Getting started with Marriage Information for Alabama
Before you plan to perform a wedding in Alabama, it is important to understand the state's legal requirements. Unlike most states, Alabama does not require wedding officiants to register with the government or sign the marriage document. Instead, the legal process is handled by the couple through a notarized Marriage Certificate.
To get started, check out the information provided below for getting ordained and registering as a wedding officiant in Alabama.
If you have questions, please go to our helpful FAQ. For more information or support, please visit our contact us page.
Step 1: Become Ordained for Alabama
To get ordained and become a minister to perform ceremonies in Alabama, start by completing our ordination application.
Once you have completed the application for ordination you will be sent an email that confirms your ordination. Our ordinations for Alabama are completely free, granted to you for life and can be completed in less than a day. More than half a million people just like you, have registered and received their license to perform weddings.
If you have not completed the application, you can get ordained for free and start your journey as an authorized minister in Alabama with Open Ministry by using the button below!
Step 2: Contact The Alabama County Clerk
Next, contact the office of your local marriage authority (typically your county clerk in Alabama). Let them know that you are an ordained minister with Open Ministry in California, and ask them what information they require of you, to officiate a marriage in Alabama.
Clerks and governing agencies may require you to present them with a physical copy of your ordination record to register we offer packages which include bundled items at a discount.
When speaking with the Alabama county clerk it can be helpful to use the following phrases:
- I am an ordained minister with a church ministry in California.
- I would like to register as a wedding Officiant in your county to perform and solemnize weddings.
- What agency or department issues marriage licenses in your county and how may I contact them?
- I have my Letter of Good Standing and Ordination Credential as proof of my ministry and ordination for Alabama.
- Do you require any additional documentation for me to register as a wedding officiant in Alabama?
Step 3: Register with the Alabama Clerk
After you've contacted the marriage authority in Alabama, we recommend that you visit the bookstore to get your official credentials for your records, presentation or registration.
See Alabama State Statutes for More specific Requirements
When registering as an officiant in Alabama, you may be asked to display proof of your ordination to the Alabama county clerk's office before they will accept the marriage license as having been solemnized. We generally advise ministers of Alabama to get a Complete Membership Package for Alabama which includes a Letter of Good Standing (the live signed and notarized physical copy of your good standing with our ministry) an Ordination Credential, Minister Wallet Card and much more.
Having physical copies of your credentials provides peace of mind for couples and others that you intend to marry. Additionally, we recommend you give yourself at least 4 weeks between the date of the wedding ceremony and your credential request to ensure that you receive all of your materials to register in time.
Please note, that any state or county can impose different requirements;
this may include other nominal fees and additional paperwork that may need to
be completed before the ceremony can take place.
It is important to note that some county clerks in Alabama may require wedding
officiants to attach a statement which asserts some of the elements in the
marriage license upon submission, including the following:
- The time and location at which the wedding took place
- The names and places of residence of all official witnesses
- The religious organization in which the officiant is ordained
- The printed name and address of the officiant
When filling out the Alabama marriage license, Alabama state or the clerk may
request you use the title "Minister" or "Reverend".
The clerk may also require you enter your denomination, you can use
"Non-Denominational" or your practicing denomination. Failing to
state a denomination may result in rejection and could require a duplicate
marriage license.
Step 4: Perform the Ceremony
Before you perform a wedding in Alabama, be sure that the couple has picked up their Alabama state issued marriage license from the appropriate office. Once you have completed the steps listed, you are ready to perform the wedding!
Officiating a wedding in Alabama can be a great and wonderful experience. Work with the couple to determine the proper ceremony format and any details they wish to have. For ideas and inspiration check out our sample ceremony scripts.
We recommend that new ministers who are going to be performing a wedding in Alabama, or who have questions about the ceremony read over our Officiant Guide.
Step 5: Submit the Alabama Marriage License
Alabama marriage licenses are valid for a set number of days, and there may be a waiting period between when the couple receives the marriage license in Alabama and when the ceremony may be legally performed in Alabama.
This information is generally written on the license and must be followed to ensure the ceremony is recorded properly by Alabama.
Please note that the signed marriage license for Alabama must be returned to the issuing office in Alabama state, before the time limit is reached. You can check the marriage license for the exact dates.
After the ceremony, you will need to return the completed and signed marriage license to the Alabama states issuing office. This is essential for the marriage to be legally recorded. In most cases there is an address listed on the marriage license, use that to mail it back to the governing agency so that it can be recorded by the Alabama.
If you have any questions about the returning of the license, contact the Alabama agency that issued it for more information.
Alabama State Minister & Marriage Statutes
30-1-7 Persons Authorized to Solemnize Marriages
(a) Generally. Marriages may be solemnized by any licensed minister of the gospel in regular communion with the Christian church or society of which the minister is a member; by an active or retired judge of the Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeals, Court of Civil Appeals, any circuit court, or any district court within this state; by a judge of any federal court; or by an active or retired judge of probate.
(b) Pastor of religious society; clerk of society to maintain register of marriages; register, etc., deemed presumptive evidence of fact. Marriage may also be solemnized by the pastor of any religious society according to the rules ordained or custom established by such society. The clerk or keeper of the minutes of each society shall keep a register and enter therein a particular account of all marriages solemnized by the society, which register, or a sworn copy thereof, is presumptive evidence of the fact.
(c) Quakers, Mennonites, or other religious societies. The people called Mennonites, Quakers, or any other Christian society having similar rules or regulations, may solemnize marriage according to their forms by consent of the parties, published and declared before the congregation assembled for public worship.
Title 30 Marital and Domestic Relations - Chapter 1: Marriage
(Code 1852, §1946-1948; Code 1867, §2335-2337; Code 1876, §2674-2676; Code 1886, §2311-2313; Code 1896, §2841-2843; Code 1907, §4881-4883; Code 1923, §8995-8997; Code 1940, T. 34, §6-8; Acts 1988, No. 88-551, p. 867; Act 2003-303, p. 721, §1; Act 2004-485, p. 903, §1.)