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 Florida
Online marriage in Florida: get legally married from home
Planning around work, travel or a celebration later? Compare Florida’s local license rules with our guided online ceremony, then follow the paperwork for the option you choose.
Explore your ceremony options ↗A guided remote ceremony, with a separate license process.
Two different ways to plan
What to know about Florida marriage requirements
Florida law generally provides a three-day delay before the local marriage license becomes effective when the couple does not submit valid premarital preparation course certificates. The law also provides exceptions, including qualifying nonresident situations and hardship. Do not assume an exception applies just because one of you is traveling or because a ceremony date is already booked.
A qualifying premarital preparation course can affect the local license’s effective date. That is different from taking a general relationship course or watching a webinar. If you are choosing the Florida license route, confirm that any course you plan to use meets its specific requirements. Our educational resources should not be assumed to satisfy a Florida licensing condition.
Florida law also gives the local marriage license a 60-day validity period after issuance. Keep both the effective date and the expiration date in view. These are rules for Florida’s local process, not a schedule attached to our online package. Our account guides couples through the different documents used for the remote service.
Your plans, made clearer
Compare the whole experience instead of one online step
Start by considering what you need help with: joining from separate places, understanding the paperwork or having an officiant guide the ceremony. Write down any Florida application already submitted and any fee already paid. If you have started locally, share that information before applying through another route so the team can explain what still needs attention.
For a live online ceremony, choose a quiet setting where both partners can participate clearly and keep their identification ready. Confirm the appointment’s time zone and the plan for witnesses through your account. If you are coordinating from different countries, identify the certificate’s intended use early rather than assuming every marriage record is accepted in the same way.
Your legal wedding and your Florida celebration do not need to be organized as one event. Keep the certificate process separate from guest travel, venue plans and any later gathering. This gives you a clearer list of decisions without confusing a celebration date with the date the legal ceremony occurs.
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 ↗
Guidance for your plans
Keep the details you need close
Local requirements
Florida marriage rules to know
These details apply to a marriage license issued through the Florida local process. They are state-specific planning points, not requirements for the separate license used for our ceremony.
- Florida generally delays license effective date three days without valid premarital course certificates.
- Law provides nonresident and hardship exceptions; specific qualifying treatment must be confirmed.
- A valid premarital course certificate can remove delayed effective date.
- Florida license valid for 60 days after issuance.
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 Florida follows Florida 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 Florida license.
| Question | A local Florida license | Our live online ceremony |
|---|---|---|
| Which license applies? | The license is issued by the local Florida 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 Florida-issued license. |
| Where does the ceremony happen? | Follow the location and ceremony rules that apply to the specific Florida 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 Florida
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 Florida
Start with your local plans
Whether you are planning from Jacksonville, Miami, Tampa, the online ceremony can be joined from different locations. If you choose a local Florida 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.
- Jacksonville
- Miami
- Tampa
- Orlando
- St. Petersburg
- Tallahassee
- Fort Lauderdale
- West Palm Beach
Before your next step
Questions from Florida couples
Will an online Florida application let us skip the local waiting rules?
No. An application method does not remove the law’s effective-date requirements. A qualifying course or exception is a separate question.
Is your marriage preparation material automatically a Florida license course?
Do not assume so. Florida has specific provider and certificate requirements for its local license process; ask before relying on any course for that purpose.
Will our ceremony be recorded in Florida?
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 Florida marriage license?
No. The online ceremony follows the process described on our How it works page. The Florida rules above apply to couples choosing a local Florida 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 Florida?
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 Jacksonville, Miami instead?
You can choose a local Florida 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.
- Florida Statutes section 741.04 ↗ Checked 2026-11-07
- Florida Statutes section 741.041 ↗ 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.
