In Pennsylvania, the people who can perform a marriage are sitting and qualifying retired judges, certain federal court judges and magistrates, mayors of cities and boroughs, and ministers, priests, or rabbis of a regularly established church or congregation. The Commonwealth also recognizes religious societies that marry their own members according to the group’s customs, and it lets couples solemnize their own union through a self-uniting marriage license. The full list is set out in Title 23, Section 1503 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, and the distinctions matter more than most couples realize.1Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 23 Chapter 15 Section 1503 – Persons Qualified to Solemnize Marriages
Judges and Government Officials Who Qualify
The list of government officials who can officiate is narrower than people expect. It includes any current justice, judge, or magisterial district judge of the Commonwealth. Former or retired judges qualify too, but only if they are serving in a senior capacity or completed a full term without being defeated for reelection or retention.
On the federal side, active and senior judges and full-time magistrates of the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern, Middle, or Western District of Pennsylvania can officiate. Active, retired, or senior bankruptcy judges from those same three federal districts qualify as long as they live in the Commonwealth, and the same residency requirement applies to active, retired, or senior judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.2Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 23 Section 1503 – Persons Qualified to Solemnize Marriages The mayor of any Pennsylvania city or borough also has authority to perform marriages.
Township supervisors, county commissioners, and other local elected officials are not on the list. If you want a public official to perform the ceremony, that person has to fit one of the categories above.
Clergy and Religious Societies
A minister, priest, or rabbi of any regularly established church or congregation can perform marriages in Pennsylvania. Beyond individual clergy, the statute recognizes marriages conducted by a religious society, institution, or organization according to its own rules and customs, as long as at least one party is a member. That provision covers traditions like the Amish and Quakers, where marriages have historically been community events rather than clergy-led ceremonies.
The operative phrase in the statute is “regularly established church or congregation.” The officiant’s authority flows from the congregation they serve, not simply from holding an ordination credential. That distinction is where many couples’ plans run into trouble.
Can a Friend Get Ordained Online and Officiate?
This is the most common question Pennsylvania couples ask, and the answer is not a comfortable one. Pennsylvania’s statute does not explicitly address online ordination, but at least one court has held that a person ordained over the internet does not qualify as a minister under the marriage law if they do not regularly preach to a congregation that meets at a place of worship.3Adams County, PA. Persons Qualified to Solemnize Marriage Several county Register of Wills offices warn applicants about this directly in their guidance documents.
The practical risk falls on the couple. County clerks generally accept a completed marriage certificate without investigating the officiant’s credentials, but that acceptance does not insulate the marriage from a future challenge. Some couples never run into trouble. Others find out years later, during a divorce or an estate dispute, when it matters most.
There is a clean workaround: apply for a self-uniting license instead. Your friend can lead the ceremony, read the vows, and run the event exactly as planned. The legal solemnization comes from you and your spouse rather than from an ordination credential that could be questioned later.
Self-Uniting Marriages
Pennsylvania is one of the few states that lets couples solemnize their own marriage without any officiant. The option has roots in the Commonwealth’s Quaker heritage, where marriages were traditionally community declarations rather than clergy-performed rites. You apply for a specific self-uniting marriage license, which costs slightly more than a standard license in most counties. In Philadelphia, for instance, the self-uniting license is $100 compared to $90 for a standard license.4City of Philadelphia. Get a Marriage License
Both parties sign the marriage certificate themselves, and two witnesses must also sign, attesting to the solemnization.5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 23 Chapter 15 Section 1504 – Returns of Marriages The duplicate certificate goes back to the issuing court within ten days, the same deadline that applies to officiant-led marriages. The ceremony itself can look however you want. You can write your own vows, include readings, or have a friend lead the event. The legal act is your own declaration.
A self-uniting marriage performed in Pennsylvania is a fully valid marriage. Other states are required to recognize it under the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the U.S. Constitution, so couples who later move out of Pennsylvania should not face recognition issues.
Military Chaplains and Out-of-State Officiants
Military chaplains can perform marriages in Pennsylvania, but they must comply with the civil law of the place where the marriage occurs, meaning they need to satisfy Pennsylvania’s requirements just like any other officiant.6eCFR. 32 CFR 510.1 – Private Ministrations, Sacraments, and Ordinances A military chaplain who also serves as clergy of a regularly established congregation will qualify. A chaplain who functions purely in an institutional military role without a civilian congregation faces the same ambiguity as an online-ordained minister.
Out-of-state officiants can perform a marriage in Pennsylvania as long as they fit one of the categories the statute recognizes. A rabbi from New Jersey who leads a regularly established congregation, for example, qualifies. The statute does not require Pennsylvania residency for clergy, though it does impose a residency requirement on certain federal judges. Pennsylvania does not require officiants to register with the state before performing a ceremony, though couples should check their county’s local practices when picking up the license.
Making the Marriage Official After the Ceremony
Who performs your ceremony also shapes who is responsible for the paperwork, and the marriage is not fully official until the paperwork comes back. For officiant-led marriages, the person who solemnized the marriage signs the original certificate, gives it to the couple, and signs the duplicate certificate that returns to the issuing court within ten days.5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 23 Chapter 15 Section 1504 – Returns of Marriages For self-uniting marriages, the couple signs both certificates themselves, and the same two witnesses who attested to the ceremony sign too. The duplicate still goes back to the court within that ten-day window.
Confirm with your officiant before the wedding day that they understand this responsibility. An officiant who forgets to file, or files late, can create problems when you later need a certified marriage record for a name change, insurance enrollment, or anything else that requires proof you are legally married.