Dallas County marriage license
To marry in Dallas County, you apply to the Dallas County Clerk's Office, Vital Records Division. There, both applicants must appear together and the license is valid only where it is issued.
- Fee
- $81Reduced to $21 with a Twogether in Texas premarital education certificate — a $60 reduction
- Waiting period
- 72 hoursWaiver available
- License valid
- 90 daysFrom issuance
- Both must appear
- YesTogether, at the same time
Reviewed July 26, 20267 official sourcesSee sources
Where to apply
- Apply online
- Yes
The online form is mandatory but only starts the process. It returns an order number that both applicants take to an in-person visit, where the application is reviewed and signed before a deputy clerk. The completed application itself stays usable for 30 days — a separate clock from the 90-day license.
Official requirementMarriage license applications must be completed on-line. Once you've completed the application, you will be provided with an order number.
- Apply in person
- Yes
Licenses are issued at the downtown Records Building, 500 Elm Street, Suite 2100, and at Justice of the Peace satellite locations. The downtown office accepts walk-ins; satellite locations are booked with the order number from the online application and release appointments 30 days ahead.
Official requirementThis location accepts WALK-INS DAILY.
When to apply
We will work out when you can apply. We never ask for names, dates of birth or any other personal detail.
Who must appear
- Both applicants
- Yes
One narrow exception is published: an applicant who is a member of the U.S. armed forces stationed in another country in support of combat or another military operation may file a notarised Absent Applicant Affidavit, and the person appointed as proxy must then be present when the license is purchased. The affidavit expires 30 days from the date it is signed and is not available for an informal (common-law) marriage license.
Official requirementBoth parties will have to be present to purchase a new marriage license.
- Residency
This office does not publish this. Confirm with them directly before relying on it.
The Clerk publishes no residency requirement either way for a marriage license.
Not published by this office
Identification and personal information
We list what the office says it may ask for. We never collect any of it.
- Identification
- Driver's license or identification card issued by this state or another state
- United States passport
- A current passport issued by a foreign country
- An original or certified copy of a birth certificate issued by a Bureau of Vital Statistics for a state or a foreign government, printed within the last 10 years, presented together with a valid government-issued photo ID
- Military ID card
Damaged identification is refused — the Clerk names documents that are torn, taped together or laminated. The Clerk also publishes that the Matrícula Consular card is no longer accepted as verification of identity for the purchase of birth, death or marriage certificates.
Official requirementDriver's license or identification card issued by this state or another state; United States passport; A current passport issued by a foreign country; An original or certified copy of a birth certificate issued by a Bureau of Vital Statistic for a state or a foreign government (printed within the last 10 years). Must present a valid form of government issued ID; or Military ID card
- Social Security number
This office does not publish this. Confirm with them directly before relying on it.
No Social Security number requirement is published for a marriage license.
Not published by this office- Age
This office does not publish this. Confirm with them directly before relying on it.
The Clerk requires each applicant to submit proof of identity and age at the counter, but publishes no minimum age on its marriage pages.
Not published by this office- Applicants under 18
This office does not publish this. Confirm with them directly before relying on it.
The Clerk publishes no route for an applicant under 18 — no parental-consent procedure and no court-order procedure appears on its marriage pages.
Not published by this office
Prior-marriage documents
- If a marriage ended
This office does not publish this. Confirm with them directly before relying on it.
The Clerk's marriage pages state no rule about a recent divorce: no waiting interval after a divorce and no requirement to produce a decree is published. See the source conflict note about the online application.
Not published by this office
Fee and payment
- Fee
- $81Reduced to $21 with a Twogether in Texas premarital education certificate — a $60 reduction. The certificate must be presented to the clerk when the license is purchased, and applications carrying one are handled only at the downtown Records Building office.
The Clerk's Justice of the Peace satellite offices take the license fee in cash only.
Official requirementThe cost of a marriage license is $81.00.
- Payment methods
- Cash
- Money order
- Cashier's check
- Business check
- Credit or debit card
Money orders, cashier's checks and business checks must be made payable to John F. Warren, Dallas County Clerk. Justice of the Peace marriage offices publish that the license fee is accepted in cash only.
Official requirementNo personal checks are accepted.
