Family

Las Vegas marriage certificate: license, ceremony, and copies

A Las Vegas marriage certificate is the record that you were married. It is not the same as the marriage license. The license comes first, from the county clerk. The certificate is signed at the ceremony, then filed with the county. The copy you need for a name change, a benefit or a visa is a certified copy of that filed certificate. Here is how each step works under Nevada law.

The steps, in order

1. Get the marriage license. You need one from the county clerk of any Nevada county before you can marry (NRS 122.040(1)). In Clark County the county seat is the City of Las Vegas (NRS 243.040). The license is issued there, or at one of up to five branch offices that a county of 700,000 or more may set up (NRS 122.040(1)(a)).

2. Bring proof of name and age. The clerk accepts, among others, a driver's license, ID card or permit from any state; a passport; a military ID; a green card or naturalization certificate; or a birth certificate plus a photo ID. If you clearly look over 25, proof of age isn't required (NRS 122.040(2)). The license shows your name as it appears on the document you bring (NRS 122.050).

3. Answer the questions under oath. Each of you answers the license questions and gives a Social Security number. If you don't have one, you say so. The clerk can't refuse you for that, or because you don't know your parents' details (NRS 122.040(3)). A false statement is a gross misdemeanor (NRS 122.200).

4. Hold the ceremony. No set wording is required. You both declare that you take each other as spouses, in front of the officiant and at least one other witness (NRS 122.110). The officiant must see your license first (NRS 122.220).

5. The officiant files the certificate. Within 10 days, the person who married you must deliver the signed original certificate to the county (NRS 122.130(1)). Not doing so is a misdemeanor for the officiant (NRS 122.230). At the ceremony, you get an uncertified copy (NRS 122.120(1)).

6. Order certified copies. The certified copy of the filed record is what courts and agencies accept as proof of the marriage (NRS 122.030(2)).

Who can marry in Nevada

Two people of any gender, both at least 18, not married to anyone else, and not more closely related than second cousins or half-cousins (NRS 122.020(1)). A 17-year-old can marry only with a parent's or guardian's consent and a district court order, which needs extraordinary circumstances and both parties living in Nevada (NRS 122.025). Consent alone is not a marriage. There must be a ceremony (NRS 122.010).

Deadlines and limits Nevada law sets

Situation	What the law says	Source
Using the license	It expires 1 year after it is issued	NRS 122.040(7)
Officiant files the signed certificate	Within 10 days of the wedding	NRS 122.130(1)
Clerk's office hours for licenses, county of 100,000 or more	8 a.m. to midnight every day, holidays included, unless the county commission approves a different plan	NRS 122.061(1), (3)
Clerk reviewing a certificate filed with it	May refuse within 2 judicial days if it is unauthorized or falsified; otherwise must file it	NRS 246.120(1)

Read 2026-11-03 off the Nevada Revised Statutes: chapter 122 revision stamped 9/9/2026 (2026R1), chapters 243 and 246 stamped 4/15/2026 (2025).

What the law charges

Item	Statutory amount	Source
Marriage license	$21 clerk's fee, plus $10 for filing the certificate, $4 for the State and $50 for the victims of domestic or sexual violence account: $85. A county may add up to $3 more, and another fee if it passes one	NRS 122.060, 246.180(2)
Civil ceremony by the commissioner of civil marriages	$70, plus $5 for the victims account	NRS 122.181
Certified copy of the certificate, where the clerk keeps them	$10, plus $5 for the victims account	NRS 246.180(1)(c), (e)
Certified abstract instead of a full copy	$10, plus $5	NRS 246.170, 246.180(1)(d), (e)
Plain copy	$1 a page	NRS 246.180(1)(b)
Correcting a mistake on the license or certificate	Up to $25 for the affidavit, free if the clerk made the error. A filing fee applies to the corrected certificate	NRS 122.045, 122.135
Officiant lost the certificate before filing	Up to $15, charged to the officiant, for a replacement	NRS 122.130(2)

These are the amounts in the statute. Clerk's office administrative fees are separate (NRS 122.060(5)), so the counter total can be higher. Copy fees in NRS 246.180 apply where the county commission has passed an ordinance under NRS 246.100 to have certificates filed with the clerk. Otherwise the county recorder keeps them and charges its own fees. Check the county's posted total before you go.

Who keeps the record: clerk or recorder

The county recorder records marriage certificates, unless the county has passed an ordinance to have them filed with the county clerk instead. Only a county of 700,000 or more may pass one (NRS 246.100, NRS 122.130(1)). Either way, the record is kept in a book for that purpose (NRS 122.130(3)). Records about marriage licenses are public records (NRS 122.040(6)). Ask for the certified copy from whichever office keeps it in the county where your license was issued.

If something is wrong or missing

A typo or wrong date. The clerk or recorder prepares an affidavit of correction. It is free if the only errors were the clerk's (NRS 122.045, 122.135).

Your name changed later by court order. The clerk of the county that issued the license issues an amended certificate when you bring a certified copy of the certificate, a certified copy of the order, and a notarized affidavit the clerk prepares, plus the fees. The affidavit is up to $25 (NRS 122.137).

The record is lost and can't be found. A married couple may marry each other again. The new certificate says it replaces the lost record (NRS 122.020(2), 122.120(2)).

Your officiant never filed it. That is a misdemeanor for the officiant (NRS 122.230). Contact the officiant first, then the office that keeps the records.

Good to know

Order more than one certified copy. The DMV, Social Security, your bank and your employer may each want one. To change your last name after the wedding, see changing name after marriage in Nevada.

This page is general information, not legal advice. For office locations, hours, the exact total and how to order copies, check with the Clark County Clerk or Recorder directly. Call 211 if you need help.