Marriage license guide
Getting married in Colorado
The statewide steps are simple, but the county clerk runs the paperwork. Start with the clerk and recorder office that will issue your license. Check its application, ID, appointment, and payment rules before you make the trip.
Your first stop
Find the county clerk that will issue the license
County offices can differ on appointments, online applications, accepted ID, and how they handle an absent applicant. Open the county's official page before you choose a day to go in.
Find a Colorado county clerkCounty clerk shortcuts
Open the county's marriage page
The counties below have a direct shortcut. Use the clerk's page to check current ID, appointment, payment, application, and certificate-return instructions.
The basic path
Three steps, in order
- 1
Apply with the county
Check the county page, complete any online form, and gather the ID and prior-marriage details it asks for. Both people usually appear, but a county may explain an absentee process when one person cannot.
- 2
Use the license in Colorado
The current license window is 35 days from the issue date. You may use an authorized officiant, or the two of you may solemnize the marriage yourselves. Follow the clerk's directions when filling out the certificate.
- 3
Return the certificate
Colorado law gives 63 days after the ceremony to return the completed certificate to the issuing clerk. The clerk records it and can explain how to order certified copies.
What feels different in Colorado
Colorado allows self-solemnization. That means the two people getting married can perform their own ceremony and sign as the parties. You do not have to hire an officiant. A friend or relative can still be part of the ceremony, but the county clerk's instructions control who signs the officiant line.
County clerk guidance also says witnesses are not required. The useful habit is simple: ask the issuing clerk how it wants the certificate completed, especially when you plan to self-solemnize.
If you choose to change your name
Marriage does not update every record for you. The Social Security Administration is the usual first stop for a legal name change. Colorado DMV says that change needs to be on file with Social Security before you visit a driver-license office. Bring the certified documents the DMV asks for, and remember that banks, employers, passports, insurance, voter records, and other accounts have their own steps.
Keep a certified copy of the recorded marriage certificate handy. Do not assume every office accepts the same document or updates on the same schedule. Check each office before you go.
FAQ
Quick answers
Do we have to live in Colorado?
No. Colorado county clerks say you do not have to be a Colorado resident. The license is for a marriage held in Colorado.
Do we need an officiant?
Not necessarily. Colorado lets the two people getting married solemnize the marriage themselves. Ask the issuing clerk how to fill out the certificate for a self-solemnized marriage.
Do we need witnesses?
Colorado county clerk guidance says witnesses are not required. If you choose to have them sign, follow the instructions from the clerk that issued the license.
Can we use the license outside Colorado?
No. A Colorado marriage license is for a ceremony in Colorado. If the ceremony will be in another state, start with that state's licensing office.
Does marriage change a name automatically?
No office updates every record for you. If you choose a new name, start with Social Security. Colorado DMV says the Social Security change must be on file before you visit a driver-license office.
Sources and review
Where this information comes from
Colorado Porch gives the short version, then points back to the official source for the rule that matters.
- Data used
- Colorado marriage statutes, county clerk procedures, and state and federal name-change guidance
- Last reviewed
- July 2026
- Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 14 for sections 14-2-106 through 14-2-109 cover the license, time limits, and who may solemnize a marriage.
- Colorado county clerks and recorders directory for official county websites for the office that issues and records marriage licenses.
- Larimer County marriage license guidance for county procedure, self-solemnization, the 35-day license window, and the 63-day return window.
- Jefferson County marriage license guidance for an independent county check of the statewide rules and local application steps.
- Social Security Administration name-change guide for how to update a Social Security record after a legal name change.
- Colorado DMV driver-license FAQ for the order of steps and documents for a Colorado license or ID name change.
Use this carefully: County procedures, accepted identification, appointments, fees, and special cases can change. If either person is under 18, cannot appear, was married before, or has an unusual document situation, ask the issuing county clerk what it needs before applying.
Next steps
A few useful places to go next
Find your county office, work through a move, or browse the local rules that make Colorado answers change by place.
County office
Browse Colorado counties
Start with the county that will issue your license or hold the local record.
Find a county ->Moving
Moving to Colorado
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Open the checklist ->Local rules
Read local-rule notes
Short, sourced notes about county and city rules across Colorado.
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