HOW TO OBTAIN YOUR CALIFORNIA MARRIAGE LICENSE IN SAN DIEGO
About Marriage Licenses in San Diego
We can provide the Confidential Marriage License if you are at least 18 and presently living together and can use a common address. Not having to take time off from work and us being able to provide the license the same day, after hours, weekends and holidays really is a lifesaver to many of our clients.
If you prefer to obtain the regular marriage license that requires a witness at one of the County Clerk’s offices you may do so but REMEMBER, YOU DO NOT have to get legally married there and can ONLY obtain the license and have us perform your wedding at our lovely stained glass chapel, one of San Diego’s beautiful beaches, or any location of your choice.
Please Note: The County Clerk’s Offices in San Diego requires an appointment and there is no walk in service available. The marriage license cannot be over 90 days from the date of your wedding so we recommend you get your marriage license in San Diego or any other county within a month from your wedding if at all possible if you are obtaining the regular marriage license. Both the Bride and the Groom must appear together showing valid picture identification (any state driver’s license or state ID, passport or military identification will do) verifying that they are at least 18 years of age and older. If you have been married before and your previous relationship ended within 90 days of the license being issued, the State of California requires proof of the ending of that relationship whether by divorce, annulment, or death and you will need to bring your court divorce/annulment decrees or death certificate when go to the County Clerk’s office. If your relationship ended longer than 90 days before the issuance of a marriage license, no proof is required but it suggested that you look at the date for legal purposes.
San Diego Marriage License locations are listed below: Appointments at all four offices by making an appointment online or personally going into one of the offices to make your appointment. The website for the San Diego County Clerk’s office is: https://arcc.sdcounty.ca.gov/
The cost of the Regular marriage license is $129 in San Diego, but other counties may have different fees for the license. We suggest you download the application and fill it out before your appointment to save time at the County Clerk’s office. No blood tests are required. The marriage license is effective immediately and there is no waiting period to use it. Make sure you are on time for your appointment or it will have to be rescheduled.
Obtaining a marriage license in California must be done with one of the County Clerk’s offices throughout the state. REMEMBER, YOU DO NOT have to get legally married at the County Clerk’s office, you ONLY have to obtain the marriage license there. We can perform your wedding at our lovely stained glass chapel, one of San Diego’s beautiful beaches, or any location of your choice.
Please Note: The County Clerk’s Offices in San Diego requires an appointment and there is no walk in service available.
The marriage license cannot be over 90 days from the date of your wedding so we recommend you get your marriage license in San Diego or any other county within a month from your wedding if at all possible.
Both the Bride and the Groom must appear together showing valid picture identification (any state driver’s license or state ID, passport or military identification will do) verifying that they are at least 18 years of age and older.
If you have been married before and your previous relationship ended within 90 days of the license being issued, the State of California requires proof of the ending of that relationship whether by divorce, annulment, or death and you will need to bring your court divorce/annulment decrees or death certificate when go to the County Clerk’s office. If your relationship ended longer than 90 days before the issuance of a marriage license, no proof is required but it suggested that you look at the date for legal purposes.
San Diego Marriage License locations are listed below: Appointments at all four offices by making an appointment online:
https://arcc.sdcounty.ca.gov/
The cost of the Regular marriage license is $129 in San Diego, but other counties may have different fees for the license. We suggest you download the application and fill it out before your appointment to save time at the County Clerk’s office. No blood tests are required. The marriage license is effective immediately and there is no waiting period to use it. Make sure you are on time for your appointment or it will have to be rescheduled.
San Diego County Clerks Offices that issue Marriage Licenses
ACCESSOR/RECORDER/COUNTY CLERK MAIN OFFICE
1600 Pacific Highway, Room 273 • San Diego, CA 92101 | Map
(Mon – Fri By Appointment Only 8 am – 5 pm)
This is their main office and extremely busy. We suggest that you use one of the other branch locations as they are less busy and easier to get an appointment.
