Georgia Marriage License Requirements 2026: Fees, No Wait, Rules

In Georgia, the probate court of a county issues marriage licenses, and if either of you lives in Georgia you can apply in any of the state's counties. There is no waiting period: under O.C.G.A. 19-3-35 a license may be issued immediately, and you can marry the same day. Fees are set county by county (the counties we checked charge $56 to $76), and a premarital education certificate takes $40 off the price in every county where we verified the discounted fee.

The license rules sit in Title 19, Chapter 3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, chiefly O.C.G.A. 19-3-30 (issuing the license, who may officiate, and the 30-day return). Anyone 18 or older may marry; a 17-year-old may marry only after being emancipated. For other states, see our guide to marriage license requirements by state.

Information last verified on October 7, 2026. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers getting a marriage license and marrying in Georgia under Title 19, Chapter 3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, HB 228 (2019), and the published procedures of several county probate courts (Gwinnett, Cobb, Fulton, Chatham, Athens-Clarke, Franklin and Liberty). The official O.C.G.A. text is hosted behind a commercial publisher's site; statute wording described here was read from a reproduction of that text and checked against probate court pages and the signed HB 228 session law. This article does not cover divorce, ordering old marriage records, common-law marriage, or marrying in another state.

Where to get a marriage license in Georgia

Georgia marriage licenses come from the probate court, at the county courthouse. Which county you can use depends on residency:

• At least one of you lives in Georgia: any Georgia county can issue the license. O.C.G.A. 19-3-30 provides that "If one of the persons to be married is a resident of this state, the license may be issued in any county of this state." Gwinnett, Chatham and Athens-Clarke counties say the same on their marriage license pages.
• Neither of you lives in Georgia: the license must be issued in the county where the ceremony will be performed.

Either way, a Georgia license is for a Georgia wedding. The Chatham County Probate Court notes that a license issued in Georgia must be used for a ceremony in Georgia. Larger counties may also issue licenses at satellite courthouses or annexes (O.C.G.A. 19-3-31), so check which locations handle marriage licenses before you go.

Appointments, walk-ins and online forms

Each probate court runs its own process, and they differ:

• Chatham (Savannah): you complete an online fillable application first, then come in for a scheduled appointment.
• Athens-Clarke: you download the application packet from the county site or pick it up at the probate court, then apply in person; the license is normally issued at the time of application.
• Gwinnett: applicants must book an appointment on the court's reservation calendar.
• Cobb: appointments are encouraged but not required.
• Liberty: the county says an appointment is no longer necessary.

Check the current booking rules before you go.

Every county page we checked requires both applicants to appear in person (Gwinnett, Chatham, Liberty and Athens-Clarke all say so). We did not find a Georgia county that issues a license by video. Public hours are set by each court, so confirm them on your county's page.

What to bring

Both of you need to come, and each of you needs proof of age showing your full name and date of birth. Georgia's proof-of-age list (O.C.G.A. 19-3-36) includes a birth certificate, driver's license, passport, baptismal certificate, birth registration, selective service card, court record, immigration, alien or citizenship papers, armed forces discharge papers or ID, or a hospital admission card. Chatham's page asks for a current driver's license or passport, so check your county's preferred list.

Bring these as well:

• Social Security numbers. The application supplement (the marriage report) asks for each applicant's full name, date of birth and Social Security number (O.C.G.A. 19-3-33). The county pages we read do not describe a route for an applicant who has no Social Security number; if that is you, ask the probate court before your visit.
• Proof that any prior marriage ended. If either of you was married before, bring the final, stamped or sealed divorce decree from your most recent marriage, or proof of your former spouse's death such as a death certificate or obituary. Georgia law requires the end of a prior marriage to be affirmatively established.
• Certified translations. Gwinnett and Chatham require a translation by a certified translator of any document not in English, and Gwinnett also requires the translation to be signed by the translator and notarized by someone other than the translator.
• Your parents' names, if known. The application asks for them.
• Your chosen surname. Each spouse designates on the application the legal surname he or she will use after marriage (Franklin County Probate Court). Gwinnett warns applicants to give their current, correct, full legal names.

There is no residency requirement to get a Georgia license; residency only decides which county may issue it (see above).

How much a Georgia marriage license costs

Georgia has no single statewide price. Each county probate court posts its own total, and the totals we checked fall into three groups: $56, $66 and $76. The premarital education reduction is $40 in every county where we verified the discounted fee.

