You can remarry after divorce the moment your final divorce decree is signed, with one caveat: a small number of states make you wait between 30 days and six months before the next wedding. Most states impose no waiting period at all, so you could apply for a new marriage license the same day your dissolution is entered. The part that trips people up isn’t the paperwork. It’s the financial fallout: a new marriage can end alimony, cut off Social Security benefits based on an ex-spouse’s record, and knock you off COBRA health coverage.
Your Divorce Has to Be Final
Legal separation is not divorce. A separation sorts out custody and support while leaving the marriage legally intact, which means marrying someone else during a separation is bigamy. Only a final judgment of dissolution, sometimes called a divorce decree, restores your legal status to unmarried and makes you eligible to marry again.1Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-120 – Decree
Interlocutory or preliminary orders don’t count. In California, for instance, a final judgment dissolving the marriage cannot be entered until at least six months after the respondent was served or appeared in the case.2Social Security Administration. GN 00305.165 – Summaries of State Laws on Divorce and Remarriage Read your paperwork carefully. The word “final” matters.
What about an appeal? It depends on the state. In Colorado, an appeal that doesn’t challenge the finding that the marriage is irretrievably broken does not delay finality, and either party may remarry while the appeal is pending.1Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-120 – Decree Other states handle this differently, so confirm with your attorney or the court clerk before assuming you’re free to proceed.
States With Waiting Periods
Most states let you remarry the instant your decree is entered. Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Wyoming, and many others impose no waiting period at all.2Social Security Administration. GN 00305.165 – Summaries of State Laws on Divorce and Remarriage
A handful of states do make you wait:
- Texas: Neither party may marry a third person before the 31st day after the divorce is decreed. Former spouses may remarry each other at any time, and a court can waive the 30-day restriction for good cause if a record is made and preserved.3State of Texas. Texas Code Family Code 6.801 – Remarriage4State of Texas. Texas Code Family Code FAM 6.802
- Alabama: Remarriage to a third person is prohibited for 60 days following the decree.2Social Security Administration. GN 00305.165 – Summaries of State Laws on Divorce and Remarriage
- Wisconsin: Neither party may remarry until six months after the divorce is granted. The restriction applies to divorces granted anywhere in the world, and a marriage entered before the six months expire is void.5Wisconsin State Legislature. Wisconsin Code 765.03 – Who Shall Not Marry, Divorced Persons
Wisconsin’s rule is one of the strictest in the country, and there is no statutory provision for the court to waive it. Everyone divorced in or subject to Wisconsin law has to wait the full six months.
What Happens If You Remarry Too Soon
Marrying someone while you are still legally married to another person is bigamy, and it’s a crime in all 50 states. In roughly a dozen states it’s a misdemeanor; in the rest, a felony. California’s statute is a useful example: under Penal Code Section 281, any person who has a living spouse and marries another person is guilty of bigamy,6California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 281 – Bigamy punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 or imprisonment in county jail for up to one year or in state prison.7California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 283 – Punishment for Bigamy
Beyond the criminal exposure, a marriage entered while a prior marriage is still active is generally invalid from the start. Property claims, benefits enrollment, and inheritance rights built up during that invalid marriage then have to be unwound, which is expensive and slow. Confirming the decree is final, and that any applicable waiting period has passed, is a far cheaper option than fixing it later.
What Remarriage Can Cost You Financially
The legal clearance to remarry is the easy part. The financial consequences are where people get blindsided. Three areas deserve a careful look before you set a date.
Alimony Usually Ends
In most states, remarriage automatically terminates alimony or spousal support if you’re the one receiving it. The reasoning is that your new spouse now shares financial responsibility, so the ex-spouse’s obligation ends. Some divorce decrees spell this out; others rely on state statute. Either way, a $2,000 monthly payment can stop the day you walk down the aisle.
Moving in with a new partner instead of marrying isn’t necessarily a workaround. A growing number of states allow the paying spouse to petition for a reduction or termination of alimony if the recipient is in a supportive relationship involving shared expenses, joint property, or other signs of financial interdependence. Courts examine how long the couple has lived together, whether they share bank accounts, and how they present themselves publicly.
Social Security Benefits Based on Your Ex Stop
If your marriage lasted at least 10 years, you may be eligible for Social Security benefits based on your ex-spouse’s earnings record. Remarriage generally ends that. Benefits paid on a former spouse’s record stop when you remarry, and the Social Security Administration advises reporting the new marriage promptly to avoid being overpaid.8Social Security Administration. Will Remarrying Affect My Social Security Benefits
One exception matters. If your ex-spouse is deceased and you remarry after age 60, or after age 50 if you’re disabled, you may still be eligible for survivor benefits on your late ex-spouse’s record or benefits on your new spouse’s record, whichever is greater.8Social Security Administration. Will Remarrying Affect My Social Security Benefits If you’re near that age cutoff, the date of the wedding can be worth thousands of dollars over your lifetime.
COBRA Health Coverage
Divorce is a qualifying event under federal COBRA law, which lets a former spouse who was on the employee’s health plan continue that coverage for up to 36 months. You or the employee must notify the plan administrator within 60 days of the divorce, and a court decree is required; starting the process is not enough.9U.S. Department of Labor. FAQs on COBRA Continuation Health Coverage for Workers
If you’re relying on COBRA and planning to remarry, check whether your new spouse’s employer plan can cover you before you lose it. A coverage gap is one of the easier problems to prevent and one of the hardest to fix after the fact.
Getting the New Marriage License
The marriage license application for someone previously married is the same form everyone else uses, with extra fields disclosing how many prior marriages you’ve had and how each one ended. Providing false information can lead to perjury charges or nullification of the new marriage.
Most jurisdictions require a certified copy of your divorce decree, not a photocopy. A certified copy bears an official court seal and is available from the clerk of the court in the county where your divorce was filed.10USAGov. How to Get a Copy of a Divorce Decree or Certificate Fees vary, so call ahead. Bring government-issued photo ID, and have the date and location of your prior marriage’s end ready in case the county asks.
Marriage license fees run from around $20 to over $100, with most states falling between $30 and $80. Some states discount the fee for couples who complete a premarital education course. Once the license is issued, many states impose a short waiting period before the ceremony itself, typically one to three days, and the license expires in 30 to 90 days depending on the jurisdiction. Some counties now accept remote applications with a video identity check, though most still require at least one in-person step.
If Your Divorce Was Granted Abroad
A divorce granted in another country adds a documentation step. There is no federal agency that validates foreign divorces; recognition happens at the state level and the standards vary. In general, a foreign divorce is treated as valid if the proceedings followed the law of the country where they took place, at least one spouse resided there, and both parties were notified and had the chance to participate.
When you apply for a new marriage license, expect to produce a certified copy of the foreign decree along with an English translation if the original is in another language. Some counties require an apostille, which is a standardized international certification of authenticity. Call the county clerk where you plan to apply and ask exactly what they’ll accept, because the national rules aren’t uniform.
Why a Prenup Deserves a Serious Look
Second marriages carry financial complications that first marriages usually don’t: children from a prior relationship whose inheritance you want to protect, retirement accounts already split once, property awarded as separate assets in the earlier divorce, and ongoing obligations like child support. A prenuptial agreement lets you define what stays separate, what becomes joint, how debts from the earlier marriage are handled, and how inheritance rights are preserved for your existing children.
Without one, your state’s default property division rules apply if the second marriage also ends, and the defaults may not match what either of you intended. This is a conversation to have before the wedding, not after.