To get a Galveston County marriage license, both applicants go together to the County Clerk’s office, show valid photo ID, provide Social Security numbers, swear to the information on the application, and pay the $82 filing fee. The fee drops to $22 if you’ve completed an approved premarital education course within the past year. Texas law then imposes a 72-hour waiting period before the ceremony, and the license expires 90 days after it’s issued.
What to Bring and Where to Go
Both applicants must appear in person at the same time. The main Galveston County Clerk’s office is at 722 Moody Avenue in Galveston, and the county operates branch locations as well; check the clerk’s website for current addresses and hours before you go.1Galveston County, TX. Marriage License Information
Each person needs to prove identity and age. Acceptable documents include a valid driver’s license, a state-issued ID, a current passport, a military ID, or a certified copy of your birth certificate. You’ll each need to provide a Social Security number, and the clerk will ask for biographical details including your parents’ full names and birthplaces, so have that information in hand.
The application form is available for download on the Galveston County Clerk’s website. Filling it out before your visit saves time, and arriving with everything complete avoids a second trip. If a required document is missing or the information is wrong, the clerk will deny the application until you fix it.
Once the clerk places both of you under oath, confirms your identities, and takes payment, the license is issued on the spot. Payment is typically accepted in cash or by credit card, though electronic payments may carry a small processing surcharge.
The Premarital Education Discount
Couples who complete an approved premarital education course can save up to $60, bringing the fee from $82 down to $22.2Texas State Law Library. Premarital Education – Marriage in Texas The course must be at least eight hours long, must cover communication skills, conflict management, and the components of a healthy marriage, and must have been completed within the year before you apply.3State of Texas. Texas Family Code 2.013 – Premarital Education Courses The state-branded version is called “Twogether in Texas,” but any course meeting the statutory criteria qualifies. Bring your completion certificate to the clerk; it also waives the 72-hour wait.
Who Can and Cannot Get a License
A few legal bars will stop the clerk from issuing a license, so confirm none of them apply before you make the trip.
Anyone under 18 must first obtain a Texas court order removing the “disabilities of minority,” or an equivalent order from another state. Parental consent does not substitute for that court order; without it, the clerk has no authority to process the application.4State of Texas. Texas Family Code 2.003 – Application for License by Minor
Texas voids marriages between people who are closely related by blood or adoption, including parents and children, siblings and half-siblings, grandparents and grandchildren, aunts or uncles and nieces or nephews, and any ancestor and descendant no matter how many generations apart. Stepparents and stepchildren are also prohibited, even after the marriage that created the step-relationship has ended.
If either applicant was divorced within the past 30 days, the clerk cannot issue a new license. The earliest you can remarry is the 31st day after the divorce decree, unless you are remarrying the same person you divorced or a judge has waived the restriction.5State of Texas. Texas Family Code 2.009 – Issuance of License
The 72-Hour Waiting Period
No ceremony can take place during the 72 hours immediately after the license is issued.6State of Texas. Texas Family Code 2.204 – 72-Hour Waiting Period; Exceptions The clock runs from the exact time of issuance, not the calendar date, so keep your receipt. An officiant who marries you before the 72 hours is up is performing an unauthorized act and the ceremony’s validity could be challenged.
Four categories of applicants are exempt:
- Active-duty members of the U.S. armed forces or the Texas National Guard can marry immediately.
- Civilian Department of Defense employees and people working under a DoD contract also qualify for an automatic waiver.
- Couples who present a completion certificate from an approved premarital education course taken within the past year skip the wait entirely. This is the same course that earns the fee discount.
- Any applicant can ask a judge with family-law jurisdiction, a county judge, a justice of the peace, or certain other judicial officers for a written waiver on a showing of good cause. This may involve a brief hearing.
How Long You Have to Use It
The license expires 90 days after it is issued. If no ceremony takes place in that window, the license is void and cannot be revived; you’d have to reapply and pay the full fee again.7State of Texas. Texas Family Code 2.201 – Expiration of License Ninety days covers most wedding timelines, but couples with a long engagement should wait to apply until the date is closer.
If One of You Cannot Appear in Person
When one applicant is 18 or older and physically unable to visit the clerk’s office because of incarceration, illness, military deployment, or similar circumstances, the other applicant (or any other adult) can apply on the absent person’s behalf. The absent applicant has to complete and notarize an affidavit, and the person who appears brings that affidavit along with proof of the absent applicant’s identity and age.8State of Texas. Texas Family Code 2.006 – Absent Applicant Outside of a narrow combat-deployment exception, at least one applicant has to show up at the clerk’s office.
Who Can Officiate
Texas allows a licensed or ordained Christian minister or priest, a Jewish rabbi, any officer of a religious organization authorized by that organization to perform marriages, and any current, former, or retired federal or state judge to conduct the ceremony. There is no state registration process for officiants; the person decides for themselves whether they qualify.9State of Texas. Texas Family Code 2.202 – Persons Authorized to Conduct Ceremony
This is where couples sometimes run into trouble. Online ordination makes it easy for a friend to claim officiant status, but whether that person actually qualifies as a licensed or ordained minister or an authorized officer of a religious organization under Texas law is a question with real stakes. If the officiant doesn’t qualify, the marriage could face a legal challenge. When in doubt, use a judge or an established member of the clergy.
After the Ceremony
The officiant must record the date and county of the wedding on the license, sign it, and return it to the Galveston County Clerk within 30 days.10State of Texas. Texas Family Code 2.206 – Return of License; Penalty An officiant who fails to return it commits a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $200 to $500. Follow up with your officiant to confirm it’s done; until the signed license is recorded, you cannot get a certified copy of your marriage certificate.
Once the license is on file, certified copies are available through the Galveston County Clerk, either in person or through the county’s Official Records portal.1Galveston County, TX. Marriage License Information You will likely need certified copies for a name change, insurance updates, and adding a spouse to financial accounts, so order a few extra the first time.
If You Don’t Want a License at All
Texas also recognizes informal, or common-law, marriage without a license or ceremony. Both people must be at least 18, agree to be married, live together in Texas as a married couple, and present themselves to others as married. Couples who meet all four conditions are legally married whether they file anything or not.
Proving an informal marriage later can be hard, so couples who want an official record can file a Declaration of Informal Marriage (Form VS 180.1) with the Galveston County Clerk. Both parties appear, swear under oath that the conditions are met, confirm they are not related within the prohibited degrees, and sign.11Texas Department of State Health Services. Declaration and Registration of Informal Marriage Form VS 180.1