VitalRecordsHub

Home/ North Dakota/ Marriage Licenses

Marriage license in North Dakota

Step-by-step guide to ordering a certified marriage license for an event that occurred in North Dakota.

Who issues marriage licenses in North Dakota

In North Dakota, marriage records are most commonly held by the county clerk of the county where the marriage license was issued. The North Dakota Department of Health, Division of Vital Records may keep a statewide index but typically refers requesters to the county for certified copies. To order, you must identify the county where the couple applied for the license — this is not necessarily the county where the ceremony was performed.

Use the county directory at the bottom of this page to jump to a county-specific guide. If you don't know the county, the state office can sometimes confirm one occurred and identify the filing jurisdiction in response to a written request.

State officeNorth Dakota Department of Health, Division of Vital Records
Address600 E. Boulevard Ave, Dept 301, Bismarck, ND 58505
Phone(701) 328-2360
Websitehttps://www.hhs.nd.gov/vital
Typical turnaround2-3 weeks by mail
Records since1907

Current fees

  • Birth records: $7
  • Death records: $5
  • Marriage records: $15
  • Divorce records: contact district court

Fees change. Always confirm the current amount on the official agency page before mailing payment. Most state offices accept money orders and cashier's checks; many accept credit cards for online and in-person orders.

Eligibility — who can order

Eligibility to order a certified marriage record varies by county within North Dakota, but commonly includes either spouse, the adult children of either spouse, parents, and a legal representative. Some counties make older marriage records publicly available; others restrict access for the lifetime of the spouses.

For a deeper comparison of acceptable photo-ID alternatives — particularly useful when an ID has expired or you have only secondary documents — see this independent ID-substitution checklist .

How to order

By mail

Download the office's application form from https://www.hhs.nd.gov/vital, complete it in full, attach a clear photocopy of an acceptable photo ID, and mail it with a money order or cashier's check for the fee to:

North Dakota Department of Health, Division of Vital Records
600 E. Boulevard Ave, Dept 301, Bismarck, ND 58505

Include a self-addressed stamped envelope only if the office's instructions request one; many offices use their own outbound mailing system at no extra cost.

In person

Most state vital records offices offer walk-in service during business hours at the address above. In-person service is the fastest mail-route alternative — often same-day. Bring an acceptable photo ID, the completed application, and the fee in cash or card (some offices do not accept personal checks at the counter).

Online

North Dakota partners with VitalChek as its approved online vendor for expedited orders. Online ordering adds a service fee on top of the state fee and a shipping charge for overnight delivery, but it can shave weeks off the wait when you need a record in a hurry. Always start at the official agency page (https://www.hhs.nd.gov/vital) and follow its link out to VitalChek; do not respond to unsolicited search ads from look-alike sites.

If you are gathering this marriage license as part of a larger genealogy project, this US family-history research walkthrough covers complementary record sets (census, military, immigration) that pair well with vital records.

Processing time

The published turnaround for standard mail orders to the North Dakota Department of Health, Division of Vital Records is 2-3 weeks by mail. Add 5-10 business days for delivery in each direction. In-person and approved online orders are almost always faster. If your need is urgent — a passport appointment, a closing date, an immigration filing — order in person if you can travel to the office, or use the approved online vendor with overnight delivery.

North Dakota counties — pick the right courthouse

Because marriage licenses in North Dakota are typically held at the county level, the right place to order is usually the county clerk or court that handled the original filing. Browse the largest counties below.

Don't pay twice. If a non-government search site asks for a fee just to "look up" a North Dakota marriage license, walk away. The fee schedule above is the only fee the issuing office charges, and it includes the search.