wedding... California

[NewKid 20]

Good day everyone.

So my fiancée and I will be sending off our I-129F within the next couple of weeks. So the journey has not yet started for us. Some quick background. I am the beneficiary and she is the US citizen, She lives in California.

So here is my question, I was hoping someone who went through this route might be able to give some guidance.

As the whole journey from filling to visa in hand is not within a fixed time frame. we have thought about going through a Civil ceremony when I eventually get to the US, just so the legalities are out of the way and then we will have time to plan for the proper ceremony when I am there with her, so she does not have to carry that burden by herself.

So, I know that each county differs, but could anyone tell me what the process would be regarding a civil ceremony( I am not having much luck regarding the process, where one starts where one goes etc), as I have read that the marriage licence can only be applied for when both parties are present.

.How long does it usually take to receive a marriage licence? and a court date for the ceremony? as you all know we only have the 90 day window? is this enough time?

I am also wondering how we will present this to the interviewer when the time comes, to show that we have planned the wedding? I have heard that showing this is required like 99% of the time?

Any guidance would be very much appreciated.

Thank you everyone.

All the best

[Keith J 0]

NewKid, I don't think it takes very long to get a Marriage Licence, I beleive you can get that the same day you apply, it has been a long time since I had to apply for a Marriage licence, but I will have to do the same thing once my K1 visa gets approved, as for the civil ceremony that I don't know, Good Luck.

Keith

[nompish 86]

You go and book at the courthouse , pick a date for the wedding. From what i have read online and on VJ you apply for the marriage licence together, it takes anything from a day to 4 days to get it. Then you get married. Its not a big process and one that should worry you. You can be married within 2 weeks of being in the US so 90 days is a very long time

Good luck on your journey

[NewKid 20]

Thank you Keith J and NomNom. Much appreciated. Glad to know it doesnt take too long.

NomNom. you and your fiancée got approved in 2 weeks? that's incredible. congratulations on the NOA2.!

Glad to see a fellow South African on here. Would you mind if I possibly send you a private message when my turn comes regarding the process? It would be greatly appreciated as it will be country specific( embassy timelines, medical etc)

Any ways. Good Luck to you both on the final stretch.

All the best

[VOL 425]

Just have a friend go online and get ordained as a minister. Get the marriage license and they can perform the marriage.

Quick and easy..

[nompish 86]

Thanks NewKid,it came as a shock to my fiance and I. It moved way faster than we had anticipated. We are here to help each other. You can contact me anytime

Thank you Keith J and NomNom. Much appreciated. Glad to know it doesnt take too long.

NomNom. you and your fiancée got approved in 2 weeks? that's incredible. congratulations on the NOA2.!

Glad to see a fellow South African on here. Would you mind if I possibly send you a private message when my turn comes regarding the process? It would be greatly appreciated as it will be country specific( embassy timelines, medical etc)

Any ways. Good Luck to you both on the final stretch.

All the best

Edited February 26, 2015 by NomNom

[HislittleSecret 21]

Good day everyone.

So my fiancée and I will be sending off our I-129F within the next couple of weeks. So the journey has not yet started for us. Some quick background. I am the beneficiary and she is the US citizen, She lives in California.

So here is my question, I was hoping someone who went through this route might be able to give some guidance.

As the whole journey from filling to visa in hand is not within a fixed time frame. we have thought about going through a Civil ceremony when I eventually get to the US, just so the legalities are out of the way and then we will have time to plan for the proper ceremony when I am there with her, so she does not have to carry that burden by herself.

So, I know that each county differs, but could anyone tell me what the process would be regarding a civil ceremony( I am not having much luck regarding the process, where one starts where one goes etc), as I have read that the marriage licence can only be applied for when both parties are present.

.How long does it usually take to receive a marriage licence? and a court date for the ceremony? as you all know we only have the 90 day window? is this enough time?

I am also wondering how we will present this to the interviewer when the time comes, to show that we have planned the wedding? I have heard that showing this is required like 99% of the time?

Any guidance would be very much appreciated.

Thank you everyone.

All the best

She is the u.s. Citizen so that makes her the beneficiary. Depending on the state you can get married In the court on the same day. No more than a few days in most states.

[baron555 934]

So, I know that each county differs,

So, contact the County Clerk's office of the county you wish to marry in.

but could anyone tell me what the process would be regarding a civil ceremony( I am not having much luck regarding the process, where one starts where one goes etc), as I have read that the marriage licence can only be applied for when both parties are present.

