California Marriage and Divorce Records: Copies, Decrees, Corrections

To obtain California marriage and divorce records, you go to two different places. A certified marriage certificate comes from the County Recorder or County Clerk in the county that issued the license, or from the California Department of Public Health, Vital Records division (CDPH-VR), for $19 per copy. A divorce decree is a court document, so it comes from the Superior Court in the county where the dissolution was filed, at $15 for a certified copy under the statewide civil fee schedule.¹

Getting a Marriage Certificate

The fastest route is the County Recorder or County Clerk in the county where the marriage license was originally issued. Some county offices process in-person requests the same day, and all of them accept mailed requests. If you don’t know which county issued the license, use the state.

CDPH-VR is the state-level alternative. It can issue certified copies of public marriage certificates for marriages that occurred between 1905 and 1999, and between 2008 and 2023.² Anything outside those windows must come from the county.

To order from CDPH-VR, send in application form VS 113-A with a $19 check or money order per copy, payable to “CDPH-VR.”³ Cash is not accepted. Processing times shift, so check the CDPH-VR processing times page before you mail anything.

Authorized vs. Informational Copies

California issues two versions of the same record, and choosing the wrong one can waste weeks. An Authorized Certified Copy works for legal purposes: passports, driver’s license renewals, insurance claims. An Informational Certified Copy carries the same data but is stamped “INFORMATIONAL, NOT A VALID DOCUMENT TO ESTABLISH IDENTITY,” and no government agency will accept it as proof of identity.⁴

Only an “authorized person” under Health and Safety Code Section 103526 can get the Authorized version. For a public marriage record, that includes either spouse, their close family (parent, legal guardian, child, grandparent, grandchild, sibling), a spouse or domestic partner, an attorney representing the registrant or their estate, law enforcement or government officials on official business, and court-appointed representatives.⁴ Anyone outside that list can still request a copy and will receive the Informational version.

Ordering an Authorized Copy by mail adds one step: you must include a notarized sworn statement signed under penalty of perjury declaring that you are an authorized person and explaining your relationship to the registrant. In person, you skip the notarization but still sign a sworn statement at the counter and present a valid photo ID.

Confidential Marriage Certificates Follow Different Rules

California recognizes a second type of marriage license called a confidential marriage, and it is not a niche category. If your marriage was recorded as confidential, most of what you just read does not apply.

Under Family Code Section 511, confidential marriage certificates are permanent records held by the county clerk but closed to public inspection. Only the two spouses named on the certificate can obtain a copy. Anyone else, including family members and attorneys who would qualify for a public record, needs a court order showing good cause.⁵ The county clerk can confirm that the marriage exists but cannot disclose the date or any other details without that order. Health and Safety Code Section 103526 restates the limit: for confidential marriages, the only authorized persons are the spouses themselves.⁴

Corrections to a confidential marriage record also stay at the county level. CDPH-VR does not handle them.⁶

Getting a Divorce Decree

Divorce records are court files, not vital records. The County Recorder does not have them. To get the judgment that ended the marriage, contact the records department of the Superior Court in the county where the case was filed.

A certified copy of a dissolution record costs $15 under California’s statewide civil fee schedule.¹ You will need the case number. If you have it, most courts accept a written request by mail listing the case number, the names of the parties, and the approximate filing date; some post their own request forms online. Payment methods differ by county, so confirm what the court accepts before mailing a check. Individual courts may add per-page copying charges.

If you don’t have the case number, the court clerk can run a name-based search for a fee.

The Narrow State-Level Divorce Record

CDPH-VR keeps divorce records only for dissolutions filed between 1962 and June 1984, and what it issues is not the decree. It is a “Certificate of Record,” a face sheet showing the parties’ names, the filing date, the county, and the case number.⁷ That’s useful for tracking down a case file from that era, but nothing in it tells you how property was divided or what custody arrangements were made. For the actual judgment, you still have to go to the Superior Court.

Ordering Online

CDPH-VR does not run its own online ordering portal. It works with third-party vendors, including VitalChek, that transmit your application electronically to CDPH-VR or to a county office.⁸ The certificate itself is still printed and mailed by the government office.

Vendors charge a processing fee on top of the $19 CDPH-VR fee, so the total runs higher than a paper application. In exchange, you can pay by credit card and the electronic handoff can speed up the front end, though the government office’s own turnaround still applies. Some county recorder offices accept online orders through their own sites or through VitalChek with similar surcharges.

Fixing an Error on a Marriage Record

Misspelled names, wrong birth dates, and blank fields cause real trouble when you later try to use the certificate for a passport or benefits claim. For public marriage records, CDPH-VR handles amendments by mail using form VS 24C. That form covers typographical or spelling errors on either spouse’s name, blank fields that should have been filled in, court-ordered name changes for either spouse, and gender designation changes to reflect gender identity.⁶ CDPH-VR will contact you if it needs more documentation. Check the current amendment fee on the CDPH-VR fees page before you submit.

Confidential marriage records go through the county clerk in the issuing county, not CDPH-VR.⁶

Using a California Record Abroad

Foreign governments will usually ask for an apostille, a certificate from the California Secretary of State authenticating the document. This comes up with spouse visas, registering a marriage abroad, and international estate matters.

The Secretary of State charges $20 per apostille. In-person requests add a $6 special handling fee for each public official’s signature being authenticated; that surcharge does not apply to mailed requests.⁹ You must send the original certified copy, not a photocopy. If the document needs to be notarized, do that before it reaches the Secretary of State. You do not need to be related to the person named in the record to request the apostille on their behalf.

Budget for two steps. A marriage certificate with an apostille runs at least $39 by mail: $19 for the CDPH-VR certified copy plus $20 for the apostille, before postage and any notarization fees.

1
Judicial Council of California. Superior Court of California Statewide Civil Fee Schedule
2
California Department of Public Health. How to Obtain a Certified Copy of a Marriage Record
3
California Department of Public Health. Vital Records Obtaining Certified Copies of Marriage Records
4
California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code 103526
5
Justia Law. California Family Code 500-511
6
California Department of Public Health. Amending a California Marriage Record
7
California Department of Public Health. Vital Records Obtaining Certified Copies of Divorce Records
8
California Department of Public Health. Obtaining Certified Copies Online
9
California Secretary of State. Apostille Frequently Asked Questions