Waiting period and expiration
- Waiting period
- 72 hours
The license is issued the same day, but the ceremony may not take place during the 72 hours immediately following issuance. Justice of the Peace 3-1 treats the license appointment and the ceremony appointment as two separate bookings for this reason.
Official requirementAfter you have purchased your marriage license, state law requires 72-hours before the ceremony takes place to get married, unless you obtain a waiver from a district judge.
- Waiver
- The 72-hour wait does not apply when an applicant is a member of the U.S. armed forces on active duty with military identification; when an applicant is not in the armed forces but works for the U.S. Department of Defense as an employee or under a department contract; when a judge waives the 72-hour period for good cause; or when the couple completes a premarital education course under Texas Family Code § 2.013 and gives the issuing clerk a completion certificate dated no more than one year before the application is filed. The Clerk's Vital Records FAQ names only the judicial waiver, and the marriage-license page separately states that a Twogether in Texas certificate waives the 72-hour wait and cuts the fee by $60.
A Twogether in Texas certificate is the premarital-education route. Applications carrying one are processed only at the downtown Records Building office.
Applies in some casesThe marriage ceremony may not take place during a 72-hour period immediately following the issuance of the marriage license except when: An applicant is a member of the armed forces of the United States and on active duty with military identification; OR Is not a member of the armed forces of the United States but performs work for the United States Department of Defense as a department employee or under a contract with the department; OR A judge waives the 72-hour period for good cause; OR The couple completes a premarital education course described by Texas Family Code, Section 2.013
- License expires
- 90 days
If no ceremony has taken place within the 90 days the license is void and a new license must be purchased. This is a different clock from the online application, which the Clerk publishes as valid for 30 days.
Official requirementIf a marriage ceremony has not been conducted before the 90th day after the date the license is issued, the marriage license expires.
- Where it is valid
- The Clerk states that a marriage license issued in the State of Texas can be used for ceremonies in other states, and advises contacting an out-of-state officiant before applying. The license is recorded only in the county and state where the application was made, so a Dallas County license is returned to and recorded by the Dallas County Clerk.
Confirm with the officiant and the destination state before relying on a Texas license outside Texas — the Clerk publishes the point as advice, not as a guarantee that another state will accept it.
Official requirementA marriage license issued in the State of Texas can be used for ceremonies in other States. Please contact your out-of-state officiate before applying for a State of Texas marriage license. Please keep in mind your license will only be recorded in the County and State in which you applied.
Witness and ceremony notes
- Witnesses
- The Justice of the Peace 3-1 court, which performs wedding ceremonies for Dallas County, publishes that witnesses are not required and that guests are welcome. The County Clerk publishes no witness requirement or witness count for the license itself.Official requirement
Guests are completely welcome, though witnesses are not required.
- Officiant
- A ceremony may be conducted by a licensed or ordained Christian minister or priest; a Jewish rabbi; an officer of a religious organization authorised by that organization to conduct marriage ceremonies; or a current or retired justice or judge of the Texas supreme court, court of criminal appeals, courts of appeals, district, county, probate, county courts at law, courts of domestic relations, juvenile courts, justice courts, municipal courts, or a judge or magistrate — serving or retired — of a federal court of this state. Dallas County Justice of the Peace courts perform ceremonies for a published fee, by appointment and in some precincts on a walk-in basis.
Ceremony fees are set by each Justice of the Peace court and differ between precincts.
Official requirementA licensed or ordained Christian Minister or Priest; A Jewish Rabbi; A person who is an officer of a religious organization and who is authorized by the organization to conduct a marriage ceremony
Returning and recording the license
- After the ceremony
- The person who conducts the ceremony must record the date and county of the ceremony and their own name on the license, sign it, and return it to the Dallas County Clerk who issued it no later than the 30th day after the ceremony. Signed licenses go back to the Records Building, 500 Elm Street, Suite 2100, Dallas, TX 75202.Official requirement
return the license to the County Clerk who issued the license no later than the 30th day after the date the ceremony is conducted.
- Processing
This office does not publish this. Confirm with them directly before relying on it.
The Clerk does not publish how long issuance takes once applicants reach the counter.
