Marriage Licenses
A license to marry in Colorado may be obtained from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday at the Recording Department at the main Clerk & Recorder’s office. You can also obtain one at the North Office on Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Please follow the below requirements. All couples must complete the online marriage application before coming to the office to receive the license. No appointment is needed to visit our office to complete the license. Please limit the number of people in your party to four. Marriage license services will end at 4 p.m. on Fridays.
The license is valid upon issue and must be used, in Colorado, within 35 days. The fee is $30.00, cash or debit/credit card payment only. Once you’re married, the officiant must get the completed marriage license back to our office within 63 days. Pet paw prints are no longer allowed in the witness section of the marriage license. For a step by step process on how to obtain a marriage license, watch this video here.
Online requests for verification of marriage and divorce records may be made at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. For more information, please review the Guidelines to Obtain a Marriage License below or contact the Recording Department. Please note, for information related to divorce, contact the Colorado Fourth Judicial District, (719) 452-5000.
The Affidavit Concerning Social Security Number and the Absentee Affidavit are provided in the Forms Library. The forms may be printed out and completed prior to your visit to the Recording Department.
The below guidelines apply to all applying for a marriage license in the state.
Guidelines to Obtain a Marriage License
Same for both parties
- 18 and older – May apply to obtain a marriage license.
- 16 and 17 – A juvenile court must make the determination if a marriage license may be obtained. 4th Judicial District Court website.
- Younger than 16 – Prohibited from obtaining a marriage license.
- There are NO EXCEPTIONS to these requirements. If your situation is not covered, please call our office at (719) 520-6200 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday (excluding holidays) to obtain specific instructions on what will be needed for your circumstances.
- The original or certified court order must be presented at the time of applying for a marriage license.
Valid ID must be furnished by both parties
Date of birth must be legible
All are valid forms of ID:
- Passports
- Driver’s licenses
- Birth Certificates (Birth Certificates in a language other than English must include a certified translation)
- Military cards
These are NOT valid forms of ID:
- Consular cards
- City and county detention center ID cards
- Novelty ID cards
- Souvenir birth certificates (issued by hospitals)
- As of July 1, 1989, blood tests are NOT needed for either party in the State of Colorado.
- The last four digits of the Social Security Numbers are required on marriage license applications. (C.R.S. 14-2-105).
- If a party does not have a Social Security Number, the Affidavit Concerning Social Security Number must be completed and submitted at time of application for a marriage license. It may be signed and notarized in advance or signed in front of the Deputy County Clerk at time of application.
Marriage licenses will NOT be issued
- One of the parties is still married to another person – all divorces must be final.
- Marriage between the following is prohibited regardless of whether the relationship is by half or whole blood:
ancestor and descendant
brother and sister
uncle and niece
aunt and nephew
- Marriage between cousins IS permitted in Colorado.
- Marriage license applications issued by another state are NOT valid for solemnization in Colorado.
- Witnesses are NOT needed in Colorado. Some clergy, judges, or public officials may request them.
- Pet paw prints are no longer allowed in the witness section of marriage licenses, as it creates issues with the copy and scanning machines.
- Both parties must complete and sign the online marriage application form before coming to the office. If only ONE party can appear in person, the absent party must complete the Marriage License Absentee Affidavit. The Marriage License Absentee Affidavit must be notarized. The party applying in person will need to bring the completed Original Notarized Affidavit along with a printed copy of the valid ID used for Notarization, showing proof of age of the absent party, at the time of applying for the Marriage License.
- If either party has been divorced, he or she must recite the date the divorce was finalized, city and state divorce took place, and the type of court. A divorce decree is not needed to complete the marriage application.
- A couple already married, who wish to renew their marriage vows, may obtain a license by stating that they are married to each other.
- Applicants for a marriage license do not have to be Colorado residents.
- Online Marriage Application
- Couples may solemnize their own marriage (C.R.S. 14-2-109). Others who can solemnize a marriage are judges, retired judges, magistrates, and public officials allowed to perform marriages (civil ceremony). To make arrangements with a judge contact the Colorado Fourth Judicial District. Or, the marriage may be solemnized in accordance with any mode of solemnization recognized by a religious denomination or Indian Tribe or Nation (religious ceremony). Only authorized individuals may solemnize a marriage. Although the couple may solemnize their own marriage, a friend or relative may not solemnize the marriage unless they are allowed to perform marriages. Clergy need not be registered in Colorado.
- The person solemnizing the marriage shall complete the marriage license form and forward it to the Clerk & Recorder’s Office within 63 days (63) after solemnizing. Any person who fails to forward the marriage license to the Clerk & Recorder’s Office will be required to pay a $20.00 LATE FEE. A $5.00 LATE FEE may be assessed for each late day up to a MAXIMUM of $50.00.
- Please return completed marriage license to:
El Paso County Recording Department
P.O. Box 2007
Colorado Springs, CO 80901-2007
- Marriage licenses must include the county and location where the marriage took place, the date of the marriage, the officiating party’s signature and title and the bride and groom’s signatures.
- Pet paw prints are no longer allowed in the witness section of marriage licenses, as it creates issues with the copy and scanning machines.
- $0.25 per license/$0.25 per application.
Certified copy is $1.00 per document. - For copies to be returned by mail, these handling fees apply:
- 1-10 Pages-$1.25, 11-20 Pages-$2.00, Over 20 Pages-$2.50.
- Request for Marriage License/Certificate Copy Form.
- A Request for Marriage Application Copy Form, along with valid form of ID, is needed to obtain a copy of a marriage application.
- Your marriage license must be returned and recorded before one of the parties can make any name changes.
SOCIAL SECURITY:
- The Social Security Administration provides information regarding Social Security card name changes.
Phone: 1-800-772-1213
Colorado Springs Social Security Office:
2306 E. Pikes Peak Ave.
Colorado Springs, CO 80909
(888) 880-0688
DRIVERS LICENSE:
- The Colorado Department of Revenue provides name change requirements for Driver’s Licenses.
Colorado Springs Office:
Colorado Department of Revenue
2447 North Union Blvd, 80909
(719) 594-8701
(303) 205-5613
- For information regarding a passport name change, you may access the U.S. Department of State website.