Baltimore City marriage license

1Where to apply

2When to apply

3Who must appear

Both applicants

No

Who must appear is set by Maryland statute, not by the office. Md. Code, Family Law §§ 2-401 to 2-410 govern marriage licenses exhaustively, and § 2-402 prescribes the whole application procedure for every circuit court clerk in the State — one of the parties appears, swears to the information for both, and signs. No section of that subtitle lets a clerk add a second-applicant requirement, and the Maryland Judiciary's own statewide tip sheet restates the rule in terms: "Only one person needs to be present to apply for a marriage license."

One of you goes to the Licenses counter and gives the information for both partners under oath; the other does not have to come. You will still need the absent partner's details and age document with you. The Clerk for Baltimore City publishes no appearance rule of its own, so if you want it confirmed for your visit, call (410) 333-3790.

Official requirement

Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section, to apply for a license, one of the parties to be married shall: (1) appear before the clerk and give, under oath, the following information, which shall be placed on an application form by the clerk

Residency

No residency requirement. Neither party has to live in Baltimore City, in Maryland or in the United States. What decides where you apply is where the ceremony will be held, not where you live.

No such requirement appears in the state statute that governs how a marriage is made here. The office itself publishes nothing either way.

Md. Code, Family Law Title 2, Subtitle 4 (§§ 2-401 to 2-410) governs Maryland marriage licenses from application through to the return of the certificate, and no section of it conditions a license on either party's residence. It runs the other way: § 2-402(d) obliges the clerk to accept a mailed affidavit precisely because the parties may live nowhere near the county. The only place residence bites at all is the waiting-period exception in § 2-405(d)(2), which a judge may grant only if one party is a Maryland resident or a service member. The Clerk for Baltimore City publishes nothing either way.

Official requirement

If the parties to be married are not residents of the county where the marriage ceremony is to be performed, the clerk shall accept, instead of the application specified in subsection (b) of this section, an affidavit from one of the parties to be married.

4Identification and personal information

We list what the office says it may ask for. We never collect any of it.

Identification

• A copy of an official government-issued birth certificate — or another official government-issued document or record demonstrating age — for EACH party, including the partner who does not come to the counter
• The Social Security number of each party who has one; it is given to the clerk, is not printed on the license and is not part of the public record of the application
• For a party married before: the date and the state or country where each earlier marriage ended, plus the death certificate where it ended in the death of a spouse

Maryland sets the documents by statute rather than office by office. Md. Code, Family Law § 2-402(b)(3) tells the clerk what must be handed over and § 2-402(b)(1) what must be sworn to; the requirement that BOTH parties produce an age document took effect statewide on 1 October 2022. The Maryland Judiciary publishes the same list for every circuit court in its tip sheet TIP70 and repeats the age-document requirement on its statewide non-resident form.

This is the list Maryland law requires every circuit court clerk to collect. The Clerk for Baltimore City publishes no list of its own, so treat it as the floor rather than a Baltimore City checklist: photo identification is not on it, but take a driver's license or passport anyway — either also satisfies the age document — and call the Licenses counter on (410) 333-3790 to ask whether this office wants anything further.

Official requirement

provide the clerk with: (i) the Social Security number of each party who has a Social Security number; and (ii) a copy of an official government–issued birth certificate or other official government–issued document or record demonstrating the age of each party.

Social Security number

You must give the clerk the Social Security number of each party who has one. It goes into the electronic file for the application, is not printed on the license and is not disclosed as part of the public record. A party who has no Social Security number is not required to produce one.

Md. Code, Family Law § 2-402(b)(3)(i) and (c) impose this on the clerk directly and statewide — the Judiciary's own non-resident form cites the subsection on its face as the authority for asking. It is not a Baltimore City policy and the office cannot waive it.

The Clerk for Baltimore City publishes nothing on this; the requirement is statutory and binds every Maryland circuit court clerk.

Official requirement

The Social Security numbers of the parties: (1) shall be included in the electronic file for the marriage license application; and (2) except as provided in § 4–334 of the General Provisions Article, may not be disclosed as part of the public record of the marriage license application.

Age

Both applicants must be at least 18 years old, neither may be married to another person, and the two may not be closely related.

This is the statewide statutory eligibility rule published by the Maryland Judiciary, not a Baltimore City rule.

Official requirement

You can apply for a marriage license if you and your future spouse are at least 18 years old, neither of you are married to another person, and the two of you are not closely related.