CHULA VISTA BRANCH OFFICE
590 Third Street
Chula Vista, CA 91910 | Map
(Mon – Fri By Appointment Only 8 am – 5 pm)
SANTEE BRANCH OFFICE
10144 Mission Gorge Road
Santee, CA 92071 | Map
(Mon – Fri By Appointment Only 8 am – 5 pm)
SAN MARCOS BRANCH OFFICE
141 East Carmel Street
San Marcos, CA 92078 | Map
(Mon – Fri By Appointment Only 8 am – 5 pm)
Links to Marriage License Documents
Application for Marriage License in San Diego (English)
Application for Marriage license in San Diego (Spanish/ En Espanol)
Certified Copy Official Marriage Certificate Request Form By Mail (English)
Certified Copy Official Marriage Certificate Request Form By Mail (Spanish/En Espanol)
Certified Copy Official Marriage Certificate Request Form in Person (English)
Certified Copy Official Marriage Certificate Request Form in Person (Spanish/En Espanol)
Links to other County Clerk’s Offices
Available if you can’t get an appointment with one of the 4 offices in San Diego or if you live closer to one of these:
Marriage License FAQs
CONFIDENTIAL MARRIAGE LICENSE IN SAN DIEGO
In the State of California there are two different types of licenses: The regular “public” marriage license and the confidential marriage license.
THE DIFFERENCES ARE:
The regular public marriage license requires a witness and the confidential marriage license DOES NOT require a witness.
The regular public marriage license and the confidential license can be used in ANY county in California
The cost of the regular public marriage license is $129 and the cost of the confidential marriage license at the County Clerk’s office is $144 in San Diego (These are 2024 prices) If we issue the confidential marriage license, there are notary fees and preparation fees entailed.
Neither license requires a blood test.
The confidential license requires the Bride and Groom to swear under penalty of perjury that they are presently living together. The confidential marriage license is issued when a couple wants to maintain the confidentiality of the marriage date for personal reasons or if they don’t want/need a witness to sign their marriage license.
The regular public marriage license and the confidential marriage license are both legally binding once a ceremony is performed and the documents are recorded.
Certified copies of the regular public marriage license can be obtained by the public. Certified copies of the confidential marriage license can ONLY be obtained by the bride and groom showing proper identification and the marriage record itself will be kept Confidential unless a record is requested by a court ordered subpoena
The same criteria for identification, proof of previous ending of a relationship, and getting certified copies of the marriage license apply to the confidential marriage license:
Both the Bride and the Groom must appear together showing valid picture identification (any state driver’s license or state ID, passport or military identification will do) verifying that they are at least 18 years of age and older.
If you have been married before and your previous relationship ended within 90 days of the license being issued, the State of California requires proof of the ending of that relationship whether by divorce, annulment, or death and you will need to bring your court divorce/annulment decrees or death certificate when go to the County Clerk’s office. If your relationship ended longer than 90 days before the issuance of a marriage license, no proof is required but it suggested that you look at the date for legal purposes.
TO OBTAIN CERTIFIED COPIES OF YOUR MARRIAGE LICENSE IN SAN DIEGO AFTER YOUR WEDDING CEREMONY IN SAN DIEGO IS PERFORMED OR ANY OTHER COUNTY
YOU MUST PLEASE REMEMBER that the County Clerk’s Offices in San Diego or any other county WILL NOT automatically send you a copy of your official marriage certificate after your wedding.
A formal request in person with valid identification is required or you can obtain it through the mail after having the request notarized. A request for the certified copy is included in the packet of information the County Clerk’s offices give you when purchasing your marriage license.
The cost of the certified copies of either the regular public marriage license or confidential license in San Diego are $17 each (2024 prices). Different counties may have a different fee so be sure to send correct amount if mailing.
Getting your certified copy in the mail can be of short duration or as long as 6-8 weeks depending on how quickly each county processes their documents.
We will file the marriage license for you if it was issued in San Diego County or if you prefer you can file it yourself. We can mail your license to the County Clerk’s office you purchased it from if you obtained it in some other county or you can file it yourself. If we don’t file the marriage license for you we have you sign a release of liability form.
About two weeks after your marriage license is filed, you can obtain a certified copy of your marriage license by going to one of the San Diego County Clerk’s office if filed here in San Diego or at the county in which the license was issued. We suggest you call them to see if the document is recorded before you go in person.
In order to change your name with Social Security, the DMV, get military benefits, insurance, and for any other legal documentation, a certified copy is required. We suggest that you get at least 2 copies especially if you live out of state.
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