certified marriage certificate vs. certified copy of marriage license

[Bishopyare 0]

Which one did you all send and if you send your actual marriage license do they give it back?

[KayDeeCee 4,896]

You don't send the marriage license at all. You send a copy of your certified marriage certificate. Send a copy only of the certified marriage certificate you get back from the court once your marriage has been registered.

[Berty 74]

The license just means you're allowed to marry - it's not proof of anything at all so you send the certificate (copy) which shows you have married.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Which one did you all send and if you send your actual marriage license do they give it back?

Since you are from the Houston and assuming you married in TX, you would have gotten a license at a county clerk's office. After the marriage, the officiant signs it. Then it has to go back to the county clerk's office for them to record it in the county marriage records. Once it's done, they give you a certificate of marriage, which may be nothing more than a copy of the license, but the county has written on it that it was recorded and filed, etc and they embossed it with the county seal and someone from the clerk's office signs that certification. You may photocopy that and don't have to send the embossed/ signed "original" version. Or you can go ask for another copy from the clerk's office. The real original is filed and they make an official copy from the county record and "certify" it with a seal and signature. Those are always available for a fee. You can have as many certified copies as you want. Or you can photocopy a certified copy for USCIS. If you interview, they may want to see the real certified version. We're done with immigration now and nobody ever saw my US birth certificate, proof of ending previous marriage, or our marriage certificate----only photocopies of those certified documents. I guess it just depends on how detailed they want to be when they interview whether they ask you to show the real version or not.

Edited April 14, 2013 by Nich-Nick

[Bishopyare 0]

Thanks

The license just means you're allowed to marry - it's not proof of anything at all so you send the certificate (copy) which shows you have married.

Thanks

You don't send the marriage license at all. You send a copy of your certified marriage certificate. Send a copy only of the certified marriage certificate you get back from the court once your marriage has been registered.

Thanks