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Suggested minimum residency period prior to marriage: 1 day
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Minimum age: 18
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Suggested minimum stay in Florida : 3 nights
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Weddings take place: Monday – Friday
Residency
You do not need to be a resident of Florida to apply for a marriage licence. No minimum residency applies to overseas couples. (I.e. you are not required to be in Florida for a minimum number of days.)
Age - You should be 18 years and older to apply for a marriage licence.
Prior Marriage - Persons who were previously married and divorced need to bring their decree absolute with them to the courthouse as they will need to supply the date their last marriage ended.
The current fee for a marriage licence is $93.50.
Florida Wedding Licence
At least 24 hours before your wedding day you need to apply for a Florida marriage licence. This is a very simple process which you can complete as a couple together. The cost of the wedding licence is not included in the cost of your wedding package.
Applicants can fill out on-line their credentials in advance to save time at the courthouse
https://www2.miami-dadeclerk.com/MLSWeb/PreApp.aspx
If arranging the licence on arrival, you will need to travel to the courthouse to purchase the licence. The nearest courthouse to South beach is Miami Beach Court House, 1130 Washington Ave, Miami Beach FL 33139.
Please do not worry; your wedding planner will go through the procedure of this very simply procedure once you have arrived. The marriage licence is valid for 60 days from the day of issue; you will be given your wedding license prior to leaving the courthouse. You should give the wedding license to the Minister on the day of your wedding. The Minister will then be responsible for posting the Marriage licence back to the courthouse to have it validated. This will become the official Marriage Certificate. This process should take between 4 – 6 weeks and will be posted directly back to the couple’s home address.
Couples will require the following necessary documents
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Passports
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Birth Certificates (either full one or short one - UK couples)
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Decree Absolute (if divorced)
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And any other relevant paperwork such as change documents (widower’s certificate, change of name etc.).
Failure to produce correct documentation may result in having to delay the wedding pending the correct documents being presented.
ALL ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS MUST BE TAKEN WITH YOU WHEN YOU TRAVEL