Marriage License
Please note our office now requires appointments to be made before obtaining your marriage license. Please call our office at (530) 233-6205 to make an appointment to purchase your marriage license.
Marriage License
- A California Marriage License is a permit to get married; you are NOT officially married until a marriage ceremony is performed anywhere in the state of California by a recognized wedding officiant.
- California Marriage License applications are processed Monday through Friday, in the County Clerk's Office, located at 108 E. Modoc Street, between 9:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. The process may take 20 to 30 minutes.
- Payment may be made by cash, pre-printed checks, or money orders made payable to Modoc County Clerk. Credit or debit cards are NOT accepted.
- A Marriage License is valid for 90 days. Do NOT get your license more than 90 days before your wedding day.
- Blood tests are no longer required.
- If either party is under 18 years of age, a court order must be obtained before the issuance of the license by contacting Court Services at (530) 233-6515.
- Both parties must appear in person and present their current ID containing their picture, birth date, and signature.
- You may fill out and print the online application for a Public Marriage License to bring into the office.
- The web address to fill out the online application is http://www.criis.com/
- The birth name of parents includes full first, middle, and last names. Mother’s last name would be her maiden name.
- If there has been a prior marriage for either party, the month, day, and year that marriage ended needs to be known.
- The New Name fields may NOT be changed once the Marriage License has been issued.
- Please review all the information noted on both pages of the application.
- Once the wedding has taken place, it is the Officiant’s responsibility to return the completed Public Marriage License, either by mail or in person, to the Modoc County Recorder's Office located at 108 E. Modoc Street, Alturas, CA 96101, for recording.
- If there should be any alterations, erasures, white-out, or write-overs made on the license, it will be the Officiant's responsibility to complete an affidavit for a Duplicate Marriage License. There is a $40 fee for this process.
- The Modoc County Recorder's Office charges $15 for each Certified Marriage Certificate.
- Either couple who is changing their last name needs to take this Certified Copy FIRST to the Social Security Office, and then to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
For Marriage Licensing code see Family Code 350