Washington, DC began allowing legal marriages to take place online via web conference in 2020. Although the DC government has placed a number of limitations on online marriages, DC Elopements is now able to help couples get legally married online no matter where they are. Below, you’ll find more information about online marriage in DC, as well as the options we currently offer to help couples get married online.
Online Legal Marriage Services
- Legal Online Marriage Package
- DC Online Marriage Package
- Online Marriage Options and Information
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Online Marriage License Assistance
- Online Marriage Officiant Service
- Certified Copy Included with Marriage License
Legal Online Marriage Package Pricing: $499 *
*Full payment is required at the time of booking. Marriage license must be obtained directly from the court via online application and is not included in the package price. Typical turnaround is 3 business days, rush service is available for a $175 fee if you need to get married more quickly. Additional charges for optional services may apply.
DC Online Marriage Package Pricing:
$529 (Weekdays before 3pm EST)*
$629 (Weekends, Holidays, and Weekdays 3pm EST or later)*
IMPORTANT NOTE
Due to processing delays of online marriage license orders at the DC Marriage Bureau of up to 8 weeks or more, we are currently recommending that all online marriage customers book our Legal Online Marriage Package rather than attempting to marry online using a DC marriage license. Until issues with online orders at the DC Marriage Bureau are resolved, it is easier, faster, more secure, and less expensive to get married with our other online marriage package.
In order to get legally married online with a DC marriage license, both parties to the marriage AND the authorized officiant must be physically located within the city limits of the District of Columbia at the time of the web conference. We are happy to accommodate legal online marriages in Washington DC when these conditions can be met, please contact us for more information!
*Full payment is required at the time of booking. Marriage license must be obtained directly from the court via online application and is not included in the package price. We recommend waiting to apply for your DC marriage license until after you’ve booked our package, so you will have the name of your authorized DC officiant when you submit the marriage license application. Additional charges for optional services may apply.
Online Marriage Options and Information
- Online Marriage Officiant Service — DC Elopements will arrange for an authorized professional marriage officiant to perform your legal marriage license signing service via web conference. Online marriage web conferences typically take place via Zoom, but other web conference software options are available upon request. Availability and options depend on the marriage jurisdiction you select, all options and detailed fees will be included in our Online Marriage License Assistance recommendations.[GO BACK]
- Online Marriage License Assistance — DC Elopements will prepare customized online marriage options and recommendations based on your location(s) and individual circumstances. Select one of our recommended online marriage jurisdictions, and we will provide step-by-step instructions for obtaining your marriage license and providing it to your officiant.[GO BACK]
- DC Marriage License Assistance — For couples who wish to get married online using a DC marriage license, DC Elopements will provide step-by-step instructions for obtaining your marriage license from the DC Marriage Bureau. Please note that delayed service at the DC Marriage Bureau has resulted in it taking up to 8 weeks to obtain a DC marriage license, even using their online application. If you need to be married in less than 3 months, we recommend using another jurisdiction via our Legal Online Marriage Package.[GO BACK]
- Certified Copy Included with Marriage License — For couples who use our Legal Online Marriage Package, at least one certified copy is included in the cost of your marriage license. Additional certified copies, apostilles, and upgraded shipping options vary by jurisdiction, and will be provided in our Online Marriage License Assistance recommendations. [GO BACK]
- DC Certified Copy Courier Service — For couples who get married with a DC marriage license, certified copies are not included with your DC marriage license and must be purchased separately. Our courier will make an in-person visit to the DC Marriage Bureau and obtain one official “regular” certified copy for your records, and ship it to you via USPS Priority Mail with tracking. Additional “regular” certified copies are available for $15 each and “triple seal” certified copies are available for $25 each. Apostille service and international shipping are available for an additional fee. For more information about this service, click here: DC Marriage License Certified Copies [GO BACK]
Online Marriage Frequently Asked Questions
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Is it legal to get married online? — Absolutely! Washington DC is one of a handful of jurisdictions in the United States that allow legal marriages online (with some restrictions), and DC Elopements also works with clerk’s offices and marriage officiants in several different states to provide legal online marriage services. Online marriage packages include our Online Marriage License Assistance service, where we will recommend one or more jurisdictions based on your preferences, timeline, and physical location(s).
Once you select a jurisdiction from our recommendations, we give you step-by-step instructions for obtaining your marriage license. We then make all the necessary arrangements for a legally authorized local officiant to perform your legal marriage license signing via web conference.
We are happy to provide 100% legal online marriages to all our customers, no matter where they are located. We even have options for couples who are located in other countries, or are not both in the same physical location! We have married couples from all over the world and we would be happy to help you get married online quickly, easily, and legally.
- What about certified copies? A Certified Copy of your marriage license is the official document you can use to prove that you are legally married. Our Online Legal Marriage Package includes at least one certified copy by mail as part of your marriage license fee. For DC marriage licenses, the DC Marriage Bureau does not automatically send you a certified copy, so our DC Online Marriage Package includes our DC Certified Copy Courier Service as well.
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How fast can we get married? — Typical turnaround time for the Online Legal Marriage Package is 3 business days, compared to taking up to 8 weeks to get a DC marriage license online due to limited service and processing delays at the DC Marriage Bureau. Many of our couples choose to have us perform an in-person elopement ceremony, but do the legal marriage portion online so they can get legally married more quickly.
We are advising clients who want to get married using a DC marriage license to choose a marriage date approximately 6-8 weeks after applying online for a DC marriage license, with the understanding that you may need to pay a rescheduling fee to move the date if you do not receive your DC marriage license in time.
- How do we get the process started? — The first (and best) step is to contact us by filling out our web form so we have all of your information, and we will get in touch with you quickly to answer any questions you may have.
If you have additional questions, or to get more information on our services, contact us today – we look forward to speaking with you!