Getting started with Marriage Information for West Virginia
Before you plan to perform a wedding in West Virginia, it is important to understand the state's legal requirements.
To get started, check out the information provided below for getting ordained and registering as a wedding officiant in West Virginia.
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 West Virginia
To get ordained and become a minister to perform ceremonies in West Virginia, 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 West Virginia 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 West Virginia with Open Ministry by using the button below!
Step 2: Contact The West Virginia County Clerk
Next, contact the office of your local marriage authority (typically your county clerk in West Virginia). 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 West Virginia.
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 West Virginia 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 West Virginia.
- Do you require any additional documentation for me to register as a wedding officiant in West Virginia?
Step 3: Register with the West Virginia Clerk
After you've contacted the marriage authority in West Virginia, we recommend that you visit the bookstore to get your official credentials for your records, presentation or registration.
See West Virginia State Statutes for More specific Requirements
When registering as an officiant in West Virginia, you may be asked to display proof of your ordination to the West Virginia county clerk's office before they will accept the marriage license as having been solemnized. We generally advise ministers of West Virginia to get a Complete Membership Package for West Virginia 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 West Virginia 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 West Virginia marriage license, West Virginia 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 West Virginia, be sure that the couple has picked up their West Virginia 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 West Virginia 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 West Virginia, or who have questions about the ceremony read over our Officiant Guide.
Step 5: Submit the West Virginia Marriage License
West Virginia 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 West Virginia and when the ceremony may be legally performed in West Virginia.
This information is generally written on the license and must be followed to ensure the ceremony is recorded properly by West Virginia.
Please note that the signed marriage license for West Virginia must be returned to the issuing office in West Virginia 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 West Virginia 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 West Virginia.
If you have any questions about the returning of the license, contact the West Virginia agency that issued it for more information.
West Virginia State Minister & Marriage Statutes
If you are or have been asked to perform a wedding in West Virgina. The county clerk will require you to have the Letter of Good Standing for West Virgina.
48-2-401 Persons authorized to perform marriages
A religious representative who has complied with the provisions of section 2-402, a family court judge, a circuit judge or a justice of the supreme court of appeals, is authorized to celebrate the rites of marriage in any county of this state. Celebration or solemnization of a marriage means the performance of the formal act or ceremony by which a man and woman contract marriage and assume the status of husband and wife.
For purposes of this chapter, the term "religious representative" means a minister, priest or rabbi and includes, without being limited to, a leader or representative of a generally recognized spiritual assembly, church or religious organization which does not formally designate or recognize persons as ministers, priests or rabbis.
Chapter 48: Domestic Relations - Article 2: Marriages - Part 4: Marriage Ceremony
48-2-402 Qualifications of religious representative for celebrating marriages; registry of persons authorized to perform marriage ceremonies; special revenue fund
(a) Beginning the first day of September, two thousand one, the Secretary of State shall, upon payment of the registration fee established by the Secretary of State pursuant to subsection (d) of this section, make an order authorizing a person who is a religious representative to celebrate the rites of marriage in all the counties of the state, upon proof that the person:
(1) Is eighteen years of age or older;
(2) Is duly authorized to perform marriages by his or her church, synagogue, spiritual assembly or religious organization; and
(3) Is in regular communion with the church, synagogue, spiritual assembly or religious organization of which he or she is a member.
(b) The Secretary of State shall establish a central registry of persons authorized to celebrate marriages in this state. Every person authorized under the provisions of subsection (a) of this section to celebrate marriages shall be listed in this registry. Every county clerk shall, prior to the first day of October, two thousand one, transmit to the Secretary of State the name of every person authorized to celebrate marriages by order issued in his or her county since one thousand nine hundred sixty and the Secretary of State shall include these names in the registry. The completed registry and periodic updates shall be transmitted to every county clerk.
(c)(1) Upon written request from the registrant, the Secretary of State shall designate the registrant as inactive on the registry.
(2) Upon written notice from the governing body of the registrant's authorizing body that the registrant has died or that the registrant's authority to perform marriages has been revoked, the Secretary of State shall attempt to notify the registrant of the change in the registrant's status by United States mail addressed to the registrant's last known address. If the registrant fails to provide the Secretary of State with proof of good standing with his or her authorizing body within thirty days, the registrant shall be designated on the registry as inactive.
(d) A fee not to exceed twenty-five dollars may be charged by the Secretary of State for each registration or reactivation of an individual designated as inactive on the registry received on or after the first day of September, two thousand one, and all money received shall be deposited in a special revenue revolving fund designated the Marriage Celebrants Registration Fee Administration Fund in the State Treasury to be administered by the Secretary of State. Expenses incurred by the secretary in the implementation and operation of the registry program shall be paid from the fund.
(e) No marriage performed by a person authorized by law to celebrate marriages may be invalidated solely because the person was not listed in the registry provided for in this section.
(f) The Secretary of State shall promulgate rules to implement the provisions of this section.
Chapter 48: Domestic Relations - Article 2: Marriages - Part 4: Marriage Ceremony
48-2-405 Record of marriage to be kept by person officiating
A record of each marriage performed, with the names of the parties, their respective places of residence prior to marriage, and the date of marriage, shall be kept by the officiating religious representative in the permanent record of the church, synagogue, spiritual assembly or religious organization which he or she serves.
Chapter 48: Domestic Relations - Article 2: Marriages - Part 4: Marriage Ceremony