How to get married

[TBoneTX 43,059]

Advice is to order multiple copies of your marriage certificate.  You´ll appreciate that you did.

[Loren Y 2,732]

7 hours ago, TBoneTX said:

Advice is to order multiple copies of your marriage certificate.  You´ll appreciate that you did.

Definitely good advice. I got 3 copies of mine. One for AOS, one for the safety deposit box, and one I had certified by US department of state, and then the Thailand consulate ministry of foreign affairs for use abroad. This way I can register our marriage in her home country in November on our next trip back. That way I can start my path to citizenship in her country.

[lovtrish 4]

18 hours ago, mtempelaar said:

 

Depending on where you marry, you may be required to both have blood tests.  I had to do this in Massachusetts for my first marriage, but not in North Carolina for my second marriage.    You need to check on the requirements for the marriage license for the place you are marrying.

 

 

I know the post is about California but I need to clarify that blood test is NOT a requirement to marry in Massachusetts for others reading that may be planning to marry in Mass. I married in Boston and my husband came in from the UK, applied for the marriage license same day he arrived, waited three day period and got married at City Hall. I am not sure how long ago you got married in MA but here are the current requirements:

• Fill out a Notice of Intention of Marriage Form — You and your future spouse will need to go in person to your city or town clerk to fill out this form. You’ll need to provide:
  • Proof of your age, such as a birth certificate or passport
  • Your Social Security number (if you do not have a Social Security number, you have to write down why — for example, it was never issued or you are not a resident)
  • Payment for fees, which vary by town
  • The name you’ll use after the wedding if you’ve decided to change it
• Pick up Your Marriage License — There is a required 3-day waiting period before you can pick up your marriage license. In some cases, you can apply for a marriage without delay at the probate or district court in the town where you submitted your notice to waive this period. The license is valid for 60 days. If you’re not married within 60 days of the date the license was granted, you’ll need to apply for it again.
• Give Your License to the Person Conducting the Ceremony — After you’re married, your officiant must sign and return the license to the city or town clerk who issued it before the 60-day time period is up.

https://www.mass.gov/guides/getting-married-in-massachusetts-before-the-wedding

 

[Scandi 3,970]

We only got one copy of our marriage certificate. We still have that copy, it's still the only one. Were thinking of getting another but never got around to do it, never had the need for it either. 

[mtempelaar 190]

4 hours ago, Loren Y said:

Definitely good advice. I got 3 copies of mine. One for AOS, one for the safety deposit box, and one I had certified by US department of state, and then the Thailand consulate ministry of foreign affairs for use abroad. This way I can register our marriage in her home country in November on our next trip back. That way I can start my path to citizenship in her country.

Yes, that is very true.  I got 4 copies of every legal certificate and decree. (marriage, birth, etc).  The day we registered our marriage, I got 4 and immediately went to the post office to mail one to the Secretary of State for North Carolina to get an Apostille document.

 

I needed to create an entire packet, which included the Apostille'd marriage certificate, for my husband to take to his local Dutch city hall for registering the marriage in the Netherlands.   That does clear the way for me to become a Dutch citizen later.  He was able to register our marriage there while we waited for USCIS to finish up on his CR-1.  

 

Why 4:

1) I-751 Removal of Conditions

2) N-400 Naturalization

3) Me to change my name with the Social Security Administration (which I got to keep)

4) Registering marriage in The Netherlands (which I got back a year later)

Edited July 12, 2019 by mtempelaar

[Loren Y 2,732]

1 hour ago, mtempelaar said:

Yes, that is very true.  I got 4 copies of every legal certificate and decree. (marriage, birth, etc).  The day we registered our marriage, I got 4 and immediately went to the post office to mail one to the Secretary of State for North Carolina to get an Apostille document.

 

I needed to create an entire packet, which included the Apostille'd marriage certificate, for my husband to take to his local Dutch city hall for registering the marriage in the Netherlands.   That does clear the way for me to become a Dutch citizen later.  He was able to register our marriage there while we waited for USCIS to finish up on his CR-1.  

 

Why 4:

1) I-751 Removal of Conditions

2) N-400 Naturalization

3) Me to change my name with the Social Security Administration (which I got to keep)

4) Registering marriage in The Netherlands (which I got back a year later)

Yes,only 3 for us as no name change, but yes, the apostle took a little over a month total to get done. First sent marriage certificate to state of Nevada for them to certify it, then to Washington DC for their apostle certification, then finally mail it to the Thai consulate in Los Angeles and get it back from them. Most of it was mail transit time back and forth, and having to pay postage both ways via flat rate USPS was 7.35 twice each step, because you need tracking. Just another expense you never know about until you start this process. With postage and the apostle fees it ended up being like 80 bucks total to get the one marriage certificate all set up. Now it has like 3 pages of stuff on top of it. It does look really cool now it's all done with stamps and certification, but more work than I thought it would be.

Edited July 12, 2019 by Loren Y

[ScorpioSun 0]

Thanks for all the tips guys - I tend to err on the side of getting copies of everything too, even if it's just for my own records, so will definitely get a copy of the certificate. We'll be in Sacramento for a while at first, so we won't be dealing with the LA County delays thankfully. Just AOS to look forward to then... I'll be glad when all the bloody red tape is finally done!

[Mimiso 59]

On 7/11/2019 at 9:47 AM, mtempelaar said:

It doesn't matter whether immigrant or not.   

 

You need a marriage license, a location and a valid officiant.  Whether or not you want a full on wedding, or a simple one with a couple of witnesses, is totally up to you.    You also do not have to marry in the locality that you are moving to.  For example, you could be moving to LA but decide you really want to get married by an Elvis impersonator in Las Vegas.  In that case would you need a license in Las Vegas, not LA and the requirements would be different.   

