Illinois Remote Marriage Ceremony Requirements
If you are planning to officiate a wedding in Illinois, check out our page Get Ordained in Illinois.
If you are planning to officiate a wedding in Illinois, check out our page Get Ordained in Illinois.
Illinois only allows online wedding and civil union ceremonies if an authorized clerk hosts them through the official Cook County office. Couples can book a virtual wedding through the Circuit Court of Cook County office; scheduling your appointment must be done over the phone.
A private wedding officiant cannot perform an online wedding ceremony in Illinois. If you hire a professional wedding officiant, or have a friend officiate your wedding, you and your partner must be physically present at the ceremony along with your officiant.
If you're interested in getting married online over video-conference with the officiant of your choice, consider applying for your marriage license remotely through the Utah marriage bureau instead: How to Get Married in an Online Wedding Ceremony in Utah. You can attend this remote ceremony from anywhere in the world, including from your living room in Illinois!
Some larger County Clerk offices in Illinois do allow couples to submit their civil union or marriage license application online to begin the process, including the Peoria County Clerk, Cook County Clerk, DuPage County Clerk, and Will County Clerk. However, all couples must also visit the clerk's office in person to complete the application process and receive their license. Most offices require an appointment to issue a marriage license.
Remember that you must apply for your marriage license in the same county where you plan to have your wedding. This does not have to be the county you live in though, and you do not need to be a state resident to apply.
Not sure which county your wedding venue is in? This resource tells you how to find out using a simple USPS tool: How to Find Out What County a Wedding Venue is In
For more information on getting married in Illinois, review these helpful resources:
Online weddings, livestream weddings, and small in-person guest lists have become a normal part of life, but it wasn't always this way! During the COVID-19 pandemic, the technology was new and evolved quickly, because the only way for many guests to attend a wedding to join remotely using a computer, tablet, or smartphone.
If you're considering an online wedding, a tiny elopement with just you and your officiant, or even a 'just us' elopement, remember that Illinois marriage laws regulate who must be in attendance at your ceremony, and how the ceremony is conducted. Here are some options to help adapt your wedding plans in Illinois to celebrate.
For the sake of clarity, we differentiate between a virtual wedding and a livestream wedding by who is in attendance and how they are conducted:
If the wedding officiant and couple are in separate physical locations, and the officiant performs the ceremony over video-conference technology (like Zoom, Google Meet, etc), then we call that a "virtual wedding." You might also hear it called a "Zoom wedding," "online wedding," or "remote marriage ceremony." Guests may or may not attend these ceremonies (either seated around the couple or joining remotely as well), depending on the couple's preferences.
If the couple and the wedding officiant are in the same physical location during the ceremony, but some or all of the guests are watching the wedding remotely (online), we call that a livestream wedding. You may also hear this referred to as a "hybrid wedding." In this case, the marriage ceremony itself is happening in one physical place, and it's being livestreamed out to guests.
You can read more about what distinguishes each option here.
(Keep in mind that metaverse weddings and getting married in a video game are a separate category of tech-wedding altogether, and are strictly symbolic. They must be combined with a traditional ceremony to meet legal requirements.)
You can livestream any activity or event, and it doesn't matter where you are in Illinois, what you're doing or how many people are physically present with you. Some of the most popular platforms include Zoom, Google Meet, Facebook Live, and Instagram Live.
If you want to host your own livestream, all you really need is a tripod and a phone with a good camera on it; your guests will be able to participate remotely and enjoy every part of your ceremony. Most platforms allow guests to comment, chat, react, and interact in a number of ways.
Many wedding professionals have also expanded their offerings in recent years to include wedding livestreaming services. For some couples, having a professional videographer or wedding content creator running things is well worth the extra money.
Both virtual weddings and livestream weddings are a creative way to have friends and family join the ceremony at no cost from anywhere in the world. For many couples, this technology has completely changed the way they celebrate love!
Ready for more online wedding inspiration? Check out:
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