To become a wedding officiant in New Jersey, you need to fit into one of the categories authorized by N.J.S.A. 37:1-13: a member of the clergy of any religion, a civil celebrant certified by the Secretary of State, or a qualifying judicial or municipal official.1Justia Law. New Jersey Revised Statutes Title 37 – Authorization to Solemnize Marriages and Civil Unions For most people who want to officiate a friend’s or family member’s wedding, that means either getting ordained (including through an online ministry) or applying for civil celebrant certification. Once you have authority, your legal duties are narrow but real: conduct the ceremony, sign the certificate, and file it with the right registrar.
The Three Routes to Officiant Authority
New Jersey’s marriage statute lists specific people who may solemnize a marriage or civil union. The list breaks into three practical categories for someone deciding how to qualify.1Justia Law. New Jersey Revised Statutes Title 37 – Authorization to Solemnize Marriages and Civil Unions
Clergy
The statute authorizes “every member of the clergy of every religion” to perform marriages.1Justia Law. New Jersey Revised Statutes Title 37 – Authorization to Solemnize Marriages and Civil Unions That language is deliberately broad and covers ordained priests, ministers, rabbis, imams, and religious leaders of any tradition. New Jersey does not maintain a state registry of approved clergy, and there is no requirement to file your ordination credentials with a government office before performing a ceremony. Your ordination itself is your authority.
If you’re pursuing ordination through a traditional religious institution, the path varies widely by faith. Some denominations require years of seminary, supervised ministry, and formal examination. Others use shorter routes involving mentorship, community endorsement, or specific religious study. Once ordained, you don’t register with the state or obtain a separate license. Keep your ordination certificate on hand, and if your organization issues a letter of good standing, keep that too. A registrar may ask to see proof of your authority when you file paperwork.
The statute also allows “every religious society, institution or organization” in New Jersey to join people in marriage according to its own rules and customs.1Justia Law. New Jersey Revised Statutes Title 37 – Authorization to Solemnize Marriages and Civil Unions That accommodates faith traditions where the community conducts the ceremony collectively rather than through a single ordained officiant.
Civil Celebrant
This is the newest path and the most relevant one if you want a secular route without going through any religious ordination. Under a recent amendment to N.J.S.A. 37:1-13, New Jersey recognizes civil celebrants who are certified by the Secretary of State.1Justia Law. New Jersey Revised Statutes Title 37 – Authorization to Solemnize Marriages and Civil Unions Contact the New Jersey Secretary of State’s office directly for the current application process and any fees, since the program’s administrative details are still developing.
Judicial and Municipal Office
A wide range of officials have officiant authority by virtue of their office alone. That includes federal judges from the Third Circuit and federal district courts, U.S. magistrates, Superior Court and Tax Court judges (active, retired, or resigned in good standing), administrative law judges, municipal court judges, county surrogates, and county clerks. On the municipal side, mayors, former mayors no longer on the governing body, deputy mayors authorized by the current mayor, township committee chairs, and village presidents can all officiate.1Justia Law. New Jersey Revised Statutes Title 37 – Authorization to Solemnize Marriages and Civil Unions These officials don’t register separately or obtain extra credentials. Their authority runs with the office.
Getting Ordained Online
Online ordination through organizations like the Universal Life Church or American Marriage Ministries has become one of the most common ways people become officiants, and New Jersey’s statutory language generally accommodates it. The law authorizes “every member of the clergy of every religion” without specifying how the ordination must be obtained or imposing training minimums.1Justia Law. New Jersey Revised Statutes Title 37 – Authorization to Solemnize Marriages and Civil Unions New Jersey does not explicitly prohibit online ordinations, and many weddings are performed this way every year.
A few practical steps prevent problems on wedding day. Keep a copy of your ordination certificate, and if your ordaining organization offers a credential letter or letter of good standing, request one before the ceremony. Some county registrars are more familiar with online ordination than others, so having documentation ready avoids delays when you file the marriage certificate.
