Whether you’re a small business owner conducting a background check on a potential employee or lawyer or a private investigator who needs to perform a marriage license search for your client, you can simplify your task by searching for marriage records online.
Even though it’s not possible to print out a copy of a marriage license after you search for marriage records on the Internet, an online marriage records search still simplifies your overall search process for the following reasons:
1. It’s convenient. Performing a marriage license search online reduces the amount of time you need to spend if you eventually have to go to the courthouse to get a copy of the actual marriage license.
2. It’s cost effective. If you conduct a marriage records search online, you won’t have to hire a genealogist or other researcher to conduct the search, and you don’t have to make a trip to the courthouse.
3. It’s less stressful. This alleviates the headache associated with long lines and crowded waiting rooms at public marriage record offices.
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
Simplify a marriage license search by visiting the appropriate county's website
A marriage license is a public record. Some states maintain widely available marriage license information online. Such databases can simplify your marriage records search.
I recommend: Find your county’s website by visiting
the State and Local Government on the Net website. Then visit the county website to search for marriage records. Visit the
official website of Clark County, Nevada to search for marriage records in Clark County. The
El Dorado County, California website offers a list of marriage records when you search by name, along with the book and page numbers where the marriage licenses are located in the courthouse.
Properly fill out marriage certificate request forms after conducting a marriage license search
Conducting a marriage records search online can help you identify important details that you need when you complete your order form. Most states want to know the date of the marriage and the county and city where the marriage took place.
I recommend: Visit
Vitalrec.com for a U.S. map. Simply click on the appropriate state, and you’ll be taken to a page with relevant information for the state you’re interested in, including a link to that state’s vital records division. The
Office of Vital Records in California is just one state public marriage record database that is easily accessed by following the appropriate link at Vitalrec.com. There you can download an application to request a certified copy of a public marriage license.
Order public marriage records online by using a web-based information provider
It's sometimes possible to order a certified marriage license without leaving your home. The biggest cost involved is the shipping and handling fee, not the document fee. Only certain states and counties have this option.
I recommend: Visit
VitalChek to order a copy of a certified marriage license. Begin by filling out a few required fields, and if the marriage certificate is not available for online ordering, a pop up window will appear to alert you. If you can't request a marriage license via the Internet, visit the
National Center for Health Statistics website for specific information on how to obtain marriage licenses in all 50 states.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- An online marriage license search can provide you with needed information to request marriage licenses, but unfortunately you won't always be able to obtain marriage licenses. In some states, such as NY, you must have either a court order or a "documented judicial or other proper purpose."
- Sometimes it's necessary to visit a courthouse to conduct a marriage records search and obtain a marriage certificate. If travel is impractical, find a qualified individual who lives in the area where the appropriate county is located.
- To save money, if the marriage certificate is available through the appropriate state's vital records office, go that route.
The official source of Conducting an Online Marriage Records Search is
the Marriage Records Search page at Business.com
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