All persons proposing to be joined in marriage within the state shall complete a Marriage License Application which shall be recorded by any New Hampshire city or town clerk. The Clerk shall then provide the parties with a Marriage License which shall be delivered to the minister or magistrate who is to officiate at the ceremony.

 A Marriage Certificate is a copy of the record of a marriage certified by a city or town clerk or by the registrar of vital records and health statistics which serves as evidence of the fact of the marriage.

CONFIDENTIALITY
Old records are considered public records and are not subject to privacy requirements. Old records include: Birth records prior to 1901; death records prior to 1948; marriage records prior to 1948. All other records are considered private and confidential, with access limited to those individuals who have a "direct and tangible” interest in the record.

Copies of marriage records may only be obtained by the registrant, a member of his immediate family, guardian, or representatives with “a direct and tangible interest” such as an attorney, physician, funeral director, or other authorized agent acting in behalf of the registrant or his family. In order to determine if the “legal representative” may have access to the record, the direct and tangible interest must be listed in any correspondence received or clearly expressed if application is made in person.

PENALTY
Any person shall be guilty of a Class B Felony if he/she willfully and knowingly makes any false statement in an application for a certified copy of a vital record. (NH RSA 126:24).

APPLYING FOR A LICENSE  FOR A MARRIAGE OR A CIVIL UNION
To be married  or joined in a civil union in NH you do not have to establish residency. A couple wishing to marry in the State of NH may complete an application at any NH city or town clerk’s office regardless of their place of residence. This includes out-of-state residents as well. Once a valid license is issued, the couple will be free to marry within any city or town in NH.

Civil unions:  The prospective couple will need to produce any necessary documentation such as previous dissolutions or divorces.  The couple cannot get their union officiated prior to January 1, 2008, or the union will be null and void.  Both parties to a Civil Union must be 18 years of age and there are no age waivers allowed.  Out-of-state residents need to be aware that a civil union performed in New Hampshire may not be recognized by their state of residence.  Applicants are encouraged to review the laws of their home state and/or the laws of a state they intend to move to.

Filing Intentions
Both parties must appear in person to file intentions as the signature of each applicant is required. However, if either party (or both) is a member of the armed forces, he or she shall forward an affidavit of intentions, prepared by the armed forces legal representative, to the clerk if he or she cannot appear in person.

All information on the application shall be entered accurately. Falsification of any fact can cause great hardship to you at a later date and may make you liable for criminal prosecution.

If applying for a license in Nashua, the City Clerk's Office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.  The process can take as long as 45 minutes because of the length of the form that the couple has to fill out and the clerk has to enter into the state database.  If all the supporting documentation is in order, the couple will receive the license on the same day they apply for it.  However, couples that begin a license application after 4:00 p.m. may need to return on another day to sign and receive the license.  No license applications may be started after 4:30 p.m.

Fee
The license fee is set by RSA 457:29 and is payable to the City Clerk at the time the intentions are filed. Currently, the license fee is $45.00. Certified copies of the record can be obtained for a fee from the City Clerk where the license was filed.

Documents Required
The applicants shall supply to the Clerk, prior to the issuance of the marriage license, the following documents:

• Proof of age
• Photo identification
• Proof of current residence (recent mail or bill will suffice)
• A certified copy of a death certificate of a former spouse, if applicant is widowed
• A certified copy of a final divorce decree, if the applicant is divorced
• A certified copy of an annulment decree, if the applicant’s previous marriage was annulled.

Documents which are not in English must be accompanied by a translation that has been signed by the translator and the translator’s signature witnessed by a notary.

License Validity Period
The license shall be valid for a period of not more than 90 days from the date of filing. The license will state the date the license becomes valid as well as the date of expiration. The officiant shall make note of these dates and under no circumstances shall the couple be joined before the valid date or after the expiration date. 

Relationship
Marriage is not permitted in NH between people who are related by blood as first cousins or in any more direct lineage. 

Age
A male or female who has reached the age of 18 can marry without parental permission. A female between the age of 13 and 17 years and a male between the age of 14 and 17 years can be married only with the permission of their parent (guardian) and a waiver. A female below the age of 13 and a male below the age of 14 are not allowed to marry under any condition. 

The above laws on age apply to NH residents or to non-residents who desire to marry NH residents. If both parties are non-residents and are below the age of 18 they cannot be married in NH under any condition.