The safest move is to call the registrar’s office in the municipality where the ceremony will take place before the wedding day. Ask whether they accept marriages solemnized by online-ordained clergy and whether they want to see specific documentation. A five-minute phone call can spare a couple real anxiety on one of the biggest days of their lives. If you’d rather sidestep any question about online ordination entirely, the civil celebrant certification through the Secretary of State offers a fully secular alternative.
What You Do During the Ceremony
New Jersey law does not prescribe a script or required words for a marriage ceremony. There is no mandatory formula, and no legal requirement for vows, ring exchanges, or readings. The legal substance is simple: the couple must express their intent to marry each other in front of the officiant and witnesses. Everything else about the ceremony’s content is up to the couple and the officiant.
The marriage certificate must include the signature and residence of at least two witnesses who were present at the ceremony.2New Jersey Legislature. Bill S4167 – Section 37-1-17 Witnesses must be of legal age. New Jersey doesn’t require witnesses to have any particular relationship to the couple. Confirm in advance that the couple has arranged their witnesses. Elopements are where officiants get caught by this.
After the ceremony, fill out and sign the marriage certificate. Check every field before anyone signs: names, date, location, and the signatures of both spouses and the witnesses. Errors on this document cause headaches later when the couple needs certified copies for name changes, insurance, immigration, or anything else.
Filing the License After the Wedding
This is where your responsibilities as officiant become most concrete. You must file the completed marriage license and certificate with the registrar of the municipality where the ceremony was performed.3New Jersey Department of Health. Entering Into a Marriage or Civil Union in New Jersey New Jersey municipal guidance generally indicates this must happen within five business days of the ceremony.
Failing to file the certificate does not automatically invalidate the marriage, but it can create serious problems down the road. The state’s own guidance notes that failure to record the certificate “may cause considerable inconvenience at a later date when proof of certificate is needed.”3New Jersey Department of Health. Entering Into a Marriage or Civil Union in New Jersey Consider what a couple actually needs a marriage certificate for: health insurance, tax filings, property purchases, immigration petitions. An unrecorded marriage creates obstacles at every turn. File promptly and confirm with the registrar that the filing was accepted.
The couple, not you, handles the license application beforehand. But it helps to know how the process works so you can guide them. They apply at the registrar’s office where either person lives, or where the ceremony will take place if both live outside New Jersey. The fee is $28, and there is a mandatory 72-hour waiting period after filing before the license is issued. Once issued, the license is valid for six months.4Department of Health. Marriage License Remind your couple to apply early enough to clear the waiting period but not so far in advance that the license risks expiring.
If You Live Out of State
If you are ordained or authorized in another state and want to officiate a wedding in New Jersey, your authority still has to fit under New Jersey law. The statute does not include a residency requirement for clergy, so if you qualify as a “member of the clergy” under the statute’s broad language, you can perform a ceremony in New Jersey regardless of where you live.1Justia Law. New Jersey Revised Statutes Title 37 – Authorization to Solemnize Marriages and Civil Unions Civil officials derive authority from a specific office and generally cannot officiate outside their jurisdiction.
The reverse also matters. If you become an officiant in New Jersey and want to perform a wedding elsewhere, check that state’s rules separately. Some states require out-of-state officiants to register or obtain a temporary certificate. A New Jersey ordination or civil celebrant certification does not transfer nationwide automatically.
What New Jersey Does Not Offer
Unlike some states, New Jersey does not offer a one-day or temporary officiant designation that would let an otherwise unauthorized person perform a single ceremony. If a couple wants a specific friend or family member to officiate, that person needs to obtain actual authority through one of the paths above, whether that’s online ordination, civil celebrant certification, or another qualifying route. New Jersey also does not appear to recognize self-uniting marriages where the couple marries themselves without an officiant, since the statute requires an authorized person to solemnize the union.