Marriage laws in the United States are set mostly by the states, but they share a common structure: both people must have the legal capacity to marry, the couple must get a license from a local clerk, and the marriage must be solemnized in a recognized ceremony. Once a marriage is valid, federal and state law layer on a substantial set of rights, benefits, and obligations covering taxes, property, inheritance, Social Security, healthcare decisions, and job-protected leave. The U.S. Supreme Court has held that the right to marry is a fundamental liberty under the Fourteenth Amendment, and since 2015 that right extends to same-sex couples in every state.1Justia Law. Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. 644 (2015)
A marriage legally performed in one state is generally recognized in every other state, so a couple does not lose spousal tax treatment, insurance coverage, or inheritance rights by moving.
Who Can Legally Marry
Every state requires both people to have what the law calls legal capacity. In practice that means three things: you are old enough, you understand what you are doing, and you are not already married to someone else or too closely related to the person you want to marry.
Age
Eighteen is the standard minimum age to marry without any special permission. Between sixteen and eighteen, most states require parental consent, a judge’s approval, or both before issuing a license.2South Dakota Law Review. Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act A growing number of states have banned marriage under eighteen outright. Where exceptions remain, a judge generally has to find that the marriage serves the minor’s interests, not a parent’s.
Mental Capacity
Both parties have to understand what marriage is at the moment of the ceremony. Someone impaired by a serious mental condition, intoxication, or a cognitive disability at the time they say “I do” has not legally consented, and a marriage entered without that understanding can be declared void.
Prohibited Relationships
Marriages between close blood relatives are banned everywhere. The usual list bars ancestors and descendants, siblings including half-siblings, and uncle-niece or aunt-nephew pairs.2South Dakota Law Review. Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act Some states extend these restrictions to adoptive relationships. First-cousin marriage is a gray area: some states permit it, others treat it as void.
No Prior Marriage
You cannot legally marry if you are already married to someone else. Doing so is bigamy, a criminal offense in every state. A marriage entered while a prior one is still active is void from the start and confers no spousal rights at all. If you have been married before, the clerk will almost always ask for a certified divorce decree or death certificate before issuing a new license.
Getting a Marriage License
A ceremony without a license has no legal effect in most of the country. Both people must appear in person at the local clerk’s office to apply.
What to Bring
You will typically need a valid government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s license, passport, or military ID. Many jurisdictions also ask for a certified birth certificate and a Social Security number. The Social Security requirement supports federal child support enforcement and tax administration; applicants who do not have one can usually sign an affidavit instead. If either person was previously married, bring the certified divorce decree or death certificate that ended the earlier marriage, including the date and location it concluded. Missing that paperwork is one of the most common reasons couples get turned away.
Fees and Waiting Periods
Fees vary widely by county, with most falling somewhere between $35 and $100. Some states reduce or waive the fee for couples who complete a premarital education course.
About a third of states impose a waiting period between the day the license is issued and the day it becomes effective, ranging from 24 to 72 hours. The rest allow couples to marry immediately. Several waiting-period states will waive the delay for couples who complete premarital counseling or can show a hardship.
Expiration
Every license has a shelf life. Depending on the state, it stays valid for as little as 30 days or as long as six months. Miss the window and the license is void; you pay the fee and start over. Plan the ceremony date before you apply.
Blood Tests
Premarital blood tests used to be standard, but as of 2019 no state requires one. Older guides that mention lab work are out of date.
Non-Citizen Applicants
A U.S. citizen can marry a foreign national inside the United States. The non-citizen typically needs a valid passport and, depending on the jurisdiction, a visa or other proof of legal presence. Marriage does not automatically change anyone’s immigration status, but it opens a pathway to apply for a spousal visa or adjustment of status.
Couples marrying abroad have to follow the local laws of the country where the ceremony takes place, which may require translated documents, residency periods, or an affidavit of eligibility to marry.3Travel.State.Gov. Marriage A marriage legally performed overseas is generally recognized in the United States as long as it was valid where it happened.
The Ceremony
Solemnization is what turns a license into a marriage. The ceremony can be performed by a judge, a public official with solemnization authority, or through any mode of ceremony recognized by a religious denomination, tribal nation, or native group.2South Dakota Law Review. Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act In practice, that means licensed or ordained clergy, judges, magistrates, and justices of the peace can all officiate legally valid ceremonies. Many states allow temporary officiant designations so a friend or family member can perform a specific wedding.