Applicants under 18

A 17-year-old applicant may be able to petition the court for permission to marry, depending on the circumstances. The Maryland Judiciary publishes no route for applicants under 17.

Statewide rule. Before issuing, the clerk must obtain the consent or the certified copy of the court order authorizing a minor to marry. The Clerk for Baltimore City publishes nothing about applicants under 18, and a 17-year-old cannot use the non-resident affidavit route at all.

Applies in some cases

If you are 17 years old you may be able to petition the court to marry, depending on your situation.

5Prior-marriage documents

If a marriage ended

Only if a party was married before. You swear to the date and the place of each death or judicial determination that ended a former marriage. Where a divorce ended it, the Maryland Judiciary asks for the date of the divorce order and the state and county where it was granted — a certified copy of the decree is not on the statutory list. Where a spouse died, it asks for the death certificate and the county and state of the death.

Md. Code, Family Law § 2-402(b)(1)(vi) requires this of every Maryland circuit court clerk, and the Judiciary publishes the same instruction for every county in tip sheet TIP70. It is a statutory element of the sworn application, not a Baltimore City practice.

The Clerk for Baltimore City publishes no rule of its own. Because the divorce requirement is information rather than a document, take the decree anyway if you have it — an office may ask to see it even though the statute does not list it.

Applies in some cases

If either person previously obtained a divorce, you will need the date of the divorce order, and the state and county in which the order was granted. If the marriage ended due to death, you will need the death certificate and the county and state in which the death occurred.

6Fee and payment

Fee

$85

A marriage ceremony performed at the courthouse costs a further $25. Certified copies are $5.50 each. The Clerk lists both the application fee and the ceremony fee as cash only.

Official requirement

Marriage Application: $85.00 (cash only)

Payment methods

• Cash — the Clerk labels both the marriage application fee and the ceremony fee "cash only"
• Money orders, certified bank checks and corporate checks are listed as accepted by the Land Records & Licenses Department generally
• Personal checks are accepted for business licenses only, not for marriage licenses

The two statements on the Clerk's page do not agree; bring cash. Checks are made payable to Circuit Court for Baltimore City.

Official requirement

Forms of payment accepted for Land Records & Licenses Department Money Orders, Certified Bank Checks, Corporate Checks or Cash

7Waiting period and expiration

Waiting period

2 days (effective 6:00 a.m. on the second calendar day after issuance)

This is not a rolling 48-hour clock. The license becomes effective at 6:00 a.m. on the second calendar day after the day it was issued, whatever time of day you applied.

Official requirement

The marriage license is effective at 6:00 a.m. on the second calendar day after the license was issued, unless the court grants an exception.

Waiver

Yes, but only by order of a judge. A judge of the circuit court for the county where the application is made may sign an authorization making the license effective before the two days run — for good cause shown, and only if one of the parties is a Maryland resident or a service member. The Clerk for Baltimore City publishes no procedure for asking.

Ask the Clerk's office how an authorization is requested; do not plan a ceremony on the assumption one will be granted.

Applies in some cases

For good cause shown, a judge of the circuit court for the county in which the application is made may sign an authorization for a license to become effective at a time before the waiting period expires, as stated in the authorization, if 1 of the parties to be married is: (i) a resident of this State; or (ii) a service member.

License expires

6 months

The Judiciary states this term in months, not days: the license is effective for six calendar months from the date and time printed on it. The 180-day figure is a deliberately conservative day count for planning — count six calendar months from your own issue date rather than relying on it.

Official requirement

A license is effective for 6 months from the date and time stated on the license in the county in which it is issued.

Where it is valid

Valid only for a ceremony performed in the jurisdiction that issued it. A Baltimore City license may be used only in Baltimore City.

Baltimore City is an independent city and is not part of Baltimore County. They are separate jurisdictions with separate Circuit Court clerks, so a Baltimore County license cannot be used in the city and a Baltimore City license cannot be used in the county.

Official requirement

You must go to the circuit court in the county in which you plan to perform the ceremony. You cannot go to a different circuit court.

8Witness and ceremony notes

Witnesses

For a marriage ceremony performed at the courthouse you must bring a witness aged 18 or older.

The Clerk publishes this line inside the marriage ceremony fee block, so it reads as a requirement for the courthouse ceremony. No separate witness requirement for the license application itself is published.

