Marriage Intentions, Licenses, and Certificates
Intentions of Marriage
Massachusetts General Laws require that the two parties must appear together in person at the Town Clerk's Office in order to obtain a marriage license, except in special circumstances as detailed below. You must also be at least eighteen years old, not related to the other party, and not currently married. If you would like to file your intentions to be married in the Town of Hanover, you and/or your fiance need to live in Hanover, or need to have previously lived in Hanover and no longer live in Massachusetts. Once you file your intentions in Hanover, you can be married anywhere in the Commonwealth. An appointment is required because the initial process takes 20 - 30 minutes; please call ahead (leave a message if no one picks up). The two parties to the marriage will be asked to complete and sign under oath a Notice of Intention of Marriage. Among other details in the Intention of Marriage, information that is essential to completing the forms includes your social security number, your place of birth and your parents' complete birth names. Blood tests are no longer required in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Massachusetts does however require a mandatory three day waiting period from the time the intention is filed before a license can be issued; Saturdays, Sundays and holidays are included in the three days. So, if you are getting married on a Saturday, the Tuesday prior is the last day to file your intentions. A waiver from this waiting period may be obtained from the courts if you are applying for a license after the three days prior to the wedding.
Exceptions to both parties appearing in person exist due to special circumstances: If a person is in the military, intentions may be filed by either party, providing one is a Massachusetts resident. If a person is incarcerated in a state or a county house of correction facility, hospitalized or otherwise unable to come to town hall due to medical reasons attested to by a physician, intentions may be filed by either party.
Marriage Licenses
After the three day waiting period, one of the parties to the marriage must pick up the license from the Town Clerk’s Office. It is important that it is checked for spelling, typos, etc. at this stage! A marriage license must be used for a ceremony in Massachusetts within sixty days from the date of filing the Intention of Marriage. The solemnizer (member of the clergy, Justice of the Peace, etc.) who performs the ceremony must sign the license after the ceremony and return it to the Town Clerk's Office. If the solemnizer is a "One Day Solemnizer", the original certificate from the Secretary of the Commonwealth must also be submitted to the Town Clerk's Office after the ceremony.
Marriage Certificates (1925 - Present)
After a couple has been married and the license is returned to the Town Clerk’s Office by the solemnizer, the Town Clerk records and registers the marriage. The couple receives a certified copy of the marriage certificate in the mail from the Town Clerk’s Office and a certified copy is also kept on file in the Hanover Town Hall. The original copy is sent to the Registry of Vital Records.
Marriage Certificate Request
If you previously filed your intentions to be married in the Hanover Town Clerk's Office and would like a certified copy of your marriage license/certificate, please submit a Marriage Certificate Request. We strive for same day turnaround of your request, but please note that sometimes it may take up to 10 days to process. If you need immediate access to your marriage record, the Registry of Vital Records can provide you with a certified copy if you order on-line and pay an additional fee. The Registry of Vital Records office can also provide in-person service at 150 Mt. Vernon Street, Dorchester, MA, 02125.
Records Prior to 1925
Please refer to our Genealogical Research for records prior to 1925.
Fees
- Marriage Intention, License and Certificate - $40
- Marriage Certificate for Previously Recorded and Registered Marriage - $10