Get your certified Michigan Marriage Certificate

MDHHS takes online and phone orders through its own authorized online provider. VRO is an independent preparation service: we prepare your application and send it to MDHHS by mail on your behalf. You will need to provide the names of both spouses and the date and county of the marriage.

A marriage license is the document you obtain before your wedding that legally authorizes you to marry in Michigan. A marriage certificate is the official record proving your marriage took place. After your ceremony, the officiant signs the license and returns it to the appropriate office for filing. Once recorded, it becomes the official marriage certificate. You need the certificate for legal purposes like name changes, insurance benefits, tax filing, and immigration applications.

You can obtain a certified copy of a Michigan marriage certificate from MDHHS in Lansing (by mail, drop box, or in person by appointment), from the county clerk where the marriage license was issued, or through VRO, which prepares your application and files it with MDHHS for you. MDHHS currently quotes 10 to 12 weeks for regular mail-in requests and 8 to 10 weeks with rush processing ($12); in-person appointments are usually completed the same day.

MDHHS charges $34 for the first certified copy of a Michigan marriage certificate, with additional copies of the same record costing $16 each when ordered at the same time. Rush processing is $12 more. County clerks set their own fees. If you order through VRO, our service fee starts at $19 on top of the state fee.

Yes. Michigan marriage records are not restricted, so anyone who can provide the names, date and county of the marriage can request a certified copy. No notarized affidavit, sworn statement or power of attorney is needed. The only exception is a probate-court confidential marriage, which MDHHS releases only to the bride or groom.

Yes, at the state level Michigan marriage records are not restricted. MDHHS issues certified copies to anyone who requests them and does not require a photo ID. The exception is a probate-court confidential marriage, which is available only to the bride or groom. Marriage records are on file with MDHHS from 1867 to the present.

Not immediately. After the ceremony, the officiant must return the completed record to the county clerk, and the clerk must file it before a certified copy can be issued. The county then forwards a copy to MDHHS. If you married recently, order your certified copy from the county clerk in the county that issued your license.

If you lose your marriage certificate:

1. Submit an application for a certified replacement copy in person by appointment, through the drop box, by mail, or online through VRO. You will need to complete the application, sign it by hand, and pay the fees set by MDHHS-DVRHS.
2. 1. For in-person applications: Bring the completed application to your appointment at MDHHS in Lansing (Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm), or to the county clerk where the license was issued.
   2. For applying by mail: Send your application and a check or money order payable to "State of Michigan" to MDHHS-DVRHS at:
      Standard Mail:
      Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
      Division for Vital Records and Health Statistics,
      Vital Records Requests,
      P.O. Box 30721
      Lansing, MI 48909
      
      Rush Mail ($12 rush fee):
      Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
      Division for Vital Records and Health Statistics,
      Vital Records RUSH,
      P.O. Box 30721
      Lansing, MI 48909
      
   3. For online submissions: Complete the application and upload your ID through the VRO website (payable by credit card online). We mail you the prepared application to sign, you return it to VRO, and we send it to MDHHS.
3. MDHHS-DVRHS will mail the certified copy(s) after processing.

MDHHS does not correct marriage records. To fix an error on a Michigan marriage record, such as a misspelled name or a wrong date, contact the County Clerk in the county where the marriage license was issued. The county clerk handles the correction and forwards the corrected record to the state.

In general, the county clerk will ask for:

1. A completed correction request on the county's form
2. Documents that show the correct information
3. The county's fee

Once the county has corrected the record, you can order an updated certified copy from the county clerk or from MDHHS.

You need an apostille when you file documents with a foreign government. It is a special certificate that verifies the authenticity of vital records for international use and is accepted in countries that are part of the Hague Convention. In Michigan, apostilles are issued by the Michigan Department of State, Office of the Great Seal. You can request one yourself, or have VRO obtain it for you.

VRO's apostille service costs $49 (plus government fees). We obtain the certified copy and the apostille on your behalf.

For simultaneous requests, MDHHS sells an authenticated (apostilled) copy in one request with the Application for Apostilled/Authenticated Copy: $42, $26 for each additional apostilled copy, and $25 more for rush processing. MDHHS sends the record to the Office of the Great Seal for you; the country of use is required.

To request an apostille yourself by mail, you will need to provide the following:

1. Completed and signed Authentication Request Form
2. A certified Michigan marriage certificate issued within the last 15 years
3. $1.00 per document, by money order or check made payable to the State of Michigan
4. Self-addressed and stamped return envelope or prepaid air bill sent by a service such as FedEx, UPS, USPS Priority, or USPS. (If sending with a courier service, you must list yourself as the sender and receiver on the courier return air bill.)

Mail or courier your request to the Office of the Great Seal:

In person, the Office of the Great Seal serves requests by appointment only on Mondays and Wednesdays from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Richard H. Austin Building, 430 W. Allegan St., Lansing, and at select Secretary of State branch offices. The Department of State says turnaround is 1 to 2 weeks.