Can People Get Married Online: Utah Steps, Costs, and Recognition

You can legally get married online through Utah, the only U.S. state with a permanent system that lets the couple, the officiant, and the witnesses join the ceremony by video from anywhere in the world. The marriage certificate that results is a standard U.S. legal document, recognized in all 50 states and by federal agencies including USCIS and the IRS.

Why a Utah Online Marriage Is Legally Valid Anywhere

Marriage law follows the “place of celebration” rule: a marriage that is legally performed and recorded in one jurisdiction is recognized as valid everywhere else. USCIS states this directly in its policy manual, noting that “the laws of the place of celebration govern the validity of the marriage.”¹ A couple in London or Lagos who marries through Utah’s system holds a marriage legally performed in Utah, because that is where the officiant sits during the ceremony.

Utah law treats the online ceremony the same as an in-person one. Under the state’s marriage code, a license is “considered used within this state if the officiant is physically present in the state at the time of solemnization.”² The couple and their witnesses can be anywhere. The certificate that comes out of it looks identical to one from a traditional ceremony and carries no indication that it was done remotely.

Several states allowed virtual ceremonies during the COVID-19 pandemic, but nearly all of those emergency orders have expired. Colorado lets couples solemnize their own marriages, but both people must be physically present in Colorado. New York City’s online option requires both applicants to be together in New York State during the clerk’s video call. Utah is the only state where every step can happen with the parties located anywhere on the planet.³

Who Can Use It

Utah has no residency or citizenship requirement for a marriage license. Anyone from any country can apply, which is a large part of why the online system has become popular with international and long-distance couples.³ Both applicants must be at least 18 for the standard online process. Utah does allow 16- and 17-year-olds to marry with parental consent, and 15-year-olds with a judge’s approval, but those situations involve in-person steps that do not fit the remote framework.

If either person was previously married, that marriage must be legally ended before applying. You will be asked for the exact date the divorce was finalized or the date a former spouse died, so have that on hand.

What You Need Before You Start

Both applicants need a government-issued photo ID that clearly shows their name and date of birth. A passport or driver’s license from any country works.³ The application also asks for:

Full legal names, current addresses, dates of birth, and places of birth for both applicants
Full names and birthplaces of each applicant’s parents
If applicable, how and when any previous marriage ended, including the date of the divorce decree or death certificate

For the ceremony itself, you need an officiant who is legally authorized to perform marriages in Utah and who will be physically located in Utah during the video call.² Many couples hire a Utah-based officiant through an online wedding service, and the Utah County clerk’s office maintains a list of authorized officiants. You also need at least two witnesses, each 18 or older, who join the video call and observe the vows and the pronouncement.

The Steps

Apply and Pay

Complete the online marriage license application on the issuing county’s website. Utah County is the most commonly used for remote marriages, though other Utah counties may offer online systems. You enter your personal information and upload digital copies of your photo IDs, then pay the license fee by credit or debit card. At Utah County, most applicants pay $71.75, which includes a $50 base fee and a $20 surcharge that funds the State Marriage Commission for online applications.⁴ Couples who complete a premarital counseling or education course can reduce the license fee by $20.⁵

Verify Identity by Video

After you submit, you schedule a brief video appointment with a county clerk. The clerk checks both applicants’ faces against their submitted IDs and confirms the application details. Each applicant must appear personally on this call. Utah does not allow anyone to apply through a power of attorney.³

Hold the Ceremony

Once the license is issued, there is no waiting period, so the ceremony can happen the same day if your officiant and witnesses are ready.³ The license expires after 32 days, so the ceremony must take place within that window.²

Everyone joins a video call: the couple, the officiant in Utah, and at least two adult witnesses from anywhere. Both parties declare their intent to marry, the officiant pronounces them married, and the witnesses observe. The ceremony can be short and functional or personalized with readings and vows, as long as those legal elements are met. A digital certified copy of the marriage certificate arrives by email within minutes of the ceremony at no additional charge.³

What It Costs

The license fee is the only mandatory government cost. At Utah County, that is $71.75 online, or about $51.75 with the premarital education discount.⁴⁵

On top of the license, most couples pay an officiant. Fees vary widely. Some online wedding platforms bundle the officiant, coordination, and certificate handling into a single package. Others let you book an officiant directly. Expect to spend anywhere from under $100 for a simple pronouncement to a few hundred dollars for a more customized ceremony.

Certified paper copies of the certificate, which many institutions require for name changes and benefits enrollment, cost extra. Physical copies shipped domestically or internationally have a per-copy fee set by the county.³

If You Are Marrying for Immigration Purposes

USCIS recognizes virtual marriages as valid for immigration, including spouse visa petitions, on two conditions. First, the marriage must be valid under the laws of the place that issued the certificate. A Utah online marriage clears that. Second, if the couple was not physically together during the ceremony, they must consummate the marriage afterward.¹

Plan for that evidence from the start. Useful proof includes:

Passport stamps or airline tickets showing both spouses were in the same location after the ceremony
A joint lease or signed witness affidavits showing the couple lived together after the wedding
A birth certificate of a child born to the couple after the ceremony, listing both parents

Couples with an immigration petition in mind should document their time together thoroughly: travel records, timestamped photos, hotel reservations. The certificate alone, while legally valid, is not enough for USCIS if the couple never met in person after the ceremony.¹

Using the Certificate Outside the United States

A Utah marriage certificate is a U.S. legal document, but foreign governments typically require an apostille before they accept it. An apostille is a standardized authentication stamp recognized by member countries of the Hague Apostille Convention, which currently includes over 120 nations.

For a Utah certificate, the apostille comes from the Utah Lieutenant Governor’s office. To qualify, the certificate must be a certified copy from the county clerk’s office or from Utah Vital Records.⁶ The fee is $19 per document.⁷ Countries outside the Hague Convention may require a different legalization process through their embassy or consulate, so confirm the destination country’s rules before ordering documents.

Online Marriage Is Not Proxy Marriage

These two get confused constantly, but they are legally distinct. In a Utah online marriage, both partners are present at the ceremony on video. They see each other, exchange vows, and participate in real time. A proxy marriage allows a stand-in to take one person’s place, meaning the absent spouse is not present at all. Proxy marriages are rare, allowed by only a handful of states, often only for active-duty military members or under other narrow circumstances, and they involve additional paperwork such as a written power of attorney designating the proxy. For any legal or immigration filing, a Utah online wedding, with both spouses visibly present and participating, is a stronger starting point.

1
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Chapter 6 – Spouses
2
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 81-2-302
3
Utah County Clerk. Marriage – Frequently Asked Questions
4
Utah County Clerk. Online Marriage Application
5
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 81-2-206
6
Authentications.Utah.gov. Types of Documents for Authentication/Apostille
7
Authentications.Utah.gov. Document Authentication (Apostille / Certificate)