Marriage Licensing 101
Looking to get married in East Hartford?
First, you must obtain your Marriage License.
Marriage Licenses are done by appointment only.
Below are the steps to book an appointment to obtain your Marriage License:
Step 1: Decide on a location to get married. Please note, you must obtain your marriage license only from the town in which you are getting married. In other words, if you are getting married in another town other than East Hartford, you will need to obtain your license from that town.
Step 2: Decide on a date to get married.
Step 3: If you do not yet have someone to perform the ceremony, you can book a Justice of the Peace (“JP”) to perform your ceremony on that date. Note the JP’s contact information (name and telephone number) for your marriage license worksheet.
Step 4: Download the Marriage License Worksheet here and complete the form. These are also available in the hallway at Town Hall, just outside of the Town Clerk’s office.
Step 5: Give us a call no sooner than two weeks prior to your planned marriage date to book a licensing appointment. For example, if you are planning to marry on Saturday, June 25th, do not call prior to Friday, June 10th (two weeks’ time).
Step 6: Arrive to your appointment prepared:
- Both spouses must be present
- Both spouses must have valid, government-issued photo ID (Please note, Driver-Only Licenses and Puerto Rico-issued Driver’s Licenses are not acceptable forms of ID for marriage licensing)
- Be prepared to pay the $50.00 licensing fee by cash, check, money order, or card.* For an additional $20.00, you can pre-pay for a certified copy of your marriage certificate. This will be mailed to you after your JP returns the completed license to us after you’ve been married
Step 7: Congratulations! You will then be issued your Marriage License!
*Payments by debit and credit card are subject to a small processing fee, starting at $1.50.