California Marriage Records - The Best Ways to Search Vital Records (Marriage Records) In California
If you would like to get an official copy of California marriage records, you have two choices.
The first is to start with the Certificates and Licenses section of the California Department of Public Health website.
This page has a link to the Birth, Death, Fetal Death, Still Birth & Marriage Certificates page.
This page has a link to a page on Obtaining Certified Copies of Marriage & Divorce Records.
This page contains detailed instructions on how to get the records you seek.
Unfortunately, there are some problems.
The first is that the office only accepts orders submitted by postal mail.
Even worse, according to the site, their processing time for marriage records, "can easily exceed six months.
" To deal with this backlog, the website directs you to make marriage certificate and other California vital records search requests to the County Clerk's Office in the county where the wedding was held.
Assuming this is acceptable to you, the site offers a pamphlet about making requests that you must review, along with a downloadable application form you must fill out and submit.
Depending on which type of certified marriage record you want (California has two types) you may have to provide proof that you have the right to receive a copy of the certificate.
what you need to do to prove this is explained on the website.
On the bright side, the fee for a certified copy of a marriage certificate was only $13 at this writing.
Working directly with the California Vital Records people at the Department of Public Health is the only way to go if you need a certified copy of a marriage certificate.
But if you just need the facts about the marriage, and are willing to pay a little more to get your information in minutes instead of six months from now, you have a great alternative.
And you don't have to prove to anyone that you are entitled to receive the information you seek.
The great alternative is to use a commercial Marriage Records Search website.
These websites provide the facts about the wedding (not a certified copy of the marriage certificate) in minutes, without any of the delays and requirements you face when going through the state.
The sites are easy to use, and provide information from across the US, so you don't have to even know which specific city, state, or county the ceremony was held in.
The first is to start with the Certificates and Licenses section of the California Department of Public Health website.
This page has a link to the Birth, Death, Fetal Death, Still Birth & Marriage Certificates page.
This page has a link to a page on Obtaining Certified Copies of Marriage & Divorce Records.
This page contains detailed instructions on how to get the records you seek.
Unfortunately, there are some problems.
The first is that the office only accepts orders submitted by postal mail.
Even worse, according to the site, their processing time for marriage records, "can easily exceed six months.
" To deal with this backlog, the website directs you to make marriage certificate and other California vital records search requests to the County Clerk's Office in the county where the wedding was held.
Assuming this is acceptable to you, the site offers a pamphlet about making requests that you must review, along with a downloadable application form you must fill out and submit.
Depending on which type of certified marriage record you want (California has two types) you may have to provide proof that you have the right to receive a copy of the certificate.
what you need to do to prove this is explained on the website.
On the bright side, the fee for a certified copy of a marriage certificate was only $13 at this writing.
Working directly with the California Vital Records people at the Department of Public Health is the only way to go if you need a certified copy of a marriage certificate.
But if you just need the facts about the marriage, and are willing to pay a little more to get your information in minutes instead of six months from now, you have a great alternative.
And you don't have to prove to anyone that you are entitled to receive the information you seek.
The great alternative is to use a commercial Marriage Records Search website.
These websites provide the facts about the wedding (not a certified copy of the marriage certificate) in minutes, without any of the delays and requirements you face when going through the state.
The sites are easy to use, and provide information from across the US, so you don't have to even know which specific city, state, or county the ceremony was held in.
