This is not legal advice, but information we make available from our experience. While planning your wedding in Arizona, you will need to obtain an Arizona Marriage License. Marriage licenses have been delegated by The Superior Court of the State of Arizona, to be issued by each and every county. A wedding license issued by any AZ County is valid as a license for marriage in any AZ County (for instance, you can use a Maricopa County Marriage License in Pima County, etc.). Once purchased, the marriage license must be used within one year.
In most counties, the license is a two-piece marriage certificate. The top part is a family heirloom, suitable for framing. The bottom part of the certificate is a stub that will be recorded with all the public records in the county from which it was purchased. Some are still a one-piece document that gets recorded. The recorded license stub or one-piece document becomes the subject of “certified copies.”
If either partner intends to change a name after the ceremony at The Social Security Administration or Arizona Department of Motor Vehicles, a certified copy of the stub will be needed.
In most counties, a certified copy can be purchased in advance at the time you apply for the license or any time afterward. The County Recorder’s office will mail it directly to you when properly filed by your minister/officiant after the ceremony.
NOTE: Arizona Marriage License Certified Copies are believed to be free for active members of the military. Ask when you apply.
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our Arizona Wedding Officiant, Minister, Priest, or Judge must record the marriage license stub within 30 days of the ceremony. Some of us offer complimentary expedited service.
Your county marriage license allows any judge or duly ordained minister to officiate your wedding ceremony. All county marriage licenses must be signed by the couple, two witnesses age 18 or over, and the officiating minister.
We have many years of experience helping couples be married in Arizona. To speak with an Arizona Wedding Minister or Civil Wedding Officiant, just call Gwen Waring in Phoenix, Arizona. Call/Text: 602-619-7277, anytime between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. (Arizona time). We return messages the same or following day.