The invitations are sent, caterer hired, wine ordered, dress altered, rings delivered, flowers all settled. Forget anything? You have if you haven’t gotten the license. It can be a perfect day but without this piece of paper you’re still living in sin. Here’s where you go to get what you’ll need.

Napa County Clerk/Recorder’s Office
(707) 253-4246
900 Coombs Street in downtown Napa
Hours are 8AM to 4PM Monday through Friday

The bride and the groom both need to appear and you’ll need to have the following information with you when you appear:

• Names of parents – mother’s maiden name
• Place of birth
• If previously married you must have date of dissolution. If the dissolution occurred within 90 days or less from date of wedding, you must bring the document.
  

The fee is $70.00; if you want a certified copy of the license there’s an additional cost of $12.00.

If you wish to have a lay person (friend, relative, whoever you choose) perform the ceremony you will need to call 253-4246 at least a day in advance so they can prepare the one day license for “Deputy Marriage Commissioner.” This person needs to appear personally as they need to be sworn in. The cost is $100.00 and they will have to provide the following information:

• Name of bride and groom
• Name of person performing ceremony
• Date of ceremony
• Place of ceremony

One good thing is that a blood test is no longer a requirement to get married in the state of California.

If you decide to skip the entire big wedding altogether, authorized county personnel can perform the ceremony in the chapel in the county building or in the gazebo in Veterans Park for an additional $40.00. Then you can have a party to announce the news to friends and family on your own schedule. ¦