Obtaining a license

Obtaining a marriage License in Gillespie County

Amid the chaos of planning a wedding, don’t forget one of the most important parts — the marriage license. The following are important reminders about applying for and using a marriage license:

Where to go?

• Located in Room 109 of the Gillespie County

Courthouse, the Gillespie County Clerk’s Office is where to go for a marriage license. County

Clerk Mary Lynn Rusche and personnel there are ready to assist with paperwork. • In order to set up an appointment, call the county clerk’s office at 830-997-6515.

An appointment is required beforehand. • Marriage licenses will only be issued from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays or 9 a.m. to noon on Fridays in certain cases.

They will not be issued on holidays or weekends. • Rusche asks that if anyone has any questions about types of identification needed for obtaining a marriage license, they should call first to confirm the type of identification they have is proper to purchase the license. This saves them a trip to Fredericksburg and not having the right identification.

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What to bring?

• Couples applying for a marriage license must both be present when the license is issued. • Each person should bring at least one form of photo identification (such as a driver’s license or passport) or two forms of non-photo identification (certified birth certificate, Social

Security card or current utility bill). • Be prepared to pay the $71 cost of the marriage license by check or cash. • Couples who complete the free eight-hour

“Twogether in Texas” course will have a reduced marriage license fee of $11. They must bring in a certificate of completion when applying for the license. • The course is offered online or in person.

In Fredericksburg, the course is not religionbased and is offered through Victory Fellowship

Church, 414 East College Street. Their telephone number is 830-997-9717. • The minimum age required to apply for a marriage license is 18 years. Anyone younger should bring with them a court order to obtain a license. • Applicants who are 16 or 17 years of age must bring their legal guardian when applying and the guardian is also required to show photo identification.

Common Law marriages

• That informal marriage fee is $36. • Couples claiming to be married by common law should keep in mind that if they have a baby, the father must undergo an affidavit process to claim paternity unless the couple comes to the county clerk’s office some time before the

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baby is born and declares that they have been married and living together since a certain date. • Someone claiming an informal marriage cannot claim a date that places them at less than 18 years old.

What else?

• A divorced person applying for a license to wed must be divorced for 30 days or longer, unless there is a waiver in the divorce decree. • Same-sex marriage has the same process as opposite-sex marriage. • When the marriage license is issued, the couple should take it to the person officiating the ceremony. After the wedding, the officiant will fill out the remainder of the license and return

it to the county clerk’s office where it will be recorded and the original will be mailed back to the newlyweds. • The marriage license must be used within 90 days of its issuance, or it will become void. • There is also a waiting period of 72 hours after the license is issued before the wedding can take place. • The waiting period to use a license may be waived by a district judge or if one of the applicants is on active duty with the United

States military and can show proper military identification. Completing the “Twogether in

Texas” course will also waive the 72-hour waiting period.