MARRIAGE OFFICIANT LICENSE

Please visit the Marriage Officiant Search for a list of licensed marriage officiants. You may search by town/city, county or name of marriage officiant.

No. A Maine Notary Public will no longer have the authority to solemnize a marriage in the capacity of notary public effective July 1, 2023. However, all Maine notaries public who are Maine residents are automatically eligible to receive a marriage officiant license free of charge unless they opt out or decline to receive the license as a marriage officiant. A marriage officiant license authorizes the licensee to solemnize marriages in Maine. The Secretary of State will be issuing a marriage officiant license to all active notaries public who are Maine residents and have not opted out of being issued the marriage officiant.

Notaries who do not wish to be issued a marriage officiant license must communicate their desire to opt out of being issued a marriage officiant license through Total Notary Solution – Online Renewal & Profile Update Service. Once on the Total Notary Solution page, on the right side of the page, log in to your commission account using your first name, last name, date of birth and commission expiration date. Please review and update your commission information on file with our office first; you will then need to put a checkmark in the marriage officiant license field to opt out of being issued the license. Once you have updated your information, click continue at the bottom of the page to complete the update. You will receive confirmation of the changes on a confirmation page as well as by an email from cec.notaries@maine.gov.

There is no “opt in” required. On July 1, 2023, the Secretary of State will automatically issue a marriage officiant license to all active notaries public who are Maine residents and have not opted out of being issued the marriage officiant license.

No. Once a notary public opts out of being issued a marriage officiant license, you are not able to opt back in. Instead, if you later decide you want to be authorized to solemnize marriages, you will be required to submit a separate marriage officiant license application and pay the $25 application fee.

Please visit the Marriage Officiant License page of our website to obtain the Application for Marriage Officiant License. The application fee is $25. To be eligible you must:

• Be at least 18 years of age;
• Be a resident of this State
• Demonstrate an ability to read and write the English language; and
• Demonstrate an understanding of the laws and rules governing marriages (19-A M.R.S Chapter 23)

A “resident of this State” means having established a fixed and principal home in the State of Maine, to which the individual, whenever temporarily absent, intends to return.

Yes, an attorney admitted to the Maine Bar is permitted to solemnize marriages in Maine pursuant to 19-A M.R.S section 655. Attorneys do not have to apply for a marriage officiant license with the Secretary of State.

If you have not opted out of being issued the marriage officiant license, you have the authority to solemnize the marriage as a licensed marriage officiant on or after July 1, 2023. If the marriage license that was issued to the parties getting married still states “notary public”, strike out the words “notary public” and either type or print “licensed marriage officiant (Maine resident)” in black ink as shown in the example below in red.

Yes, after a marriage officiant license has been issued (after July 1, 2023), the licensee’s name, city or town of residence, contact telephone number, and email address will be posted on the Secretary of State’s publicly accessible website at https://www.maine.gov/sos/cec/notary/marriage/marriageofficiant.html.

A temporary registration certificate is available through the Data, Research and Vital Statistics (DRVS) office within the Department of Health and Human Services, for residents of another State who are already authorized under the laws of their State to solemnize marriages. More information on this temporary registration certificate and instructions may be found on the DRVS website.

Before any marriage is solemnized in the State of Maine, a marriage license must be obtained by the parties who intend to be married. Parties who reside in the State of Maine must obtain a marriage license from the Data, Research, and Vital Statistics (DRVS) office within the Department of Health and Human Services or the municipality in which they reside. Parties who live out of State may obtain the marriage license from DRVS or any municipality in the State of Maine.

It is the officiant’s responsibility to ensure the following items are completed on the marriage license before the marriage is solemnized:

• The marriage license has been signed and issued by the DRVS or a municipal clerk authorizing the marriage to take place (box 26).
• The marriage license has not expired (box 24).
• Both parties’ signatures and printed names are on the license (boxes 19 & 21). If the license has not been signed by the parties intending to marry, the officiant must obtain their signatures.

It is the officiant’s responsibility to ensure the following is completed on the marriage license after the marriage is solemnized:

• The date of marriage is the actual date the marriage was solemnized (box 28).
• The place and county are where the marriage took place (boxes 29-30).
• The officiant’s signature, title, and printed name (boxes 31-33).
• The officiant’s date of ordination, commission, or expiration (for licensed marriage officiants) (box 34).
• The officiant’s residence and mailing address (boxes 35-44).
• The signatures and printed names of both witnesses (boxes 45-48).

The marriage officiant must personally mail or bring the completed marriage license to the issuing authority specified in Box 27. Do not give the parties the completed license to file.

The issuing authority will review the completed marriage license for any errors or discrepancies and will sign in boxes 49 & 50. A marriage certificate may be obtained once the marriage license has been filed and registered in the Electronic Marriage Registration System (EMRS).

A marriage license is valid for 90 days from the date intentions are filed with the DRVS or municipal office. If the license is expired (item #24 on the marriage license), the parties must obtain a new license before the marriage ceremony can be performed.

If the parties to be married present you with a valid marriage license, then you can solemnize the marriage.

DRVS or a municipal office may issue a marriage license to parties under 18 years of age if the written consent of their parents, guardians, or persons to whom a court has given custody has been provided prior to the issuance of the marriage license. Marriages for parties under 16 years of age are not permitted.

No. Marriages by proxy or marriages performed via the internet are not permitted in the State of Maine. The officiant, both parties, and two witnesses must be physically present for the ceremony.

No. There is no age limit required for witnesses. However, the witnesses must be able to read, write and sign their names and understand the seriousness of what is being asked of them.

Yes, you may solemnize a marriage for a family member.

No. Any marriage license issued in the State of Maine is only valid for a marriage performed in the State of Maine.

No. You do not have the authority to solemnize a marriage if you do not have a marriage license that has been issued by the State of Maine.

Within 30 calendar days of the occurrence of any change to the licensee’s legal name, physical address, or contact information on file with the Secretary of State, the licensee must notify the Secretary of State of the change by submitting the Marriage Officiant Information Change form available on the Secretary of State’s website at www.maine.gov/sos/cec/notary/marriage/marriageofficiant.html.