Marriage License In California

Public records such as birth, death and marriage are important as they contain vital information that can be used by the individual to establish their identity and serve as their supporting document. For those individuals who want to obtain certified copies of California Marriage Records, they may do so by requesting the records from the Department of Public Health Vital Records Division. Do note that the office issues two types of certified copies – Authorized and Informational certified copies. It is necessary for the person requesting the records to know which one they need.Under the California State Law, authorized copies are copies that can establish a person’s identity and serve as supporting document. As such only, a limited number of individuals are allowed to obtain such copies. These individuals are the parties named in the record themselves, relatives or those with affinity with the registrant including parents, legal guardians, siblings and children. Others that are eligible include law enforcement agencies that require such copies in the performance of their jobs, attorneys with court order, entities appointed by the law and funeral agents or funeral establishment. For those who are not eligible they can still get a copy. They can request for an informational copy, which contains the same information as that of that authorized copies. The only different between the two is that the “informational” copy contains a legend indicating that the copy is not to be used as supporting document to establish the person’s identity. Both copies are certified true copies.Each marriage record request costs about $14. For those who need a copy of Dissolution of marriage, the cost is $13. For affidavit to amend marriage certificate, the fee is $20 but this can be waived in certain instances. All requests must include the request form, a notarized sworn statement and a money order or check for payment. The Department does not accept cash and is not responsible for lost transactions.Processing time ranges from 6 months onwards for marriage certificates and 2 months for amendments as the Department is experiencing heavy volume of requests. For marriages that took place recently, processing time can be shortened as the certificates are already imaged and retrieval is faster. Those who need the copies can also go to the County Recorder Office to request for their certificates. Cost and fees for the copies are different and might vary from one county to another. The CPDH also issues only public types of marriage certificates. For those who want a confidential marriage certificate, they can make their request at the County clerk office that issued the marriage license. To request from the CDPH, download the pamphlet available at the site and together with the supporting documents and send the forms by mail or courier. Keep in mind that the Office only accepts checks or money orders issued from USPS and US bank. Fees are not fundable and in cases where no results are found, the Office will release a No Public Record Certificate.Marriage and divorce records are available not only from the CDPH but as well as in the Superior Court (divorce) and County Recorder’s Office (marriage). You can also access several online sites that offer the service.