Waivers
When “good/special” cause is shown, waivers may be obtained which can alter certain requirements. Applications are made to the Hillsborough County Superior Court, 30 Spring Street, Nashua, NH 03060. Fees apply.

Age waiver. When either of the applicants is not yet 18 years of age but meets the minimum age requirement (female 13-17 and male 14-17) he/she may request permission to marry from a justice of the superior court of the county in which one of the applicants resides. The request shall be in writing and the parents or guardian of the applicant shall join in the request. The applicant requesting the age waiver shall be a resident of this state or marrying a resident of this state. No age waiver shall be granted to persons below the age of consent (18) if both parties are nonresidents.

Time waiver. On application to a justice of the superior court within the county where the proposed marriage is to be solemnized, the court for good cause shown may order that the period of three days provided in RSA 457:26 be shortened. No time waiver shall be granted if both parties and their parents are non-residents.

SOLEMNIZATION
In New Hampshire, marriages may be performed by:

• A Justice of the Peace commissioned in NH
• A minister of the gospel in NH who has been ordained according to the usage of his denomination, resides in NH, and is in regular standing with the denomination
• A minister within his parish, residing outside NH, but having a pastoral charge wholly or partly in NH
• Jewish rabbis who are citizens of the United States and reside in this state
• Quakers
• A deacon in the Roman Catholic Church ordained according to the usage of his denomination
• Judges of the United States, a US magistrate judge residing in this state pursuant to federal law, clergymen who are not ordained and non-resident Justices of the Peace, ministers or Jewish rabbis, after being licensed by the Secretary of State.

UNIFORM MARRIAGE RECOGNITION LAW

Residents. If any person residing and intending to continue to reside in this state is prohibited from contracting marriage under the laws of this state and goes into another jurisdiction and there contracts a marriage prohibited and declared void by the laws of this state, such marriage shall be null and void for all purposes in this state, with the same effect as though such prohibited marriage had been entered into in this state. 

Nonresidents. No marriage shall be contracted in this state by a party residing and intending to continue to reside in another jurisdiction if such marriage would be voided if contracted in such other jurisdiction, and every marriage contracted in this state in violation hereof shall be null and void.

APPLYING FOR A COPY OF A MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE IN PERSON OR BY MAIL
A signed, written application must be presented in person or by mail. Payment must accompany the request. Effective January 1, 2005, all individuals requesting a certified copy of a vital record (birth, marriage, or death record, pursuant to RSA 5:C-16) must present positive identification including, but not limited to, a driver’s license, passport or other picture identification or, in the absence of acceptable picture identification, shall complete the form “Documentation Evidence for Individuals not Possessing an Acceptable Picture Identification.” If ordering by mail, you must include the request form as well as a photocopy of your identification or the form, “Documentation Evidence for Individuals not Possessing an Acceptable Picture Identification” along with photocopies of the supporting documentation required with that form. Mail-in orders without positive identification will be returned without having been processed. 

Effective September 7, 1999, the issuance of complimentary copies of marriage certificates ended. The fees for certified copies are $12.00 for the first copy and $8.00 for each additional copy requested at the same time. The $12.00 fee is established by NH RSA 126:15. It includes a certified copy if found, a “No Records” statement if not.

APPLYING FOR A COPY OF A MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE BY TELEPHONE OR FAX
The Nashua City Clerk's Office accepts cash or check only.  The office cannot accept payment by credit card or debit card and, therefore, cannot accept payment for requests submitted by email, fax, or telephone.  However, the NH Bureau of Vital Records can accommodate online orders for certified copies of vital records using USCERTS, a third-party credit card service.  Go to https://www.uscerts.com/uscerts/certificates?p_action=start&p_state=NH.  Additionally, USCerts can provide expedited service for speedy receipt of your certificate.  There are additional fees for credit card usage and/or expedited delivery.  This order will be processed by the NH Bureau of Vital Records, not the City Clerk's Office.  For further information -- or if you have questions after placing your order -- contact the NH Bureau of Vital Records directly at 603-271-4650 or visit their website at http://www.sos.nh.gov/vitalrecords/.

CHANGES TO THE CERTIFICATE
Changes or corrections to marriage certificates must be initiated at the City Clerk’s office where the marriage intention was filed. Fees may apply.