Marriage License and Certificates

Marriage Intentions | License Application

• Complete and email your completed Notice of Intention of Marriage Form to clerks@cityofmelrose.org.  Notice of Intention forms may be accessed here.  If this is not your first marriage please complete the applicable section and verify the 90-day divorce finalization period has passed uncontested.

• Upon receipt, the clerks office will contact you to arrange an appointment for both parties to visit the office (except in cases where one person is in the military or is incarcerated) to carefully review the prepared legal documents, provide signatures, take an oath and submit a filing payment of $35.00.  Cash, check, credit and money order are accepted.  The appointment takes approximately 15 minutes.  

• Name, Current Address, Birth Date, Birth City and State
• Social Security Number, Occupation
• Names of each party’s parents, including their last names at birth
• Intended date of marriage
• Name and address of church or facility
• Name and home address of officiator
• If a one-day solemnizer is officiating, the City Clerk’s Office must receive a copy of the Solemnization Certificate ten (10) days before the marriage ceremony. It may be faxed to (781) 979-4149 or emailed to clerks@cityofmelrose.org. 

*IMPORTANT INFORMATION: There is a 3-day mandatory wait period between the date/time the intention is filed with our office and when the license may be issued.   Also the Notice of Intention of Marriage may be filed no more than 60 days before the marriage is to take place and will become void if not used within those 60 days.  *Please keep these timeframes in mind when planning your marriage.

If one or both of the party is under 18

You must go to court and obtain a court order to marry.

If the wedding is scheduled less than three days from the Date of the License Application

You must go to court and obtain a court order to waive the three-day waiting period.

No residency requirement

According to Massachusetts State Law there is no residency requirement for either party. You may file your Intentions in any City or Town in the Commonwealth - it does not have to be from the town where you live or where your ceremony takes place.   The town or city hall where you file your Intention Form is where your license is kept on file as well as the State Registry of Vital Records and Statistics.

Marriages at City Hall

The City Clerk is a Justice of the Peace is available to perform marriage ceremonies during regular city hall hours. Please inquire at the clerk's office for more information or email clerks@cityofmelrose.org.

 After your ceremony (outside City Hall)

Your officiant will sign and return the Notice of Intention of Marriage within 10 days of your ceremony to be registered with the state.  Copies of your certified marriage certificate may then be obtained.

Marriage Certificates

Fee: $20.00.Order a copy online-- All online orders are generally processed within 72 business hours prior to mailing. 

Obtain a copy in person:

Provide cash, check or money orders payable to the City of Melrose.
Fee: $18.00 per certified copy.

Obtain a copy by mail

• Send names and date of marriage
• Stamped self-addressed envelope
• A check/money order payable to the city of Melrose
  • City Clerk’s Office
    Melrose City Hall
    562 Main Street
    Melrose, MA 02176

Fee: $20.00 per certified copy.

Marriage Certificate Request Paper Form

Records may also be obtained at

State Department of Vital Statistics
Registry of Vital Records and Statistics
150 Mt. Vernon Street, 1st Floor
Dorchester, MA 02125-3105
Tel: (617) 740-2606