Not published by this office
Ordering the certified record afterwards is a separate request: official certified copy page
Access and language
- Published notes
- Official requirement
- Dallas County states it aims to adhere as strictly as possible to WCAG 2.1 at the AA level
- An accessibility widget on every page offers profiles for epilepsy, vision impairment, cognitive disability, ADHD, screen-reader use and keyboard-only navigation, with Alt+1 for screen-reader adjustments and Alt+2 for skip menus
- Accessibility accommodations are handled by the county ADA Coordinator on (214) 653-7970
- The county website carries a Language Support translation menu, the acceptable-identification sheet is published in Spanish, and Justice of the Peace marriage offices post that Spanish is spoken
we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level
Common questions
- How much does a marriage license cost in Dallas County?
- The fee is $81, set by the Dallas County Clerk's Office, Vital Records Division. Reduced to $21 with a Twogether in Texas premarital education certificate — a $60 reduction.
- Is there a waiting period for a marriage license in Dallas County?
- Yes. A waiting period of 72 hours applies between issuance and the ceremony. A waiver is available in some circumstances.
- How long is a Dallas County marriage license valid?
- The license is valid for 90 days from issuance. A ceremony after that date requires a new license.
- Do both partners have to appear in person in Dallas County?
- Yes. Both applicants must appear together to complete the application.
Each answer restates the verified rule above; the official wording and sources are in the numbered sections.
Sources and reviewed date
Every fact above is quoted from one of these pages. Reviewed July 26, 2026.
- County Clerk | Vital Records Division - Marriage LicenseDallas County Clerk's Office, Vital Records Division · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
- County Clerk | Vital Records Division - FAQ'sDallas County Clerk's Office, Vital Records Division · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
- County Clerk | Vital Records Division - Fees & Payment InformationDallas County Clerk's Office, Vital Records Division · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
- JP 3-1 | Wedding Ceremony InformationDallas County Justice of the Peace Court 3-1 · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
- JP 4-1 | Marriage CeremoniesDallas County Justice of the Peace Court 4-1 · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
- JP 5-1 | Marriage Licenses & Marriage CeremoniesDallas County Justice of the Peace Court 5-1 · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
- ADA Statement — Accessibility Statement for DallasCounty.orgDallas County · issuing authority · retrieved 2026-07-26
Recorded conflicts
- Fee: the Vital Records FAQ and Justice of the Peace 5-1 both publish $81.00, while the Fees & Payment page carries a filing-fee table headed "Filing Fees Effective January 1, 2014" listing "Marriage License without Certificate $80.00", and Justice of the Peace 4-1 still prints "$80.00 CASH only". The 2014 table is stale; $81 is recorded, and $81 minus the published $60 Twogether in Texas reduction matches the $21 discounted figure that same table shows.
- Appointments: the Vital Records FAQ says "a marriage license appointment must be scheduled", while the Clerk's marriage-license page tells applicants to bring the order number "for your walk-in" and Justice of the Peace 3-1 and 4-1 both publish that the downtown Records Building takes walk-ins with no appointment. Recorded as walk-in accepted downtown, appointment required at the satellite locations.
- Expiration: one FAQ answer contains the typo "The marriage license expires 90 days before it was issued". Two other statements on the same site — "A marriage license expires 90 days after the date the license is issued" and "If a marriage ceremony has not been conducted before the 90th day after the date the license is issued, the marriage license expires" — give the correct direction, and that is what is recorded.
- Prior marriage: the Clerk's own web pages publish no rule about a recent divorce, so the field is recorded as not published. The mandatory online marriage-license application, which the Clerk runs on an external forms platform rather than a government host, does require each applicant to attest "I have not been divorced in the last 30 days." That form is not on a government host, so it is not recorded as a source here.
- Certified copies: the Vital Records FAQ states "we are not currently accepting requests online or via email" for marriage-license copies, while the Vital Records home page and the marriage-license page both advertise a "*NEW*" secure online ordering portal for marriage license copies. The two have not been reconciled on the site.
- The mandatory online application and the Justice of the Peace satellite appointment scheduler are hosted on a third-party forms platform rather than a dallascounty.org address, so application_url points to the Clerk's own Online Forms page that links to them and appointment_url is left null.
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