Both parties have to express their intent to be married in the presence of the officiant. Most states also require one or two adult witnesses to sign the license.
Self-Solemnization
A small number of states, including Colorado and Pennsylvania, allow couples to solemnize their own marriage without a third-party officiant. These “self-uniting” marriages trace back to Quaker tradition. The couple signs the license themselves and generally still needs witnesses. Confirm the specific rules in the state where the ceremony will take place, since states differ on whether a religious affiliation is required.
Proxy Marriage
Proxy marriage allows one party to be absent, with a stand-in attending. This option exists mainly for active-duty military members deployed overseas, and only a few states permit it. Montana is the only state that allows “double proxy” ceremonies where both parties are absent. Federal agencies generally recognize proxy marriages for survivor benefits and other spousal entitlements, but immigration authorities require a proxy marriage to be consummated before it counts for visa purposes.
Common Law Marriage
A handful of states still recognize common law marriage, which lets a couple be legally married without a license or ceremony. The requirements vary, but generally both people must agree they are married, live together, and present themselves to the community as a married couple. Living together for a long time is not enough on its own.
If you form a valid common law marriage in a state that recognizes it and later move to a state that does not, the new state will typically still treat the marriage as valid. The practical risk is proof. If you rely on common law status for health insurance, tax filing, or an estate claim, document the circumstances carefully; establishing the marriage after the fact, especially during a dispute, is far harder than producing a marriage certificate.
Finalizing the Record
After the ceremony, the signed license goes back to the issuing clerk, usually within about ten days. Once the clerk records it, the office issues an official marriage certificate. That certificate, not the license, is what you will actually use going forward, so order multiple certified copies at the time of filing. Banks, insurers, and government agencies each want their own original. Certified copies typically run $15 to $35. The underlying record stays on file permanently with the state or county.
Changing Your Name
Marriage does not automatically change anyone’s legal name. A spouse who wants to take the other’s surname updates each agency’s records separately, and the Social Security Administration goes first because every other agency checks your name against SSA records. File Form SS-5 at a local SSA office along with your certified marriage certificate and proof of identity. The new card arrives in two to three weeks. Only then should you update your driver’s license, passport, bank accounts, and employer records. If your license name does not match the SSA database, the DMV will reject your application, and the same mismatch can create problems with tax filings and employment verification.
How Marriage Changes Property Ownership
Marriage changes the legal treatment of what you own and what you owe, and the rules depend on which system your state follows.
Nine states use a community property system: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. In those states, nearly all income earned and property acquired during the marriage belongs equally to both spouses regardless of who earned it or whose name is on the title. Property owned before the marriage or received as a gift or inheritance generally stays separate, but mixing separate and marital funds can blur that line quickly.
The other 41 states and D.C. follow equitable distribution. Equitable does not mean equal. A court divides marital property based on what it considers fair under the circumstances, weighing factors like the length of the marriage, each spouse’s earning capacity, and contributions to the household. The split could be 50/50, 60/40, or something else.
Which system applies affects how you should title property, whether to keep separate accounts, and whether a prenuptial agreement makes sense.
Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements
A prenuptial agreement is a contract signed before marriage that spells out how assets, debts, and financial obligations will be handled during the marriage and in a divorce. A postnuptial agreement does the same thing but is signed after the wedding. Most states have adopted some version of the Uniform Premarital and Marital Agreements Act to standardize enforceability.
For a prenup to hold up, it generally has to be:
- Written and signed. Oral agreements about marital property are not enforceable.
- Voluntary. Neither party can be pressured, threatened, or rushed, and courts look at whether both sides had enough time to review the terms.
- Based on full financial disclosure. Both parties must honestly disclose assets, debts, and income. Hiding an account or understating earnings is one of the fastest ways to get an agreement thrown out.
- Not unconscionable. A deal that is wildly one-sided at signing may be struck down even if both parties technically agreed.
Hard limits apply. No prenup can waive or reduce a child’s right to support; courts treat child support as belonging to the child, so any cap or waiver is unenforceable. Clauses attempting to limit remedies for domestic violence are also barred.
Tax Effects of Getting Married
Marriage changes your federal tax situation starting in the tax year the wedding takes place. Married couples can file jointly or separately, and for most couples joint filing produces the lower combined bill.