DeKalb County's probate court charges $66, or $26 with a premarital education certificate, each including one certified copy of the marriage certificate, plus $2.00 for shipping and handling. It accepts money orders and cards (3.5% service fee) but not personal checks, and applications are by appointment after an online application. One warning if you search for it: the site dekalbprobatejudge.com belongs to DeKalb County, Alabama, not Georgia.

County fees change. Your probate court's own page is the final word on the price and on how you can pay.

Seventeen-year-old applicants. HB 228, as passed by the General Assembly in 2019, provides that no fee is charged for a license issued to a 17-year-old (O.C.G.A. 19-3-30.1(d)). Confirm with your probate court before you go.

Premarital education: the $40 discount and its rules

Premarital education is optional for adults in Georgia. Gwinnett's probate court puts it directly: "Premarital education is not required for marriage." What it does is lower the cost. Under O.C.G.A. 19-3-30.1(c), a couple who are both 18 or older and certify that they completed a qualifying course are not charged the marriage license fee itself; other charges still apply, so in the counties we checked $56 becomes $16, $66 becomes $26 and $76 becomes $36. It does not shorten any wait, because Georgia has no waiting period to begin with.

The course rules come from O.C.G.A. 19-3-30.1 and the county pages:

• Length: at least six hours of instruction. Gwinnett's form asks for the "Number of hours completed (Minimum of 6 hours)."
• Content: marital issues such as conflict management, communication, finances, parenting and extended family.
• Timing: completed within 12 months before you apply for the license.
• Together: the couple takes the course together. If either of you is 17, each of you takes the course separately, and a clergy provider must also be a licensed professional counselor, social worker or marriage and family therapist (see the age section).
• Provider: a licensed professional counselor, social worker or marriage and family therapist, a licensed psychiatrist, a licensed psychologist, or an active member of the clergy or the clergy member's designee. Retired clergy also qualify.

The provider gives you a certificate of completion. Gwinnett asks that it be signed and dated, list both of your names, the completion date and the number of hours, and give the provider's name, title, address and phone number, either on the provider's letterhead or notarized. The application itself asks whether you completed a course.

Since HB 228, premarital education providers also hand out a Department of Public Health fact sheet on your legal rights in marriage and resources on dating violence and domestic violence (O.C.G.A. 19-3-41.1).

Waiting period and how long the license lasts

There is no waiting period. O.C.G.A. 19-3-35 says a license "may be issued immediately and without any waiting period." The Athens-Clarke County Probate Court adds that "After the license is issued, there is no waiting period before the wedding ceremony can take place." You can get the license and marry the same day.

Expiration. We did not find an expiration period for a Georgia marriage license. O.C.G.A. 19-3-30 and 19-3-35 contain no validity window, and the DeKalb County Probate Court states that "The marriage license does not have an expiration date." None of the other county pages we read (Gwinnett, Chatham, Athens-Clarke, Franklin and Liberty) states a limit. Some websites say Georgia licenses expire after 60 days; we found no official source for that figure. If you plan to hold the wedding well after you pick up the license, ask your probate court whether it applies any limit.

After a divorce. The county pages we read describe no waiting period after a divorce; they require the final, stamped divorce decree. See our Georgia divorce laws guide for the divorce process itself.

Age requirements: 18, or 17 with emancipation

The general minimum age to marry in Georgia is 18 (O.C.G.A. 19-3-2). HB 228, which the General Assembly passed in 2019 and which took effect July 1, 2019, raised the absolute floor from 16 to 17, required emancipation for 17-year-olds, and repealed the old parental-consent section (19-3-37). Parental consent no longer allows anyone under 18 to marry.

A 17-year-old may be issued a license only if all of these are met:

1. Emancipation. Documentary proof that the 17-year-old is emancipated, either by operation of law or by a court petition; for a court emancipation, a certified copy of the order.
2. Fifteen days. At least 15 days have passed since the emancipation.
3. Age gap. The other party is no more than four years older than the 17-year-old.
4. Premarital education. A certificate of completion of premarital education for each 17-year-old. When either applicant is 17, each person takes the course separately, and it adds instruction on the risks of young marriage; Cobb County asks for a certificate from each applicant, even one over 18.

