Yes, you can marry your first cousin in North Carolina. The only cousin marriage the state prohibits is between double first cousins, who share all four grandparents rather than two. Standard first cousins, first cousins once removed, second cousins, and more distant relations face no restriction under state law.1North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 51-3 – Want of Capacity; Void and Voidable Marriages
The Double First Cousin Exception
North Carolina General Statute § 51-3 voids two categories of marriage along the family tree: unions between people “nearer of kin than first cousins,” and unions between double first cousins. Everything in between is permitted.1North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 51-3 – Want of Capacity; Void and Voidable Marriages
Double first cousins come about when two siblings from one family each marry a sibling from another family, and both couples have children. Those children end up related through both sides. Typical first cousins share roughly 12.5% of their DNA; double first cousins share about 25%, the same proportion as half-siblings. The legislature treated that degree of relatedness as close enough to prohibit, while leaving ordinary first cousin marriage alone.
What Happens If a Prohibited Marriage Takes Place
A marriage the statute declares “void” is treated as though it never legally existed. That is different from a divorce or an annulment, both of which end something that was once valid. There is nothing for a court to dissolve because, in the eyes of the law, no marriage was ever formed.1North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 51-3 – Want of Capacity; Void and Voidable Marriages
The consequences follow from that status. Neither party gains spousal rights. There is no automatic inheritance, no spousal privilege in court, no authority to make medical decisions for the other, and no ability to file federal taxes as a married couple. The IRS treats a void marriage as though it never happened, so the parties would file as single or head of household rather than jointly.
The Death Exception
The statute includes one protective rule. If the couple lived together and had children, the marriage cannot be challenged or declared void after either spouse dies. This safeguard applies to every type of void marriage under § 51-3 except bigamy, and it exists to stop relatives from attacking a long-standing union after the fact to cut off a surviving spouse or children. During both spouses’ lifetimes, though, the marriage remains open to challenge.1North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 51-3 – Want of Capacity; Void and Voidable Marriages
Children born of a voidable or bigamous marriage are legitimate under N.C. General Statute § 50-11.1 even if the marriage is later annulled, which protects their rights to support, custody, and inheritance from both parents.2North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statutes 50-11.1 – Legitimacy of Children Born in Voidable or Bigamous Marriages
Cousin Marriage and the Incest Statute
Cousin relationships, including double first cousin relationships, are not covered by North Carolina’s criminal incest law. Section 14-178 makes it a felony to have a sexual relationship with a grandparent, grandchild, parent, child (including stepchildren and adopted children), sibling, uncle, aunt, nephew, or niece.3North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statutes 14-178 – Incest First cousins are not on that list, and neither are double first cousins. The marriage prohibition and the criminal statute cover different circles of relatives.
Getting a Marriage License
For first cousins who are eligible, the process is the same as for any other couple. You apply through the register of deeds in any North Carolina county. Both parties must appear in person with a valid government-issued ID and proof of a Social Security number or ITIN. The fee is $60. The ceremony must take place within 60 days of issuance, and the license is valid in any county statewide.
Both parties must be at least 18 to marry without additional approvals. Applicants who are 16 or 17 need written consent from a parent or legal guardian with custody, or a court order authorizing the marriage, and the other spouse cannot be more than four years older. No one under 16 can legally marry in North Carolina under any circumstances.4North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statutes Chapter 51 – Marriage
If You Were Married Out of State
North Carolina generally recognizes marriages that were lawfully performed elsewhere under the principle of comity. For first cousins who married in another state, there is no conflict, since the marriage would also have been lawful here.
Double first cousins face an unsettled question. If a double first cousin couple married legally in another state and then moved to North Carolina, a court would have to weigh the state’s prohibition against its tradition of honoring other states’ marriages. There is no settled case law directly on this point, so anyone in that situation should talk to a North Carolina family law attorney before assuming the marriage will be recognized.