Who Can Officiate A Wedding In New York State?

New York State allows wedding ceremonies to be performed by both religious and civil actors, including government officials, judges, justices, clerks, and town officials. The New York Marriage Laws specify who can legally perform marriage in the state, with the legal term for conducting a wedding ceremony being Solemnization of Marriage.

In late March 2023, any adult over the age of 18 can apply to officiate a wedding in New York state, opening doors for family, friends, or anyone to help the betrothed tie. The state law outlines who can and cannot legally perform marriage ceremonies in New York, which is laid out in Section 11 of the state Domestic Relations law.

New York State Law requires any person who performs a Marriage Ceremony within the City of New York to register with the City Clerk. Registration is done in their Manhattan office located at 141 Worth Street, New York, NY 10013. Authority to solemnize a marriage in New York includes ordained ministers, religious leaders, and judges or clerks of the circuit court.

Beginning on March 28, 2023, any person eighteen years old and over can solemnize a Marriage Ceremony in New York State after obtaining a One-Day Marriage Officiant License from the Marriage License Bureau at the Manhattan Office of the City Clerk. As a marriage officiant in New York, it is their legal responsibility to fill out the marriage license in the presence of the couple and any required witnesses.

How do I become a wedding officiant in USA?

General Requirements for Becoming a Wedding Officiant In most cases, you need to be an ordained or invested member of a religious group where you already perform weddings, or you need to be a public official, such as a judge. A state license may be required.

Is Universal Life Church recognized in New York?

How New York Recognizes ULC Ordinations. Because Universal Life Church Ministries is legally recognized as a religious organization in New York, they have all the rights and privileges of other religious bodies – including ordination. Those ordained by the ULCM are granted the legal power of clergy, including the ability to officiate wedding ceremonies legally.

Does NY state recognize religious marriage?

• Religious Ceremony And Intention To Enter Into A Legal Marriage.. In certain cases, New York courts may recognize a marriage as valid even if no marriage license or marriage certificate was issued.
• If the couple undergoes a religious ceremony and genuinely intends to enter into a legal marriage, their marriage may be recognized under New York law.

• Validity of Religious Ceremonies. The court will examine the circumstances surrounding the religious ceremony and the parties intent to determine if a valid marriage exists.
• Factors considered may include the couples conduct, public acknowledgment of their marital status, and the duration of their relationship. Obviously a full blown marriage ceremony which takes place in a church or synagogue, with the bride wearing a wedding dress and the groom a tuxedo, where there is a forma cutting of the wedding cake, with a reception attended by a large number of friends and relatives, along with a gift registry, will be considered convincing evidence that the parties fully intended to be legally married.

Challenges To The Marriage Based Upon The Officiant. In the past there have been occasional situations where the legality of a marriage has been challenged because the officiant was not a clergyman, priest, rabbi, etc. This issue came up as more and more couples, especially young couples, chose destination weddings, and/ or did not belong to any organized religions.

Can a non-US citizen officiate a wedding?

Can I officiate weddings in the U.S.? Yes, with the exception of the state of Nevada. The state of Nevada currently has minister registration laws that make it prohibitive for non-us citizens to officiate wedding ceremonies in the state.

Yes, with the exception of the state of Nevada. The state of Nevada currently has minister registration laws that make it prohibitive for non-us citizens to officiate wedding ceremonies in the state. That being said, you can conduct the wedding ceremony in Nevada so long as an authorized person signs the marriage license.

In the other 49 states and US territories you do not need to be a US citizen to officiate wedding ceremonies. Most religious institutions predate the founding of the American Republic and the US Constitution was set up to respect the rights of all religious officials regardless of nationality.

Consider the Catholic church for instance. Many Catholic Priests, Bishops, and so on are not US citizens however they regularly conduct marriage rites.

How long does it take to get ordained in NY State?

Ordinations for New York are completely free and can normally be completed in less than a day. Thousands of people have registered and became licensed ministers in New York. Once you have completed the ordination process you are able perform marriages through Open Ministry in and for the state of New York!

Become Ordained for free and start your journey as an authorized minister in New York with Open Ministry.

How to Register to Officiate a Marriage in New York.

Who can be a witness at a wedding NYC?

You and your prospective spouse must have at least one witness, who must be 18 years of age or over. The witness or witnesses must bring proper identification. Because of Covid-19 restrictions, we currently only allow one witness.

Can I marry someone who is not a U.S. citizen?

Yes, a green card holder (a lawful permanent resident) can get married to a foreigner. Marriage to a foreign national does not affect the green card holders status. However, the foreign spouse would need to go through the appropriate immigration process, such as obtaining a visa or adjusting their status, to join the green card holder in the United States.

Green card holders do not have the same ability as U.S. citizens to bring their fiancé to the United States through the K-1 visa process. The K-1 visa is available only to U.S. citizens who are engaged to foreign nationals. Green card holders can, however, petition for their fiancé to enter the United States through other available immigration processes, such as obtaining a family-based immigrant visa or applying for a marriage-based green card after getting married outside the U.S.

Who can perform a Marriage Ceremony in NY?

• Marriage Officiant RegistrationClergy members or ministers of any religion
• Leaders of the Society of Ethical Culture
• The Mayor or any former Mayor of the City of New York
• Federal, state, or local judges or justices, elected or appointed in the State of New York, who are currently serving or retired

Who can be a witness in NY?

Every person is competent to be a witness unless the court determines that the person does not have the capacity to warrant the reception of the persons evidence.

How long does it take to get a marriage certificate in NY?

You must be 18 and older to be permitted to marry in New York State. If you provide all necessary documents, you will get a Marriage License on the same day. If your appointment was online, your Cupid account will have a digital download.

• Drivers license (from the United States or one of its territories)
• Non drivers identification card (from the United States or one of its territories)
• Learners permit from New York State only
• IDNYC
• United States Military Identification Card
• A valid passport from any country
• U.S. Certificate of Naturalization (issued within the past 10 years)
• United States Alien Registration Card with expiration date
• Employment authorization card issued by the United States immigration authorities

All documents must be valid. Expired documents will not be accepted.

Does NYS recognize online ordained ministers?

When Church of Ancient Ways was granted full church status in 1997, we wrote our bylaws to mirror New York State Law, to ensure that my people would always be in compliance. In 2006, the City of New York decided to forgo the congregational requirement that still stands in the rest of New York State. So they do register online officiants and it is legal for those officiants to perform ceremonies that take place only within the limits of City of New York. Officiants registered with NYC prior to 2006 had their credentials checked using New York State Law and can marry people anywhere in New York State.

Nassau and Suffolk do not require registration and do not check credentials when processing a license. Honestly, you could fill it out at the kitchen table yourselves, using the names of your favorite TV characters, and Town Hall would still process it. Unfortunately having a Certificate of Marriage from the state, doesnt mean that you are legally married. How on earth can this be? I for one have no idea. But this is the reality of the current situation.

The problem would be if one of you wanted no longer to be married, and to disenfranchise the other by having the marriage declared invalid because the officiant did not meet the states requirements. In the precedent setting cases where this has happened, Ravenal v. Ravenal and Raniere v. Raniere, the marriages were declared null and void. That equated to no equitable distribution of assets…So if you are unsure about being married, having a friend ordained online might be even better than a prenuptial agreement. Or at least for one of you.