Yes

.How long does it usually take to receive a marriage licence?

One week

and a court date for the ceremony?

One week

as you all know we only have the 90 day window? is this enough time?

Was for us, we were married by the county judge.

I am also wondering how we will present this to the interviewer when the time comes, to show that we have planned the wedding?

Don't have to present anything, just acknowledge the requirement to marry within 90 days. 99.999% of K-1 successfully do this.

I have heard that showing this is required like 99% of the time?

Nope, virtually never.

Any guidance would be very much appreciated.

Call the County Clerk. Most have a website.

[NewKid 20]

She is the u.s. Citizen so that makes her the beneficiary. Depending on the state you can get married In the court on the same day. No more than a few days in most states.

Incorrect, the person receiving the Visa is the beneficiary, she, the US Citizen is the petitioner. But thank you for the information regarding the court time frame. much appreciated

Baron555

Thank you so much for the information you have provided. Really appreciated. I shall look into making contact with the County Clerk.

All the best

[HislittleSecret 21]

No problem!

[VandZ2013 5]

That is what I did. My husband got here on 9-30-13. We went to the courthouse and got our marriage license like 2 weeks later. It is super easy. You just walk in. You don't need an appointment or anything. It only took us like 15 minutes total. Just go online and search for the local county court house and find out what documents to bring. Trust me, after doing the fiance visa, you already HAVE all of the necessary documents. Then we had to wait 3 days (Florida law) before we could get married. You don't need to get married at the courthouse and you don't need a friend to get ordained either. I just called my coworker/new friend that I knew was a notary. Any person who is a notary can do the "ceremony" and sign the license and notarize it. So I called my girlfriend Saturday afternoon and said, "Hey what are you doing tonight cuz I wanna get married and I was hoping that you could do it for me." She laughed nervously because she had never done it before, plus she already had plans to attend a barbecue. Regardless, I asked her to look it up on YouTube and squeeze me in before the Barbecue. I asked her to bring her daughter as a witness and I called my other friend to be a witness too. You'll need two other people besides you, your wife to be, and the efficient. So I ran and bought a white dress, called my then fiance and told him what the plan was, and we all met at this pretty gazebo on the water that was open to the public. My other friend that came picked up some flowers from the local supermarket and made me a little bouquet. So yeah, my girlfriend the notary did the 5 minute ceremony and it was over. Then we went out for a romantic dinner. The point to my little story is that it doesn't have to be boring or depressing or sad. It was nice and pretty and romantic for us. THEN, we had our wedding on March 30th at a Big beautiful hotel and had family fly in from all over the country and it was AMAZING. And it didn't make the day any less special because we were already married 5 months prior. My story is my story and yeah it's different then all my other friends and counterparts but that's okay with me. Trust me it is all smooth sailing once you get through the fiance visa. Make your legal ceremony your own. I recommend doing it IMMEDIATELY upon arrival to the US because you cannot file for ANYTHING until you get married. It prolongs your ability to get a job, go to school, get a driver's license....EVERYTHING! After you get legally married you have to file the adjustment of Status which I'm letting you know now, SUCKS BIG TIME! It is a lot of work and it takes a lot of time. But you have to get it done ASAP so that you're not sitting around in this country not doing anything with your life. My husband had to sit at home for like 5 months waiting on his Green Card and Ability to work and get a Driver's License...it was stressful. Thankfully he got his Green Card in the mail the day after our wedding last March so we were able to go on a nice honeymoon on a cruise. That's another thing you want to consider. If you want to go to the Caribbean or leave the country for your honeymoon, you must make sure that you have a Green Card first. We originally weren't going to take a honeymoon because my husband didn't have the green card. It was a nice surprise when it showed up the day after the wedding. I already had the time off of work so I booked a cruise that was leaving the next day and we were off to Mexico! So consider these things in your plans. Congratulations on meeting the love of your life! Best of luck to you

[elmcitymaven 9,711]

Are you in LA County? I saw Los Angeles in your profile. You'll need to go to one of the LA County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk offices for a license. I've been to the ones at the Beverly Hills Courthouse, in Van Nuys and at the LAX Courthouse, but there are other locations. Licenses cost $91. You can apply online or in person and pick up on the same day (both of you need to be there). Bear in mind you can't get married at any courthouse, only those that have an RR/CC office (and you can get married at most but not all RR/CC offices). Sounds complicated but it's not. The RR/CC has a great and really useful website on this: https://www.lavote.net/home/county-clerk/marriage-licenses-ceremonies

Of course if you're not in LA, feel free to ignore me.

