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Master November 2020

Eloping Marriage License Question

Kristen, on December 1, 2019 at 8:20 AM Posted in Wedding Ceremony 0 7

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I know that you have to get the marriage license of the state you plan to get married in and usually a witness is required. Has anyone eloped but got their marriage certificate in their home state and did a symbolic ceremony or did you just get the license in the state you got married in? I kind of dislike the idea of a random person in a different area being the witness on my marriage certificate so I am wondering should we legally wed in our home state and do a symbolic wedding elsewhere? I was hoping to elope state side as I thought it would be easier but it seems I would need to do the same process even if marrying internationally.

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Latest activity by Catherine, on December 2, 2019 at 11:07 AM

Master September 2019
Sarah · on December 1, 2019 at 8:27 AM
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There’s actually a lot of states that don’t require witnesses so if you have a place in mind you want to elope to, I’d double check the laws in that state before assuming you’ll need witnesses.
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Master November 2020
Kristen · on December 1, 2019 at 8:56 AM
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Yeah I did and I see that two of the ones I want to do not which is nice because I know FH wants to keep it just him and I. I would not mind having my BF with me as a witness but I know if I invite one person then have to invite more ya know? Pending on where he really wants to go like if he wanted to go to Puerto Rico we would do the marriage here because they do have odd requirements down to medical records lol. Thank you.
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Dedicated April 2021
Simone · on December 1, 2019 at 9:53 PM
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Not every state requires a witness. I had friends elope in Washington DC and Colorado because those two places are easy to marry in and you can do it without an officiant!
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Master November 2020
Kristen · on December 1, 2019 at 10:16 PM
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LOL funny you say that. I prefer California but I was looking at Colorado too. No witness and no waiting period.
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VIP November 2019
Catherine · on December 2, 2019 at 10:50 AM
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I'm a tad confused on where you are getting married...
but - we did a civil ceremony in our home state in NY. his brother was his witness and my mom flew in from IL to visit and be my witness. we then had a big ceremony reception later in PA. sometimes doing the marriage certificate in a state other than your home state can get tricky. i would suggest your home state if you are marrying here in the states.
if you are getting married internationally, you HAVE to be married somewhere in the US for it to be legal.
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Master November 2020
Kristen · on December 2, 2019 at 10:56 AM
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Well right now I am in the planning stages and doing research as early next year we will set a date and final plans. I won some free stays via watching some pots and pans demo. The U.S./Canada needs to be activated by March 2020 and used within the year which is why I thought lets do our elopement stateside. I am looking at California and Colorado (according to gov sites you have to get the marriage license in the state you marry but it seems they can file it with your state) which require no witnesses or waiting periods. If we choose PR then I would do the legal part in our state. I just did not understand the whole process.
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VIP November 2019
Catherine · on December 2, 2019 at 11:07 AM
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It is all a bit confusing which stinks lol and the marriage laws will also differ depending on state. PA marriage laws were tough for us to work with so we made it easy on ourselves. I'm sure everything will work out perfectly for you
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