No one under 17 can be licensed, for any reason. O.C.G.A. 19-3-2 states: "No license provided for under Article 2 of this chapter shall be issued for the marriage of any party who is under 17 years of age." The Gwinnett County Probate Court says the same: "No one under the age of 17 shall be issued a Marriage License in the State of Georgia for any reason."

HB 228 also revised the juvenile court's emancipation procedure. Our Georgia emancipation laws guide covers how emancipation works.

Who cannot marry in Georgia

Close relatives. O.C.G.A. 19-3-3 prohibits marriage between:

• a father and his daughter or stepdaughter;
• a mother and her son or stepson;
• a brother and sister of the whole blood or the half blood;
• a grandparent and grandchild;
• an aunt and nephew; and
• an uncle and niece.

Knowingly entering one of these marriages is a felony punishable by imprisonment for one to three years, and the marriage is void from its inception. First cousins are not on the list.

A living spouse. Neither of you can have a living spouse from a marriage that has not been dissolved (O.C.G.A. 19-3-2). That is why the probate court asks for your divorce decree or proof of death.

Same-sex couples. O.C.G.A. 19-3-30(b)(1) still contains language barring marriage licenses for persons of the same sex. That language cannot be enforced: in Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. 644 (2015), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Fourteenth Amendment requires states to license marriages between two people of the same sex.

No blood test

Georgia does not require a blood test. Chatham's probate court states that "Premarital blood tests are no longer required in Georgia," and Athens-Clarke dates the change: "Effective July 1, 2003, blood tests are no longer required for marriage license."

The probate court does hand you some health information. Georgia law directs it to provide Department of Public Health material recommending a voluntary sickle cell test (O.C.G.A. 19-3-40) and a marriage manual that includes family planning information (O.C.G.A. 19-3-41). Chatham also posts an HIV fact sheet for couples.

Who can perform a Georgia wedding

Under O.C.G.A. 19-3-30(c), the license is directed to any of these people, who may perform the ceremony:

• the Governor or any former Governor;
• any judge, including state and federal judges of courts of record in Georgia;
• a city recorder or a magistrate; and
• a minister, or "other person of any religious society or sect authorized by the rules of such society to perform the marriage ceremony."

The Code sections we reviewed set up no state registration or credential filing for officiants. Whether a minister ordained online qualifies turns on that statutory phrase, that is, on whether the minister's religious society authorizes the minister to perform marriages; we found no Georgia statute, court decision, Attorney General opinion or official page that answers the online-ordination question directly. If that is your plan, ask your probate court first.

Two safeguards and one penalty matter here. A marriage that is valid in other respects and that the couple believed valid is not defeated because the officiant lacked authority (O.C.G.A. 19-3-42). But a person who performs a ceremony without a license (or the publication of banns, an alternative the Code still describes in 19-3-39) forfeits $500 (O.C.G.A. 19-3-46).

Witnesses. The Cobb County Probate Court states that "witnesses are not required during a marriage ceremony in Georgia," and O.C.G.A. 19-3-30 lists no witness requirement. Cobb adds that witnesses can still help: if the license is never returned, the marriage is established with affidavits of two witnesses to the ceremony (O.C.G.A. 19-3-30(e)).

Self-uniting. We found no provision in the Code sections reviewed for a couple to marry themselves without an officiant.

Courthouse weddings

Free or low-cost civil ceremonies depend on the county:

• Fulton: the county's "Forever Fridays" program offers free wedding ceremonies; the county's September 2026 announcement quotes the Probate Court chief judge: "All couples have to pay for is the marriage license which is $56."
• Gwinnett: "There is no fee for your wedding ceremony." The probate court holds free ceremonies most Friday afternoons, excluding holidays, and reservations are required, so confirm the day and time when you book.
• Cobb: the magistrate court holds weddings Monday through Thursday at 6:00 p.m. and Friday through Sunday at 12:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. For a weekday ceremony you must get the license at the probate court by 4:30 p.m. that day.
• Chatham: "The Probate Court of Chatham County does not offer or conduct wedding ceremonies." Couples there need their own officiant.

Proxy marriage

Georgia's statute does not address proxy marriage. The application must be "made by the persons seeking the license, verified by oath of the applicants" (O.C.G.A. 19-3-33), and every county page we checked requires both applicants to appear. In practice, the licensing process requires both of you in person.

After the ceremony: returning the license and getting copies

The person who performs the ceremony must return the license to the probate court that issued it, with a certificate of the fact and date of the marriage, "within 30 days after the date of the marriage" (O.C.G.A. 19-3-30(c)). The probate judge records the license and return, then sends them back to you.

