King County Marriage Certificate: Ordering, Fees, and Apostille

A certified King County marriage certificate copy costs $3 from the King County Recorder’s Office, and you can order one online, by mail, by phone, or in person at 201 S. Jackson St., Suite 204, in Seattle.¹ Going through the county is far cheaper than the Washington State Department of Health, which charges $25 or more for the same record.²

What You Need Before You Order

The Recorder’s Office needs enough detail to locate the right record. At minimum, have the full legal names of both spouses as they appeared on the marriage license application and the date of the ceremony. The license number helps if you have it, but names and date are usually enough.³

Spellings have to match the indexed record exactly. A small misspelling can cause a search to fail, so if you’re pulling an older record and aren’t sure of the exact spelling used at the time, give staff as many identifying details as you can.

One more thing worth checking before you order a recent record: the officiant has 30 days after the wedding to return the signed certificate to King County, and the Recorder’s Office can only produce a copy once the returned certificate has been processed and indexed.⁴ If your search comes back empty shortly after the wedding, that’s almost always why.

The Four Ways to Order

Online

Go to recordsearch.kingcounty.gov, create an account or log in, and search for the record. Open the document image, add it to your cart, select certified copies, and pay by credit or debit card. Online orders are mailed within five business days.¹

By Mail

Download the Marriage Certificate Request Form from the King County Department of Executive Services website, fill it out, and send it with a check, money order, or cashier’s check payable to King County Recorder to:

King County Recorder’s Office
201 S. Jackson St., Ste. 204
Seattle, WA 98104³

Mail is the slowest route because of postal transit in both directions. Double-check the address; a returned envelope adds weeks.

By Phone

Call 206-477-6620 between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on weekdays. Staff can process the request and take payment on the call.¹

In Person

Walk into the Customer Service Center at 201 S. Jackson St., second floor, in Pioneer Square. The office is open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays. If the record is already indexed, staff can print a certified copy while you wait. This is the fastest option if you need the certificate today.¹

What It Costs

Washington law sets the fee at $3 for the first page and $1 for each additional page.⁵ A marriage certificate is typically one page, so most orders are $3 per copy. For multiple copies, multiply $3 by the number you need. The rate is the same whether you order online, by mail, by phone, or at the counter.

If the details you provide don’t match any record on file, or your payment falls short, the Recorder’s Office will contact you to sort it out rather than reject the order outright.

When to Use the Washington Department of Health Instead

The Washington State Department of Health also issues certified copies for any marriage that took place in the state. The base fee is $25 by mail, and orders placed online or by phone through VitalChek run at least $40.50 once processing and vendor fees are added.² DOH asks for the first and last name of at least one spouse, the approximate date of the marriage, and the county where the license was issued.⁶

DOH is worth the extra cost in a few situations: you aren’t sure which Washington county issued the license, you’re ordering from out of state and prefer one statewide agency, or you also need an apostille and want both handled in one order.

What a Certified Copy Lets You Do

Agencies need a copy with the county’s raised seal or security paper. A plain photocopy won’t be accepted.

Change Your Name With Social Security

This is usually the first stop, because other agencies verify name changes through SSA records. Bring an original or certified marriage certificate and a current identity document such as a driver’s license or U.S. passport. Photocopies and notarized copies aren’t accepted; SSA requires documents certified by the issuing agency.⁷

If the name change happened more than two years ago, SSA also wants an identity document in your prior name. An expired ID works for that purpose.⁷

Update Your Passport

What you file depends on timing. If both the passport and the name change are less than a year old, submit Form DS-5504 by mail with your current passport, a certified marriage certificate, and a new passport photo. There’s no fee, though expedited processing costs $60.⁸

If more than a year has passed since the passport was issued or the name was changed, you’ll renew by mail using Form DS-82 with a certified name change document, or apply in person using Form DS-11 if you have a valid ID in your new name. Standard renewal fees apply.⁸

Driver’s License and REAL ID

If the name on your ID doesn’t match your current legal name, you’ll need to show proof of the name change when you apply for or renew a REAL ID-compliant Washington license. The certified marriage certificate is that proof.

Add Your Spouse to Health Insurance

Marriage triggers a special enrollment period. Federal rules give you 60 days from the wedding date to enroll in a new plan or add your spouse to an existing one.⁹ The insurer or marketplace will ask for proof, meaning the certified copy. Miss the 60 days and you’ll typically wait until the next open enrollment, which can leave your spouse uninsured for months.

Getting an Apostille for Use Abroad

If you need the certificate recognized in a country that belongs to the Hague Apostille Convention, you’ll need an apostille attached. The Washington Secretary of State issues these for $15.¹⁰

Two paths work. Take a King County certified copy to the Secretary of State’s office yourself, or order through DOH and ask for the apostille at the same time, in which case DOH forwards the certificate to the Secretary of State for you. The bundled route runs $25 for the certificate plus $15 for the apostille, and the finished document is usually mailed within a week after the Secretary of State receives it.¹⁰

1
King County. Request Copies of Recorded Documents
2
Washington State Department of Health. Ordering a Vital Record
3
King County. Obtaining Certified Copies of Your Marriage Certificate
4
King County. Marriage Licensing
5
Washington State Legislature. Washington Code 36.18.010 – Auditors Fees
6
Washington State Department of Health. Ordering a Marriage or Divorce Record
7
Social Security Administration. Learn What Documents You Will Need to Get a Social Security Card
8
U.S. Department of State. Change or Correct a Passport
9
eCFR. 45 CFR 155.420 – Special Enrollment Periods
10
Washington State Department of Health. Apostilles