Prepare together
Explore your options, then use your account to complete your couple profile and the requested details. Follow the license instructions in your portal and upload the approved license when prompted.
Planning your marriage from Delaware
Online marriage in Delaware: get legally married from home
Delaware’s local marriage process has a short license window, so timing can be an important part of choosing how to marry. A couple applying locally needs to think about the license date, the waiting interval and the ceremony location together. Legal Online Marriage is a separate remote service. Comparing the full routes helps you avoid assuming that an online application or a ceremony booking removes Delaware’s local requirements.
Explore your ceremony options ↗A guided remote ceremony, with a separate license process.
Two different ways to plan
Delaware’s local license comes with two timing rules
For a Delaware ceremony, state law generally requires obtaining the marriage license at least 24 hours before the wedding. The license must also be given to the person performing the ceremony before it takes place. Receiving a license and arranging an officiant are related tasks, but they are not the same task.
The local license normally allows marriage within 30 days of issuance. If that window passes without a ceremony, the couple must apply again. Delaware law allows certain changes for good cause, but those require the appropriate decision rather than happening automatically. A personal deadline is not itself an approved exception to a waiting period or expiration date.
The state’s public service guidance also requires a couple to appear together to apply and says the ceremony must occur in Delaware. These local arrangements are different from our remote ceremony route. Do not purchase a Delaware license simply to use our service, and do not assume a Delaware application authorizes a video ceremony with partners elsewhere.
Your plans, made clearer
Plan the marriage date around the route you choose
If you want a local Delaware ceremony, think about how soon both of you can attend the application and whether the officiant is available within the license window. Avoid treating a venue reservation or a family visit as confirmation that every legal step can be completed on the same day.
If being together for local appointments is difficult, ask us to explain our service before beginning the local paperwork. Share each partner’s planned location, any documents already obtained and whether you have already participated in a legal ceremony. Using one clear route is easier than trying to combine two sets of forms and deadlines.
After the wedding, separate your official certificate needs from your celebration plans. A later gathering can be organized on its own schedule. If a certificate will be used for benefits, a name update or another country’s process, identify the receiving organization and the document it requests. Authentication and acceptance are different questions.
A digitally guided experience
What to expect from the process
Meet for a live ceremony
Choose an available appointment after the required preparation. You and your partner join by video with an officiant and two adult witnesses. We can provide the witnesses, or you can bring your own.
Choose document support
The $399 package includes the ceremony. The $899 package adds apostille authentication for your marriage certificate. Both have a separate government marriage license fee. An apostille authenticates a document; it does not guarantee acceptance.
See the complete online process ↗ Explore ceremony options ↗
Local requirements
Delaware marriage rules to know
These details apply to a marriage license issued through the Delaware local process. They are state-specific planning points, not requirements for the separate license used for our ceremony.
- Delaware license generally required at least 24 hours before ceremony.
- License normally valid 30 days from issuance.
- Law permits discretionary shortening of waiting period or extension of validity for good cause.
- Couple appears together; ceremony takes place in Delaware.
State rules reviewed: November 7, 2026. Confirm local requirements with the issuing office before applying.
Two different processes
Choose the route that fits your plans
A marriage license issued in Delaware follows Delaware rules. Our remote ceremony uses a separate application and ceremony process. The steps below explain what our service includes; they do not replace local requirements if you apply for a Delaware license.
| Question | A local Delaware license | Our live online ceremony |
|---|---|---|
| Which license applies? | The license is issued by the local Delaware authority. Use the waiting-period, validity and filing information in this guide, and confirm local details with the issuing office. | The ceremony follows the process described on our How it works page and uses a license for that process. It is not a Delaware-issued license. |
| Where does the ceremony happen? | Follow the location and ceremony rules that apply to the specific Delaware license. | You and your partner join a live video ceremony with an authorized officiant. You may join from the same room or separate locations. |
| What about witnesses? | Witness rules can depend on the local route and license type. Confirm them with the issuing authority. | Two adult witnesses attend. Witnesses are included if you need them; let the team know before your appointment. |
| Who records the marriage? | The office that issued the local license receives the completed return under its process. | The officiant submits the required marriage paperwork. Follow the clerk’s instructions for obtaining your official certificate. |
Before you rely on a certificate: Ask the office, agency or organization that will receive it which certified copy, authentication or translation it requires. A certificate or apostille does not guarantee acceptance for every purpose.
