Asked to officiate a wedding in West Virginia? Check out these 10 must-know officiant registration facts before officiating a wedding in West Virginia. We cover all the important things you need to know to officiate a legal wedding. 8,507 West Virginia AMM Ministers and counting!
En EspañolLast Updated: October 5th, 2023
The facts below cover all the important aspects of what requirements you need to meet to be able to legally officiate a wedding ceremony in West Virginia.
This is the relevant exerpt from the West Virginia Code § 48-2-401.
" A religious representative who has complied with the provisions of section 2-402, a family court judge, a circuit judge or a justice of the supreme court of appeals, is authorized to celebrate the rites of marriage in any county of this state. Celebration or solemnization of a marriage means the performance of the formal act or ceremony by which a man and woman contract marriage and assume the status of husband and wife.
For purposes of this chapter, the term "religious representative" means a minister, priest or rabbi and includes, without being limited to, a leader or representative of a generally recognized spiritual assembly, church or religious organization which does not formally designate or recognize persons as ministers, priests or rabbis. "
Basically, this means that as long as you are ordained through any church, you can officiate weddings.
Yes. All online ordained ministers, including those ordained through AMM are recognized in West Virginia.
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Yes. All officiants must register with the West Virginia Secretary of State before they officiate a wedding.
The Secretary of State in West Virginia is responsible for officiant registration.
All Wedding Officiants in West Virginia must be at least 18 years old.
No. Your state or country of residence is irrelevant to the officiant registration process in West Virginia.
Yes. You must complete the Secretary of State's online Online Marriage Celebrant Application.
Yes. You are required to submit an official copy of your Ministry Credentials to the Secretary of State.
It will cost you about $25 to register as a wedding officiant in West Virginia.
You should receive notice of approval from the Secretary of State in about Up To 7 Days.
For a more detailed guide on how to complete the officiant registration process in West Virginia, check out our West Virginia Officiant Registration page by clicking the button below.
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