To get married in Vermont, both people must be at least 18, get a marriage license from any town or city clerk for $80, hold a ceremony with an authorized officiant within 60 days, and make sure that officiant returns the signed certificate to the issuing clerk within 10 days. No blood test, no waiting period, and no witnesses are required.
Who Can Legally Marry
Both parties must be 18 or older. Vermont eliminated the previous exception allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to marry with parental consent, so there is no path to marriage under 18.1Vermont Department of Health. Getting Married in Vermont FAQs
You cannot marry a parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, sibling, niece, nephew, aunt, or uncle.2Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code Title 15 1a – Person Forbidden to Marry a Relative You also cannot marry if you already have a living spouse or civil union partner. A marriage entered in violation of these rules is void under Vermont law.3Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code Title 15 511 – Effect of Prohibited Marriages
Getting the Marriage License
Any town or city clerk in Vermont can issue your license. Where you live and where you plan to hold the ceremony do not matter; since 2022, Vermont residents no longer have to go to the clerk in their town of residence.1Vermont Department of Health. Getting Married in Vermont FAQs
Both of you have to sign the application, but only one needs to appear at the clerk’s office in person. Bring a valid government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s license or passport. The application asks for each person’s legal name, date and place of birth, residence address, and each parent’s full name (including birth surname) and birthplace.4Vermont Department of Health. Marriage Manual – Vital Records Guidance for Town Clerks
If either of you was previously married or in a civil union, you’ll be asked how that relationship ended and the date it ended. That information stays confidential. Couples already in a Vermont civil union with each other can choose to have it dissolve automatically when the marriage takes effect.5Vermont Department of Health. Application for Vermont License of Civil Marriage
The license costs $80 and is good for 60 days. There is no waiting period and no blood test, so you can pick it up and hold the ceremony the same day if you want. If the 60 days pass without a ceremony, the license expires and you’ll need a new one.1Vermont Department of Health. Getting Married in Vermont FAQs
Choosing an Officiant
Vermont law authorizes several categories of people to solemnize marriages:6Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code Title 18 5144 – Civil Marriage Solemnized
- Supreme Court justices, superior court judges, probate judges, assistant judges, magistrates, and Judicial Bureau hearing officers
- Justices of the peace
- Ordained or licensed clergy who reside in Vermont, or who reside in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, or Quebec and whose religious organization operates partly within Vermont
- Any person at least 18 years old who registers as a temporary officiant through the Vermont Secretary of State
Clergy from other states or from Canadian provinces outside Quebec can officiate only with special authorization from the probate division of the superior court in the district where the wedding will occur.6Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code Title 18 5144 – Civil Marriage Solemnized Members of the Friends (Quakers), Christadelphian Ecclesia, and Baha’i Faith may marry according to the customs of their own communities without a separate officiant.
Witnesses are not required at the ceremony. You can have them if you want, but the marriage is legally valid without them.
Registering a Friend or Family Member as Officiant
If you’d like someone close to you to perform the ceremony, they can register as a temporary officiant with the Secretary of State. The fee is $100, registration must be completed before the wedding date, and the authority is limited to your specific marriage and expires with the license.7Vermont Secretary of State. Temporary Officiant Registration
Filing the Certificate After the Ceremony
Your officiant fills in the ceremony date and location on the license along with their identifying information, and that signed license becomes your marriage certificate. They must return it to the clerk’s office that issued it within 10 days of the wedding.8Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code Title 18 Chapter 105 – Civil Marriage Records and Licenses An officiant who misses that deadline faces a fine of at least $10. If a temporary officiant performed your ceremony, a copy of their certificate of authority from the Secretary of State should go back with the paperwork.
Follow up with your officiant after the wedding. The clerk cannot record your marriage until the signed certificate is returned, and no other document you receive at the ceremony proves you are married.
Getting Certified Copies
After the town clerk records the certificate, you can order certified copies from that clerk’s office. Copies are also available from the Vermont Department of Health’s Vital Records Office, though records typically take six or more weeks to reach the state system.9Vermont Department of Health. Order Vital Records
Certified copies are $10 each, printed on state security paper with a raised seal. Online orders add a $2 processing fee.9Vermont Department of Health. Order Vital Records You can also pay the $10 when you buy the license and have a certified copy mailed once the marriage is recorded. Order two or three if either of you plans to update ID documents, since agencies usually want an original certified copy rather than a photocopy.
Changing Your Name
Getting married does not change your legal name automatically. If you or your spouse plan to take a new surname, you’ll need to update several records, and the order matters.
Start with the Social Security Administration. File Form SS-5 with your certified marriage certificate and proof of identity such as your current driver’s license or passport. You can submit it at any local Social Security office, and your documents will be returned to you.10Social Security Administration. Application for Social Security Card, Form SS-5 Updating Social Security first is important because the IRS, the DMV, and other agencies verify your name against that record.
For a U.S. passport, timing controls the form. If your current passport was issued less than a year ago, submit Form DS-5504 by mail with your marriage certificate and a new photo at no charge. If it has been more than a year, apply for a renewal using the standard form and pay the regular renewal fee.11U.S. Department of State. Name Change for U.S. Passport or Correct a Printing or Data Error
If you’ve also moved, IRS Form 8822 lets you report both a new address and a name change on line 5. The IRS still recommends updating your Social Security record first, since a mismatch between your tax return name and your SSA name can hold up a refund.12Internal Revenue Service. Form 8822, Change of Address