The legal marriage age in Massachusetts is 18 for both parties, with no exceptions. Since October 26, 2022, no one under 18 can marry in the state through any pathway: no parental consent, no judicial approval, no pregnancy exception, and no emancipation workaround. The old rules that once allowed minors to marry have been repealed.
What the Clerk and Officiant Have to Check
Three provisions of Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 207 work together to keep the floor at 18. Section 24 prohibits a clerk or registrar from even accepting a notice of intention to marry from anyone under 18.1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 207 – Marriage Section 33A requires the clerk to verify that both parties are at least 18 before issuing a marriage certificate, using proof such as a birth certificate, passport, or immigration record.2Mass.gov. RVRS Memo to Clerks – Ending Child Marriage Section 7 then bars any magistrate or minister from performing the ceremony if either party is under 18.3General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part II, Title III, Chapter 207, Section 7
You will be asked for a government-issued document showing your date of birth when you file the notice of intention. Both parties have to clear that check before anything else moves forward.
No Exceptions, No Waivers
This is the part most people ask about, because Massachusetts used to allow it. Under the old framework, a minor could marry with a parent’s consent and a Probate and Family Court judge’s approval. Chapter 126 of the Acts of 2022 (Sections 81 through 88) repealed that language from Section 27 and rewrote Sections 7, 24, 25, and 33A.2Mass.gov. RVRS Memo to Clerks – Ending Child Marriage
What that means in practice:
- A parent cannot sign a consent form to authorize an underage marriage. There is no form to sign.
- No judge in Massachusetts can grant a waiver or approve a petition for a minor to marry.
- Pregnancy does not create an exception.
- Being emancipated for other legal purposes does not lower the marriage age.
If either party is 17, the clerk cannot issue the certificate and the ceremony cannot lawfully be performed. The bright line is the eighteenth birthday.
If You Married as a Minor Before the Law Changed
The 2022 law did not retroactively void marriages that were legally entered under the prior rules. A marriage validly performed in Massachusetts before October 26, 2022, when one or both parties were under 18, remains recognized.
The legislature did, however, expand the legal options available to anyone who married as a minor. Section 25 of Chapter 207 gives a married minor access to the same remedies available to adults: filing for divorce, seeking an annulment, and obtaining protective orders under the domestic abuse and harassment prevention statutes.4General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part II, Title III, Chapter 207, Section 25 That matters because minors normally cannot initiate court proceedings on their own. Section 25 removes those barriers for marriage-related actions.
If a marriage is later declared void because one party was underage, Section 16 protects the children of that marriage. Any child born of the union is considered the legitimate offspring of the parent who was legally capable of entering the marriage, so a voided marriage does not affect the child’s legal status or inheritance rights.5General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part II, Title III, Chapter 207, Section 16
Out-of-State Marriages Involving a Minor
Thirty-four states still allow minors to marry under some combination of parental consent, judicial approval, pregnancy, or emancipation, and four have no statutory minimum age at all. There is no federal minimum marriage age, so every state sets its own rule.
Interstate recognition generally follows the “place of celebration” rule: a marriage valid where it was performed is usually recognized elsewhere. States have long kept exceptions for marriages they consider strongly contrary to local policy, and courts have not uniformly answered whether Massachusetts and other 18-minimum states will recognize an out-of-state marriage involving a minor. If that situation applies to you, the answer is not settled, and it is worth getting advice from a Massachusetts family law attorney before relying on the marriage for a legal purpose here.