Standard Deduction and Brackets
For the 2026 tax year, the standard deduction for married couples filing jointly is $32,200, compared to $16,100 for single filers. The joint deduction is exactly double the single amount, so there is no built-in penalty at that level. Federal tax brackets for joint filers are also roughly double the single-filer brackets at most income levels. The 22% bracket starts at $50,400 for a single filer and $100,800 for a joint filer.4Internal Revenue Service. IRS Releases Tax Inflation Adjustments for Tax Year 2026
The marriage penalty still exists at the top of the income scale. The 37% rate applies to single filers earning above $640,600, but for joint filers it kicks in at $768,700 rather than $1,281,200. Two high earners each making $650,000 will pay more combined tax as a married couple than as two single filers. Couples where one spouse earns significantly more than the other tend to benefit from filing jointly, sometimes substantially.
Estate and Gift Tax
Married couples get an unlimited marital deduction for federal estate and gift tax purposes. You can transfer any amount of property to your spouse during life or at death without triggering estate or gift tax, as long as your spouse is a U.S. citizen.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 26 – Section 2056 For 2026, the individual federal estate tax exemption is $15,000,000, and a surviving spouse can carry over any unused portion of the deceased spouse’s exemption.6Internal Revenue Service. Estate Tax That portability effectively lets a married couple shelter up to $30 million from estate tax.
The annual gift tax exclusion for 2026 is $19,000 per recipient. Married couples can split gifts, giving up to $38,000 per recipient without filing a gift tax return. Gifts to a non-citizen spouse have a separate, higher annual exclusion of $194,000 for 2026.4Internal Revenue Service. IRS Releases Tax Inflation Adjustments for Tax Year 2026
Federal Benefits Tied to Marriage
Marriage unlocks a set of federal benefits unavailable to unmarried partners, no matter how long they have been together.
Social Security Spousal and Survivor Benefits
A married person can draw Social Security on their spouse’s earnings record, even if they never worked or earned much less. The spousal benefit can be up to half of the working spouse’s primary insurance amount.7Social Security Administration. Benefits for Spouses To qualify you generally must have been married for at least one year, though that requirement is waived if you are the parent of your spouse’s child.8Social Security Administration. What Are the Marriage Requirements to Receive Social Security Spouse’s Benefits
Survivor benefits are available after a spouse dies. A divorced spouse can also claim benefits on an ex-spouse’s record, but only if the marriage lasted at least ten years.9Social Security Administration. Survivors Benefits That ten-year rule catches people during divorce. Ending a nine-year marriage a few months early can mean the difference between collecting survivor or spousal benefits and getting nothing.
Family and Medical Leave
The Family and Medical Leave Act entitles eligible employees to up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year to care for a spouse with a serious health condition.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 29 – Section 2612 You qualify if you have worked for your employer for at least 12 months, logged at least 1,250 hours in the previous year, and work at a location where the employer has 50 or more employees within 75 miles.11U.S. Department of Labor. Taking Leave from Work When You or Your Family Member Has a Serious Health Condition Under the FMLA Unmarried partners do not qualify for FMLA spousal leave, regardless of how long they have been together.
Healthcare Decisions
When a spouse is incapacitated, marriage provides a legal framework for making medical decisions. Under HIPAA, providers can share medical information with a spouse involved in the patient’s care, and in emergencies where the patient cannot speak for themselves, disclosure to a spouse is permitted when it is in the patient’s best interest. In states that recognize a spouse as a default healthcare decision-maker, providers are required to treat the spouse as the patient’s personal representative.
HIPAA does not automatically grant a spouse access to all medical records. The safest approach is for each spouse to sign a healthcare power of attorney and a HIPAA release naming the other as an authorized recipient. Relying on marital status alone leaves gaps, especially in states that require a formal healthcare proxy before a spouse can make treatment decisions.
What a Spouse Inherits Without a Will
If a married person dies without a will, state intestacy laws decide who inherits, and the surviving spouse sits near the top of the priority list in every state. The exact share depends on whether the deceased also had children and from which relationship. A common pattern gives the surviving spouse the entire estate when there are no children, and a significant share plus a fixed dollar amount when there are children from a prior relationship. Shares vary a great deal from state to state.
Marriage also gives a surviving spouse rights that a will cannot fully override. Most states provide an elective share that lets a surviving spouse claim a minimum percentage of the estate even if the will leaves them nothing. An unmarried partner has no automatic inheritance rights in any state and can be left with nothing if the deceased did not create a will or trust.