If the license is never returned, Georgia has a fix: either spouse can establish the marriage with affidavits from two witnesses, and the probate judge reissues the license (O.C.G.A. 19-3-30(e)). Ask the issuing court about that process.

Certified copies:

• Chatham: the license fee includes one certified copy, mailed to you after the completed license comes back to the court. Extra copies cost $18 digitally (plus a 5% fee) or, by mail, a $10 research fee plus $10 and $1 per page.
• Gwinnett: certified marriage certificates are $10 each, by mail or in person at the court's Vital Records Division, once the court has recorded the license.
• Cobb: a certified copy of the license is $10.

Copies come from the probate court in the county that issued the license. Our guide to Georgia marriage and divorce records explains ordering copies later, including older records.

Changing your name. Because the application records the surname each of you will use after marriage, the certified copy is the document you take to agencies to update your name. See changing your name after marriage and our Georgia name change laws for other routes.

Common myths about Georgia marriage licenses

• "The license expires after 60 days." We found no official source for this. The statutes state no expiration period, and DeKalb County's probate court says its licenses have no expiration date.
• "Georgia has a waiting period or requires a blood test." Neither. The license may issue immediately (O.C.G.A. 19-3-35), and blood tests ended in 2003.
• "A 16-year-old can marry with a parent's consent." Not since HB 228. Nobody under 17 can marry, and a 17-year-old needs emancipation, not consent.
• "Premarital counseling is required." Only for 17-year-olds. For adults it is optional and lowers the fee by $40.
• "You must marry in the county that issued the license." Not if either of you is a Georgia resident. Only couples where neither lives in Georgia must get the license in the ceremony county, and any Georgia license must be used in Georgia.

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about Georgia marriage licenses under Title 19, Chapter 3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated and the published procedures of Georgia county probate courts. It is not legal advice. The information was verified on October 7, 2026. For your specific situation, contact the probate court in the county where you will apply or consult a lawyer licensed in Georgia.

Related

• Marriage license requirements by state
• Georgia marriage and divorce records
• Georgia common-law marriage
• Georgia name change laws
• South Carolina marriage license requirements
• Florida marriage license requirements

Last updated: October 7, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where do I get a marriage license in Georgia?

At a county probate court. If either of you is a Georgia resident, any Georgia county can issue it; if neither of you is, apply in the county where the ceremony will be held (O.C.G.A. 19-3-30).

How much is a marriage license in Georgia?

It depends on the county. In October 2026 Fulton, Cobb and Gwinnett charged $56, Athens-Clarke and Franklin $66, and Chatham and Liberty $76. Check your probate court's page for the current price.

How much does premarital counseling save on a Georgia marriage license?

$40 in every county where we verified the discounted fee, for example $56 down to $16 in Cobb and Gwinnett. The course must be at least six hours, taken together, and finished within 12 months before you apply.

Is there a waiting period to get married in Georgia?

No. O.C.G.A. 19-3-35 lets the probate court issue the license immediately and without any waiting period, so you can marry the same day.

How long is a Georgia marriage license good for?

The Georgia statutes set no expiration period, and the DeKalb County Probate Court says its licenses have no expiration date. We found no official source for the 60-day figure some sites give. Ask your probate court if your wedding is far off.

Can a 17-year-old get married in Georgia?

Only if emancipated at least 15 days earlier, marrying someone no more than four years older, and holding a premarital education certificate (O.C.G.A. 19-3-2, as amended by HB 228 in 2019). No one under 17 can get a license.

Do we both have to be present to get a Georgia marriage license?

Yes at every county we checked. O.C.G.A. 19-3-33 requires the application to be made by the persons seeking the license and verified by their oath.

Do you need witnesses to get married in Georgia?

The Cobb County Probate Court says witnesses are not required during a Georgia ceremony, and the statute lists none. Two witnesses can still help: if the license is never returned, their affidavits can establish the marriage.

Can non-residents get married in Georgia?

Yes. If neither of you lives in Georgia, you must get the license from the probate court in the county where the ceremony will take place, and the wedding must be in Georgia.

Who returns the marriage license after a Georgia wedding?

The officiant returns it to the issuing probate court with a certificate of the marriage within 30 days after the wedding (O.C.G.A. 19-3-30(c)). The court records it and returns it to the couple.