What Do You Need to Get Married in PA?

To get married in Pennsylvania, you need to be at least 18, bring valid photo ID and proof of your Social Security number to the Clerk of Orphans’ Court in any county, pay the county’s fee, wait three days for the license to issue, and then hold your ceremony within 60 days with an authorized officiant (or use a self-uniting license with two witnesses). That is the short answer to what you need to get married in PA. The rest is detail.

Who Can Legally Marry

Both people must be 18 or older. Pennsylvania banned child marriage in 2020 and set 18 as a hard floor with no exceptions, so parental consent no longer opens a door for anyone younger.¹

You both have to be legally single. If you were married before, that marriage must have ended by divorce, annulment, or a spouse’s death. You cannot marry a first cousin or any closer blood relative.¹ Both of you also need the mental capacity to understand the commitment. A person under guardianship for unsound mind needs specific court authorization to get a license.

You do not have to live in Pennsylvania. Out-of-state couples can apply at any county office, and the county you apply in does not have to be where the ceremony will take place.

Documents to Bring

Each of you needs valid photo ID: a driver’s license, state photo ID, U.S. or international passport, or military ID.² You also need proof of your Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number. If you are not a U.S. citizen and have neither, tell the clerk when you apply; you can still get a license, but you may be asked for a second form of ID, such as a birth certificate.³

Come prepared with each of your parents’ full names, birthplaces, addresses, and occupations. The application asks for all of it.³

If you were previously married, bring a certified copy of the divorce or annulment decree with a raised court seal. If your former spouse died, be ready to give the date of death.² Any document not in English needs a certified English translation, and some counties require the translation to be notarized. Call ahead to confirm.

Where and How to Apply

Apply at the Clerk of Orphans’ Court in any Pennsylvania county. Both applicants generally appear together, though some counties now handle the whole thing by video conference.⁴

Fees vary by county. Philadelphia charges $90 for a standard license and $100 for a self-uniting license.² York County charges $70 plus a small card-processing surcharge.⁴ Check the exact amount and accepted payment methods with your county before you go.

The Three-Day Wait and the 60-Day Window

Pennsylvania law requires three days between when you submit the application and when the clerk can issue the license.⁵ An Orphans’ Court judge can waive the wait in emergencies or extraordinary circumstances, like a serious illness or imminent military deployment. The clerk’s office provides the waiver form.⁶

Once issued, the license is good for 60 days. Hold the ceremony inside that window or the license expires and you start over.

Who Can Perform the Ceremony

Pennsylvania authorizes several categories of officiants:

Active justices, judges, and magisterial district judges in Pennsylvania, along with qualifying retired or senior judges.
Active or senior judges of the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern, Middle, or Western District of Pennsylvania, and Third Circuit judges who reside in Pennsylvania.
The mayor of any Pennsylvania city or borough.
A minister, priest, or rabbi of any regularly established church or congregation.

Officiants do not register with the state, but they must fall into one of these categories for the marriage to be legally recognized.⁷

The Self-Uniting Option

Pennsylvania also issues a self-uniting marriage license, rooted in the Quaker tradition, that requires no officiant at all. The couple marries themselves. Two adult witnesses sign the license to attest to the marriage. A standard license with an officiant does not require witnesses.² Some counties charge a slightly higher fee for the self-uniting version.

Filing the License After the Ceremony

The officiant, or the couple and witnesses for a self-uniting marriage, completes the bottom portion of the license and returns it to the Clerk of Orphans’ Court that issued it within 10 days.⁸ Do not skip this step. Your marriage will not appear in any public record until the completed license is filed, which means no certified marriage certificate for name changes, insurance, or tax filings.

Once recorded, you can request certified copies from the same clerk’s office. York County charges $10 per certified copy.⁹ Philadelphia charges $15 per extra copy ordered at the time of application, or $40 per copy ordered later.² Order two or three up front. You will need them in multiple places.

Living Together Is Not Enough

Pennsylvania does not recognize any common law marriage entered into after January 1, 2005.¹⁰ Years of living together and calling each other spouses will not create a legal marriage. Common law marriages validly established on or before that date are still recognized, but no new ones can be formed. Today, the license process is the only route.

1
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes 23 Section 1304 – Restrictions on Issuance of License
2
City of Philadelphia. Get a Marriage License
3
Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. Requirements for Marriage License
4
York County, PA. Marriage Licenses
5
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes 23 Section 1303 – Waiting Period After Application
6
Bucks County, PA. Waiver of Waiting Period
7
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes 23 Section 1503 – Persons Qualified to Solemnize Marriages
8
Allegheny County, PA. Marriage Return
9
York County, PA. Certified Copies of Marriage Licenses
10
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes Title 23 Section 1103 – Common-Law Marriage