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Marriage Licence Paperwork - Making it Official
Getting married in the US Virgin Islands is easy with minimal paperwork.  You will not need a blood test or a physical. If you are already married (vow re-newal) or if this a commitment ceremony then you do not need to follow these procedures. The cost for a marriage license is $200.

Court house hours:
Note before you reserve that you will need to go to the court house before your wedding once on island. The court house hours are as follows:.


Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm
Saturday 10am to noon.
Sunday 9:30am to 11am.
Holidays - varies - need to call to verify.


Note that there is an extra $150 court house fee for going to the court house on a holiday or Sunday.

STEP ONE - Court House Paperwork

Download, fill out, and mail forms along with a $200 certified check or money order to the court (no personal checks accepted) made out to the "Superior Court of the Virgin Islands".
Download the Marriage License and application forms and fill them out (below).
You will need to have this paperwork in the court house at least 8 business days before your wedding date. It is good to mail the paperwork in the months ahead of time.

Application Form and Marriage Licence in Microsoft Excel format

In Adobe Acrobat Format ..

Application for marriage license - See sample marriage application filled out.
License & certificate of marriage - See sample licence certificate filled out.
Instructions on filling out your marriage licence & application.
download acrobat reader

They must be typed or in extremely legible neat print (no cursive). Can be typed on our on line form.

If you are divorced you need to send your most recent Certified Divorce Decree in English (with a raised seal or stamped certified copy) signed by the judge from the court in which you were divorced (not just a notarized copy). Your divorce must be final and dated thirty days  prior to your wedding date if contested or by default.  No exceptions.  If either spouse is widowed, you will  need a certified, stamped copy of your spouse's death certificate. 


After completion mail them, along with a $200 certified check or money order made out to the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands. If you are from Canada make sure your money order is from a bank and not the post office or it will be sent back.

Send
by Priority Mail - get tracking but not signature confirmation (no one will be there to sign and it will come back to you).

MAIL TO:
Superior Court of the Virgin Islands
P.O. Box 70
St. Thomas, USVI 00804


If you are cutting it close to the date and want to send it Express or Fed Express then use the address below. You can get tracking and/or signature confirmation.

Superior Court of the Virgin Islands
5400 Veterans Drive
St. Thomas, USVI 00802


STEP TWO- Call Court House
 

After you mail your forms to the court house then keep an eye on the tracking to see when it arrives. Once you see that it did arrive then call the court house at 340-774-6680 ( ext 6207 or ask for marriage licence department) to verify that your paperwork has arrived and that everything is in order. It is best to call in the afternoon when they are less busy.

To get better service always start your phone conversation with "good morning" or "good afternoon" - this is a local custom that you will find useful on St. Thomas before handling any business (ie talking to a local sales clerk, ordering a burger, getting into a taxi).

Also ask them for the ref # for your marriage license - write this down as you will need it when you go to the court house when you get on island. If they have not assigned a ref # at the time of your call ask them when you should call them back for it.

Also verify if your wedding date falls on a government holiday or a Virgin Island holiday. If it does ask for special instructions.

After the completed Marriage Licence and application is received via mail in the island courts, there is a  required eight-day waiting period before you are allowed to get married.  This rule can be waived if you ask.


STEP THREE- Once on St. Thomas go to the court house before your wedding
 

Once you arrive on St. Thomas a quick trip to the courthouse is required to pick up your marriage license in person. 

Important to know before you go to the court house:
If you are coming by cruise ship note that SOME cruise ships do not change their clocks to our time zone. Please ask your cruise ship to verify St. Thomas' time in relation to your cruise ship time. Otherwise you could think you are getting off the ship at 9am to find that it is 10am on St. Thomas! This is applicable fall to spring (end of Oct to end of March) when we are one hour ahead of the US East Coast. From spring to fall we are on the same time as the US East Coast.
Remember to say" good morning" or "good afternoon" before getting into business.
Please note that this is a court house and you should be dressed appropriately.
No swim wear, short shorts, tank tops, or bare feet. Casual wear such as shorts & skirts are fine as long as they are at appropriate lengths.
You will both need to be present and bring your photo IDs and your ref number.

They will ask you for the name of your minister and the minister's church affiliation. We will send you an e-mail a few weeks before your wedding with this information. If we have not given this to you then send us an e-mail and ask.

If you are staying on island then you can pick up your paperwork the days before your wedding date to get this out of the way. If you are only here for one day then you will need to stop by the court house right before your ceremony.


STEP FOUR - Get Married
 

After your stop to the court house then you can get married! After your ceremony your minister & witnesses will sign your papers. One of the signed papers needs to be returned to the court house. It is recommended that you go back to the court house after the ceremony to get your final paperwork. Your minister can do this for you for an extra $35 but you will have to wait a few weeks to get your final paperwork in the mail.
Bring your rings, paperwork, and balance due for services in cash or travelers checks only on location.
The minister will use the ceremony on the ceremony page unless directed otherwise in advance.
Do not over dress! It is the tropics - full black tuxes will be unbearably hot.
Gratuities for services - i.e. minister/photographer/captain are not required but appreciated.
(15% is customary)
After the ceremony your minister and two witnesses will sign your paperwork.
If it is just the two of you don't worry about the witnesses. We can have your driver ,or photographer or there is always a couple near by who are more than happy to sign off on the paperwork.

 

STEP FIVE - After your wedding return signed papers back to court house. 
 

After your ceremony you will need to go back to the court house to drop off your signed paperwork. If you are staying on island then you can do this days after the ceremony. Your minister can drop off the paperwork afterwards for you for an extra handling fee of $35. If you do it yourself you will walk off the island with your final papers. If your minister handles the paperwork then you will have to wait 2 to 3 weeks for the final papers to arrive in the mail. Another option is to mail it in. If you are getting married on a weekend or holiday you may not have the option to go back to the court house as it may be closed.

If you are not from the US you will need to check with courts with regards to special requirements for your country. Usually you will need an Apostile. You can either take care of getting it right after getting your final certified copy of your licence OR you can mail it up to two weeks afterwards (Lt. Governors, #18 Kongens Gade, St. Thomas, VI 00802). The fees and requirements are different for each country (usually around $25). Call 340-774-2991 and ask for the "Apostile department" for special instructions regarding your country.

STEP SIX - You are married! Live happily ever after!


Weddings by Sea, St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands

married@weddingsbysea.com