Getting Married in Virginia

I often receive calls from people curious about whether they can be married in Virginia. The answer is yes. If the applicant for marriage is over the age of eighteen (18) years, free to marry, and has a valid form of identification, then there is no reason the applicant cannot be married in Virginia, even if the applicant is not a resident of Virginia or of the United States.

Virginia specifically outlaws same-sex marriages, so the rules apply only to heterosexual marriages. Virginia does not require witnesses, blood tests, rings, waiting periods, or even specific language by the marriage celebrant. All that is required is a marriage license issued by any Circuit Court Clerk's office in the Commonwealth. A marriage license issued in one Virginia jurisdiction may be used for a marriage in another Virginia jurisdiction.

Marriage licenses cost $30, which must be paid in cash on the day the couple applies for the license. The couple must both appear in the office of the Circuit Court Clerk in person, with a proper form of photo identification, and fill out a form with information about themselves. They must swear before the clerk that the information they have provided is true and accurate. Please be aware that lying on the application and then swearing an oath that the lie is true is considered perjury in Virginia. Perjury is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. If the Clerk's office becomes aware that an applicant for marriage has deliberately lied on an application for a marriage license the matter will be referred to the prosecutor's office (called the Commonwealth's Attorney) for prosecution. This means that if you are under the age of 18 years, or you are still married to a previous spouse, you must not attempt to obtain a Virginia marriage license.

Since there are no residency requirements many immigrants apply for Virginia marriage licenses. This is not against the law as long as they are using their own valid form of identification, such as a passport or a validly issued residence permit, to obtain the license.

Once the couple has obtained the license they may take it to any one of the duly authorized civil marriage celebrants, called civil magistrates in some Virginia jurisdictions, to get married. The cost is $50. The couple may also choose to have a religious celebrant whose right to perform weddings has been recognized by the Clerk of the Circuit Court for that celebrant's jurisdiction. In other words, it's not enough to take the license to a minister, priest, imam, or rabbi. The religious celebrant must be on a list of those approved to perform weddings. This is to prevent fraud and to allow for accountability on the part of marriage celebrants.

Virginia civil marriage celebrants are typically local attorneys who have been appointed by the Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of their jurisdiction. Most Virginia jurisdictions have between two and four named civil celebrants. The Clerk's office typically gives the marriage license applicants a list of civil celebrants when the license is issued. If the couple cannot find a celebrant available in the jurisdiction from which they got the license, then they can call or search online for information about celebrants in nearby jurisdictions.

Once the marriage has been performed the celebrant is required to fill out the bottom of the license and return it within five days to the office of the Circuit Court Clerk from which the license was issued.

Important things to remember: a) the marriage license is only good for 60 days from the date of issuance. There have been times when a couple comes to my office to get married and upon their arrival I find that their license is more than 60 days old and I cannot perform the wedding; b) the newly married couple should be sure to obtain a certified copy of the marriage certificate - which is actually just the marriage license after it has been completed by the celebrant - from the Circuit Court Clerk's office. There are times when a celebrant fails to return the license to the office of the Circuit Court Clerk. This is particularly true of religious celebrants who do not perform as many marriages as civil celebrants and who may become distracted or forget to return the license to the proper authority. If the license has not been returned to and recorded by the Circuit Court Clerk then there is no way for the married person to prove the marriage. This can have catastrophic consequences later on when it becomes necessary to prove the marriage.

Good luck, and remember, it's easy to get married in Virginia, but dissolving the marriage is an entirely different matter.