A real ceremony, with clear steps
How to get married online from Delaware
The ceremony takes place live by video. Your application, license, officiant, witnesses and certificate each have a role. You can review the process before creating an account.
Choose your ceremony option
Your account provides up-to-date package options, inclusions, pricing, terms and appointment times. The government license fee is separate.
Complete the application and identity checks
Follow the instructions in your account to enter both partners’ information, verify your identities and prepare the license. You can join from different locations.
Attend your live video ceremony
You, your partner, an authorized officiant and two adult witnesses join the call. Test your camera and microphone, keep identification ready, and follow the appointment time shown in your account.
Complete filing and request your certificate
Your officiant submits the required marriage paperwork. Follow the clerk’s instructions for your official certificate and any additional document checks.
What brings you here?
Find guidance for your situation
Every couple has a different reason for choosing a live online ceremony. Start with the guide that best matches your plans.
Military couples ↗Plan around orders, training, deployment or a move.Long-distance couples ↗Join the same live ceremony from separate locations.International couples ↗Plan ahead for document and destination requirements.Busy professionals ↗Choose a ceremony time that fits work and travel.Same-sex couples ↗Review the legal process and plan at your own pace.Private ceremonies and elopements ↗Keep the legal ceremony intimate and personal.Homebound and bedside weddings ↗Explore options when travel is difficult.Accessible planning ↗Explore accessibility options for your ceremony.
Planning from around Delaware
Start with your local plans
Whether you are planning from Wilmington, Dover, Newark, the online ceremony can be joined from different locations. If you choose a local Delaware license, check the issuing county or town office for its current application, appointment and ceremony steps. Local offices may have their own forms and scheduling details.
- Wilmington
- Dover
- Newark
- Middletown
- Rehoboth Beach
Before your next step
Questions from Delaware couples
Does a Delaware license have a long planning window?
The normal validity period is 30 days from issuance. Any extension is a specific matter under Delaware’s rules, not something to assume.
Can we use a Delaware license while joining your ceremony from different states?
Our remote process uses its own license instructions. Do not substitute a Delaware license for that process.
Will our ceremony be recorded in Delaware?
Not through this separate remote process. Your marriage record is held by the government authority that records the ceremony, rather than automatically by your home state. Keep the certified copy and confirm what the organization receiving it needs.
Can we join the ceremony from different places?
Yes. The ceremony is live by video, and both partners may join from the same room or separate locations. Everyone must be able to see and hear one another. Two adult witnesses attend, and witnesses are included if you need them.
Does this service issue a Delaware marriage license?
No. The online ceremony follows the process described on our How it works page. The Delaware rules above apply to couples choosing a local Delaware license. These are separate routes, so do not treat a local application or a general course as a substitute for the process described on our How it works page.
How long does it take to get married online from Delaware?
Your portal shows available appointment times and guides you through the application and identity checks. The government authority handles certificate processing after the ceremony; timing depends on that office.
Will every agency accept our marriage certificate?
Requirements depend on the office or organization receiving the certificate, and can differ for benefits, immigration matters or use outside the United States. Ask that office what record, certified copy, apostille or translation it needs before choosing a package.
Can we use a local clerk near Wilmington, Dover instead?
You can choose a local Delaware license route, but local application and ceremony rules are separate from our remote process described on our How it works page. Contact the clerk or issuing office for the current requirements in the county or town where you plan to apply.
Keep exploring
In-depth state marriage guides
Compare planning details in nearby guides, or browse the full state directory.
Check the rule at its source
Official state references
These government references support the state-specific local rules above. Visit our How it works page to learn about the online ceremony process.
- Delaware Code title 13 chapter 1 ↗ Checked 2026-11-07
- State of Delaware legal services guide ↗ Checked 2026-11-07
This guide is educational and is not legal advice. Local requirements can change.
Take the next step with a clearer plan
Explore the ceremony options, or tell us where you will each join from and what you need help understanding.
Ask the team a question ↗ Browse the state guides ↗
Information checked November 7, 2026. Local requirements can change.
