When you get your marriage license either from us or from the County Clerk, its a "license to marry". Once we (or any other officiant, minister, rabbi, etc) sign off on it, it becomes the marriage "certificate". We then turn it in to the County Recorder's office so that your marriage can be recorded.
When you leave here, you will leave with the "Customer Copy" and/or photocopies of the original. Its our responsibility (not yours) to turn the original in to the County Recorder's office for recording.
The County Recorder will NOT send you anything! You must pay for a government-certified copy (or simply called "certified copy"). Certified copies are needed by government agencies, military, certain insurance companies & banks, and some employers. They're also needed if you wish to change your name. Its basically your marriage certificate printed on special pink & blue government paper with raised seals and special numbers.
There's two ways to get a certified copy of your marriage certificate:
1) Go to the County Recorder's office in the county you were married in, along with your marriage license copy and your ID, stand in line and pay the fee of $14 each. You will leave with your certified copy(ies). YOU MUST WAIT UNTIL YOUR MARRIAGE HAS BEEN RECORDED (currently 6 to 8 weeks) BEFORE YOU GO TO THE COUNTY OFFICES!
2) We can place the order for you as long as we turn the order in WITH your marriage license, and the County Recorder will mail the certified copy(ies) to you after your marriage has been recorded (currently 6 to 8 weeks). The fee is $24 for the first copy and $14 for each additional copy. The reason the first copy is $24 is because a notarized "Certificate of Identity" needs to be included with the order ($10 notarization fee). This is not necessary if you appear at the county offices personally (as in #1 above) with your ID.
We can also expedite (speed up) your order (extra fee required) so that you receive your certified copy in about 3 weeks.
