Marriage and divorce
Marriage license: how to get one and the dates to respect
Pick the state and the day you will get the license: the calculator gives the fee, the first day you can marry and the last day the license is valid.
License fee · Florida
$86
| Waiting period | 3 days |
| Earliest ceremony | October 27, 2026 |
| License expires | December 23, 2026 |
Your wedding day fits the license.
Fee set by state law; residents wait 3 days unless they take a 4-hour premarital course, which also cuts the fee. Official page
A marriage license is the permit to marry, bought before the wedding from the local office of the state where the ceremony will take place: a county clerk in most states, a probate court in some, a town or city clerk in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York, the circuit court clerk in Virginia. Both partners usually apply together in person, with a valid photo ID showing their age; some offices take an online pre-application first. Applicants must be at least 18 in most states; earlier marriage, where still allowed, needs parental consent or a court order. Someone previously married gives the date the last marriage ended and, in some states, a copy of the divorce decree or death certificate. The fee is set by state law or by the county. In 32 of the 52 jurisdictions covered here the license can be used the day it is issued; elsewhere a waiting period of 24 hours to a few days applies. Each license also expires, from 30 days to a year after issue, or never in a few states. After the ceremony the officiant returns the signed license, and the marriage is recorded: that record is the marriage certificate.
License waiting period and validity
Waiting period · Wisconsin
72 hours
| Valid for | 60 days |
| Rule | Fee set by each county clerk; 3-day waiting period, which the clerk may waive for a fee; valid 60 days. |
Fees and rules read on official pages by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How the fees are checked
Fee, wait and validity in every state
| State | Fee | Waiting period | Valid for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $75 to $89 | no waiting period | 30 days |
| Alaska | $60 | 3 days | 90 days |
| Arizona | $98 | no waiting period | 1 year |
| Arkansas | $60 | no waiting period | 60 days |
| California | $61 to $97 | no waiting period | 90 days |
| Colorado | $30 | no waiting period | 35 days |
| Connecticut | $50 | 48 hours | 65 days |
| Delaware | $50 to $120 | 24 hours | 30 days |
| District of Columbia | $45 | no waiting period | does not expire |
| Florida | $86 | 3 days | 60 days |
| Georgia | $56 to $78 | no waiting period | does not expire |
| Hawaii | $65 | no waiting period | 30 days |
| Idaho | $28 to $30 | no waiting period | does not expire |
| Illinois | $60 | 24 hours | 60 days |
| Indiana | $25 to $69 | no waiting period | 60 days |
| Iowa | $35 | 3 days | does not expire |
| Kansas | $85.50 | 3 days | 6 months |
| Kentucky | $50 to $60 | no waiting period | 30 days |
| Louisiana | $27.50 | 24 hours | 30 days |
| Maine | $40 | no waiting period | 90 days |
| Maryland | $35 to $55 | 48 hours | 6 months |
| Massachusetts | $25 to $40 | 3 days | 60 days |
| Michigan | $20 to $40 | 3 days | 33 days |
| Minnesota | $125 | no waiting period | 6 months |
| Mississippi | $21 to $38 | no waiting period | does not expire |
| Missouri | $50 | no waiting period | 30 days |
| Montana | $53 | no waiting period | 180 days |
| Nebraska | $50 | no waiting period | 1 year |
| Nevada | $85 to $102 | no waiting period | 1 year |
| New Hampshire | $50 | no waiting period | 90 days |
| New Jersey | $28 | 3 days | 30 days |
| New Mexico | $55 | no waiting period | does not expire |
| New York (outside NYC) | $40 | 24 hours | 60 days |
| New York City | $35 | 24 hours | 60 days |
| North Carolina | $60 | no waiting period | 60 days |
| North Dakota | $65 | no waiting period | 60 days |
| Ohio | $60 to $65 | no waiting period | 60 days |
| Oklahoma | $50 | no waiting period | 30 days |
| Oregon | $50 to $60 | 3 days | 60 days |
| Pennsylvania | $65 to $90 | 3 days | 60 days |
| Rhode Island | $24 | no waiting period | 90 days |
| South Carolina | $30 to $120 | 24 hours | not published |
| South Dakota | $40 | no waiting period | 90 days |
| Tennessee | $97.50 to $107.50 | no waiting period | 30 days |
| Texas | $71 to $82 | 3 days | 90 days |
| Utah | $50 to $71.75 | no waiting period | 32 days |
| Vermont | $80 | no waiting period | 60 days |
| Virginia | $30 to $33 | no waiting period | 60 days |
| Washington | $169 | 3 days | 60 days |
| West Virginia | $57 | no waiting period | 60 days |
| Wisconsin | $120 | 3 days | 60 days |
| Wyoming | $25 to $30 | no waiting period | 1 year |
Where counties set the fee, the range shown is that of the county pages read for this site. The detailed comparison is on marriage license cost by state, and the dates on waiting period and validity.
The steps, in order
- Choose the county or town of the ceremony and check its office's hours, appointment system and accepted payments.
- Fill in the online pre-application if the office offers one.
- Appear together with your IDs and documents; sign the application.
- Pay the fee and receive the license.
- Wait out the waiting period, if any, and marry before the license expires.
- The officiant returns the signed license within the state's deadline; the office records the marriage.
- Order certified copies of the marriage certificate.
License waiting period and validity
Waiting period · Wisconsin
72 hours
| Valid for | 60 days |
| Rule | Fee set by each county clerk; 3-day waiting period, which the clerk may waive for a fee; valid 60 days. |
License and certificate are two documents
The license authorizes the wedding; the certificate proves it happened. Agencies, employers and Social Security ask for the certificate, not the license. The difference and the costs are on license versus certificate; a wedding at the clerk's office is priced on courthouse wedding cost.