 

Depending on where you marry, you may be required to both have blood tests.  I had to do this in Massachusetts for my first marriage, but not in North Carolina for my second marriage.    You need to check on the requirements for the marriage license for the place you are marrying.

 

Basically you go to get your marriage license at the county clerk office for the county you are marrying in, get married by a valid officiant, and after the wedding and everything is signed, the marriage needs to be recorded by the county clerk.   Typically that last part is handled by the officiant.  But it doesn't have to be.

 

For my first marriage, the officiant registered it for us while we went on our honeynoon.  For my second one, the officiant signed, as did the witnesses, and then my husband and I took it to the county clerk ourselves to register it the next morning.  We walked out of there with the documentation we needed to move on with the next step in the immigration process.

 

This may help.  I assume it's up to date:  https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/chart-state-marriage-license-blood-29019.html

Are you able to tell us which county or courthouse you went to where they can give you the marriage certificate the next day? Was it a certified copy?

[HRQX 4,145]

13 minutes ago, Mimiso said:

Are you able to tell us which county or courthouse you went to where they can give you the marriage certificate the next day? Was it a certified copy?

Seems it was in North Carolina:

On 7/11/2019 at 9:47 AM, mtempelaar said:

Depending on where you marry, you may be required to both have blood tests.  I had to do this in Massachusetts for my first marriage, but not in North Carolina for my second marriage.    You need to check on the requirements for the marriage license for the place you are marrying.

 

Basically you go to get your marriage license at the county clerk office for the county you are marrying in, get married by a valid officiant, and after the wedding and everything is signed, the marriage needs to be recorded by the county clerk.   Typically that last part is handled by the officiant.  But it doesn't have to be.

 

For my first marriage, the officiant registered it for us while we went on our honeynoon.  For my second one, the officiant signed, as did the witnesses, and then my husband and I took it to the county clerk ourselves to register it the next morning.  We walked out of there with the documentation we needed to move on with the next step in the immigration process.

 

Can get it same day in Vegas:

On 7/11/2019 at 12:40 PM, Loren Y said:

I'll marry you on the steps of the license bureau if you want, then as I understand how important it is to get certified copies of your marriage certificate, I will take you, or meet you at the clerk's office, we will register the marriage, and you can buy you official copies then and there right after I file it. I can have the whole process done in 3-4 hours if needed. I see lots of people and posts about running out of time to get married, and as long as they can get to Las Vegas within 90 days, I will help them out.

 

Edited July 13, 2019 by HRQX

[Mimiso 59]

3 minutes ago, HRQX said:

Seems it was in North Carolina:

 

Sorry, I didn’t read carefully enough. Was assuming it was in California! 

[Loren Y 2,732]

10 hours ago, Mimiso said:

Are you able to tell us which county or courthouse you went to where they can give you the marriage certificate the next day? Was it a certified copy?

If you go to the actual Court House here in Las Vegas ( it is right next to the license bureau) and you can schedule your appointment in advance to be safe. If you get married early in the morning, you can actually have your certified marriage certificate later that same day. If you get married at a wedding chapel or other places it all depends on the officiant that does the service. By law we have 10 days to turn in and register the marriage after performing the service. Most don't usually wait that long and donut within a few days. If it is a Saturday morning or weekend, it can't really be filed until Monday morning when the clerk's office opens. Most officiants if you ask them will make sure they register your marriage as soon as possible especially if you explain you need it quickly. When I get married in February, we met the officiant at the clerk's office, she handed in the paperwork, and literally 5 minutes later I had 3 copies of my certified marriage certificate in my hand. They are 15 dollars each. They even have an ATM machine you can buy and print them out anytime you want to after marriage is registered. You can be married and have certificate in hand within 2-4 hours start to finish if you plan it out right.

[Mimiso 59]

1 hour ago, Loren Y said:

If you go to the actual Court House here in Las Vegas ( it is right next to the license bureau) and you can schedule your appointment in advance to be safe. If you get married early in the morning, you can actually have your certified marriage certificate later that same day. If you get married at a wedding chapel or other places it all depends on the officiant that does the service. By law we have 10 days to turn in and register the marriage after performing the service. Most don't usually wait that long and donut within a few days. If it is a Saturday morning or weekend, it can't really be filed until Monday morning when the clerk's office opens. Most officiants if you ask them will make sure they register your marriage as soon as possible especially if you explain you need it quickly. When I get married in February, we met the officiant at the clerk's office, she handed in the paperwork, and literally 5 minutes later I had 3 copies of my certified marriage certificate in my hand. They are 15 dollars each. They even have an ATM machine you can buy and print them out anytime you want to after marriage is registered. You can be married and have certificate in hand within 2-4 hours start to finish if you plan it out right.

Thank you for the information, and thanks for offering to help all the K1 folks here. You are so kind! It’s good to know there are options, and we will seriously consider them when the time comes, hopefully soon!

[Loren Y 2,732]

23 minutes ago, Mimiso said:

Thank you for the information, and thanks for offering to help all the K1 folks here. You are so kind! It’s good to know there are options, and we will seriously consider them when the time comes, hopefully soon!

Not a problem. I'm not looking to retire, anyone off visa journey I'll marry for free. I Know personally how expensive this whole process is, and if I can save some people a few bucks, I Know how every penny can count. Other than getting to Las Vegas, the whole process of getting married is only the 77 for the license, and then 15 per copy of the certificate. I Know the Court House charges around 80-90 dollars, and most officiants get about a hundred dollars minimum, then depending on the venue and other things it can add up quickly. If someone is looking to just get legally married, it will cost them under a hundred dollars with me. I'm looking to help out anyway I can, because this whole process is just so time consuming and expensive.