[Lauren and Kevin 55]

Hello NewKid and welcome to the forum, one tiny thing you may wish to get sorted for this is just to check if your Fiancee has a new style birth certificate 'certified' with both parents names on it. It would be annoying to have to go off and get that at the time when you have months to send off for a new one now

[CAdreamer 14]

Check directly with the county where you want to get married -- find their web site and email, or call directly and ask about their specifics. One thing I've learned about California is that there is nothing the same from one county to the next.

I arrived in California on Saturday, we went to the court house on Monday and got the license, and got married Tuesday morning. Easy peasy for us.

Good luck to you!

[NewKid 20]

Thank you so much VandZ2013. really appreciate the time and effort you put into this reply. I will speak to my fiancee this evening( time difference sucks! hehe) Will tell her about what you have mentioned and see how we can adapt it to make the whole "ceremony" more "us" if you know what I mean. I do hope the green card doesnt take to long once there. I am a bit of a busy body, so I want to be able to work and contribute to our lives as soon as possible. But I understand that the processing time is out of our hands, besides the quicker wee get into it the better I mean.

Have a great weekend and thank you again for the wonderful reply.

All the best!

That is what I did. My husband got here on 9-30-13. We went to the courthouse and got our marriage license like 2 weeks later. It is super easy. You just walk in. You don't need an appointment or anything. It only took us like 15 minutes total. Just go online and search for the local county court house and find out what documents to bring. Trust me, after doing the fiance visa, you already HAVE all of the necessary documents. Then we had to wait 3 days (Florida law) before we could get married. You don't need to get married at the courthouse and you don't need a friend to get ordained either. I just called my coworker/new friend that I knew was a notary. Any person who is a notary can do the "ceremony" and sign the license and notarize it. So I called my girlfriend Saturday afternoon and said, "Hey what are you doing tonight cuz I wanna get married and I was hoping that you could do it for me." She laughed nervously because she had never done it before, plus she already had plans to attend a barbecue. Regardless, I asked her to look it up on YouTube and squeeze me in before the Barbecue. I asked her to bring her daughter as a witness and I called my other friend to be a witness too. You'll need two other people besides you, your wife to be, and the efficient. So I ran and bought a white dress, called my then fiance and told him what the plan was, and we all met at this pretty gazebo on the water that was open to the public. My other friend that came picked up some flowers from the local supermarket and made me a little bouquet. So yeah, my girlfriend the notary did the 5 minute ceremony and it was over. Then we went out for a romantic dinner. The point to my little story is that it doesn't have to be boring or depressing or sad. It was nice and pretty and romantic for us. THEN, we had our wedding on March 30th at a Big beautiful hotel and had family fly in from all over the country and it was AMAZING. And it didn't make the day any less special because we were already married 5 months prior. My story is my story and yeah it's different then all my other friends and counterparts but that's okay with me. Trust me it is all smooth sailing once you get through the fiance visa. Make your legal ceremony your own. I recommend doing it IMMEDIATELY upon arrival to the US because you cannot file for ANYTHING until you get married. It prolongs your ability to get a job, go to school, get a driver's license....EVERYTHING! After you get legally married you have to file the adjustment of Status which I'm letting you know now, SUCKS BIG TIME! It is a lot of work and it takes a lot of time. But you have to get it done ASAP so that you're not sitting around in this country not doing anything with your life. My husband had to sit at home for like 5 months waiting on his Green Card and Ability to work and get a Driver's License...it was stressful. Thankfully he got his Green Card in the mail the day after our wedding last March so we were able to go on a nice honeymoon on a cruise. That's another thing you want to consider. If you want to go to the Caribbean or leave the country for your honeymoon, you must make sure that you have a Green Card first. We originally weren't going to take a honeymoon because my husband didn't have the green card. It was a nice surprise when it showed up the day after the wedding. I already had the time off of work so I booked a cruise that was leaving the next day and we were off to Mexico! So consider these things in your plans. Congratulations on meeting the love of your life! Best of luck to you