How to get your marriage license in New York City

All the important stuff you need to know before going to get your marriage license before getting married in Central Park, or any other place in New York City.

City Clerk’s Office is at 141 Worth Street.

The closest Subway stop is Brooklyn Bridge / City Hall on the 4,5,6 lines

They open at 8:30am Monday through Friday.  They close promptly at 3:45pm.

The Office is closed on Public Holidays. Check their website for a list of days when they are closed.

Both parties must go together (ie you and your future spouse) to receive your license.

Both parties must each provide one of the following pieces of ID:

Passport

U.S driver License or Learner Permit

U.S. Non-Driver Identification Card

Active U.S. Military Identification card

U.S. Certificate of Naturalization (good for 10 years after date of issue)

U.S. Alien Registration Card

U.S Employment Authorization Card

Check their website for more information on proper ID.

If you have been married before bring a copy of your divorce decree or the death certificate of your former spouse.

The fee is $35, bring a credit card, money order (payable to the City Clerk) or certified check.

Complete your license application online, or at a kiosk at City Hall, then get a number to see a clerk.

If you begin your application online it will be valid for 21 days.

Watch for your number to be called. there are screens on the wall that will display your number when a clerk is ready for you.

Waiting for your number to be called will take a while, there’s a cafe at the end of he street and a nice park outside City Hall but DO NOT miss your number being called.

When your number is called a City Clerk staff member will check your identification, review your application and collect the fee, then issue your marriage license.  Make sure that they have your correct mailing address so that your completed certificate will get to you.

Twenty-four hours after it’s issue, your license can be used to get married anywhere in New York State for sixty days.

Please do not forget to bring your license with you to your wedding ceremony, the couple must sign the license, along with the officiant and at least one witness at the end of the ceremony to be legally married.

If you want to get married within next twenty-four hours, you must go to the New York County Clerk’s office at 60 Center Street, in Manhattan, to request a waiver.

Your officiant will mail your completed license to the Office of the City Clerk within five days of your ceremony.

You will receive your Marriage Certificate in the mail within eight weeks. It will be mailed to the address you gave to City Hall when you applied for your marriage license.  There is a possibility that your country may require an Apostille also.  I cannot advise what each country requires legally, but I can advise couples on how to get their Apostille, or we can get yours for you, for a charge.

My Central Park wedding planning business specializes in planning and officiating services for couples getting married in Central Park. We can also provide planning for weddings in any other outdoor place in New York City.