Applies in some cases

Must bring a witness 18 years or older

Officiant

A civil ceremony can be performed at the courthouse for $25, Monday through Friday between 8:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. You must already hold a marriage license and must bring a witness aged 18 or older.

The Maryland Judiciary adds that a clerk of the court may perform the ceremony at the courthouse, or a religious official authorized by their group may officiate.

Official requirement

Marriage Ceremonies Monday thru Friday: 8:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

9Returning and recording the license

After the ceremony

The official who performs the ceremony hands one marriage certificate to the couple and must return the other to the Clerk who issued the license within 5 days of the ceremony. In a Society of Friends ceremony the couple keep one certificate and return the other themselves within the same 5 days. If nothing comes back within 6 months of the license becoming effective, the issuing clerk has to chase it.

Md. Code, Family Law § 2-409 imposes the return duty and the 5-day deadline directly on the authorized official for every marriage performed in Maryland, backed by a criminal penalty in § 2-409(d). It is not something a clerk's office sets locally.

The Clerk for Baltimore City publishes no return instructions of its own; this is the statewide statutory duty. It falls on the officiant rather than on the couple, so confirm with whoever marries you that they will file it.

Official requirement

return, within 5 days from the date of the marriage ceremony, the other marriage certificate to the clerk who issued the license to which the certificates were attached

Processing

This office does not publish this. Confirm with them directly before relying on it.

The Clerk does not publish how long issuing a license takes. Maryland law lets the clerk issue and deliver the license at the time the application is made, but note that cash registers close at 4:00 p.m., half an hour before the courthouse does.

Not published by this office

Ordering the certified record afterwards is a separate request: official certified copy page

10Access and language

Published notes

• The Circuit Court for Baltimore City has two named ADA coordinators who handle accommodation requests
• Under Maryland Rule 1-332 an accommodation request should be submitted at least 30 days before the proceeding it is needed for
• The Clerk's site offers machine translation into Spanish, French, German, Italian and other languages

The 30-day rule is written for court proceedings; ask the Licenses counter directly about counter-service accommodations.

Official requirement

To ensure compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), the Maryland Judiciary has designated ADA coordinators for their facilities and services.

11Common questions

How much does a marriage license cost in Baltimore City?

The fee is $85, set by the Clerk of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Land Records/Licenses Division.

Is there a waiting period for a marriage license in Baltimore City?

Yes. A waiting period of 2 days (effective 6:00 a.m. on the second calendar day after issuance) applies between issuance and the ceremony. A waiver is available in some circumstances.

How long is a Baltimore City marriage license valid?

The license is valid for 6 months from issuance. A ceremony after that date requires a new license.

Do both partners have to appear in person in Baltimore City?

No. One of you goes to the Licenses counter and gives the information for both partners under oath.

Do we have to be residents to marry in Baltimore City?

No residency requirement. Neither party has to live in Baltimore City, in Maryland or in the United States. What decides where you apply is where the ceremony will be held, not where you live.

Each answer restates the verified rule above; the official wording and sources are in the numbered sections.

12Sources and reviewed date

Every fact above is quoted from one of these pages. Reviewed July 30, 2026.

1. Land Records & Licenses DivisionClerk of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
2. ADA AccommodationCircuit Court for Baltimore City · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
3. Marriage | Maryland CourtsMaryland Judiciary — Maryland Courts Court Help · state-level source · retrieved 2026-07-26
4. TIP70 — How to Apply for a Marriage LicenseMaryland Judiciary · state-level source · retrieved 2026-07-26
5. Md. Code, Family Law § 2-402 — Application for a marriage licenseMaryland General Assembly — Department of Legislative Services · state-level source · retrieved 2026-07-30
6. Md. Code, Family Law § 2-405 — Issuance of the license; waiting period; authorization to shorten itMaryland General Assembly — Department of Legislative Services · state-level source · retrieved 2026-07-30
7. Md. Code, Family Law § 2-409 — Marriage certificate; return to the issuing clerkMaryland General Assembly — Department of Legislative Services · state-level source · retrieved 2026-07-30
8. CC-FM-066 — Maryland Non-Resident Marriage License Application – Affidavit, with instructions (Rev. 10/2025)Maryland Judiciary · state-level source · retrieved 2026-07-30
9. Baltimore City — Directory of CourtsMaryland Judiciary · state-level source · retrieved 2026-07-26

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