How to Get Married Online in Minnesota

By Distant Vows | Updated 2026

If you are trying to figure out how to get married online in Minnesota, you will find a system that has improved in some ways but still requires both partners to appear in person together at a county recorder or license center office. Minnesota eliminated its five-day waiting period on August 1, 2016, but the state still requires both applicants to appear in person, sign the application in front of staff, and pay the $125 fee before the license is issued.

By using Utah’s fully legal online marriage system through Distant Vows, Minnesota couples can get married online in Minnesota 100% virtually and receive a U.S. marriage certificate valid in Minnesota and all 50 states.

If you are comparing rules across the country, you can also review our full guide on how to get married online in all 50 states. It is a helpful starting point if you want to understand how Minnesota compares with other states and why many couples choose Utah’s online marriage system.

How Minnesota Marriage Usually Works if You Don’t Get Married Online in Minnesota

Minnesota marriages are governed by Minnesota Statutes Chapter 517. One of Minnesota’s more flexible features is that the license can be obtained at any county recorder or license service center in the state, regardless of where either applicant lives or where the ceremony will take place. This means a couple living in Hennepin County who plans to marry in Itasca County can apply at either location, or at any other county in Minnesota. The license is valid statewide for six months from the date of issuance.

Both applicants must appear in person to sign the application. The application can be pre-filled at home through Minnesota’s official online system at moms.mn.gov, which saves time at the office, but the in-person visit and in-person signatures are still required. If one applicant genuinely cannot appear, some counties allow that person to submit a notarized “Supplemental to Application for Marriage License for Party Not Appearing” form, but this varies by county and must be arranged in advance.

The standard license fee is $125. If both applicants have completed at least 12 hours of premarital education, the fee is reduced to $50. To qualify for the reduced fee, the couple must present a signed, dated, and notarized educator’s statement on official letterhead at the time of application confirming the education was completed. The statement may also carry a church seal in lieu of notarization. As of August 1, 2016, there is no longer a waiting period in Minnesota. The license is typically issued the same day the application is completed.

Minnesota law requires that any person who solemnizes a marriage be at least 21 years old, which is an unusual minimum age requirement not found in most other states. Two witnesses who are at least 16 years old must be present at the ceremony. After the ceremony, the officiant must file the completed marriage license with the issuing county within five days. Minnesota does not recognize common-law marriage. Name changes in Minnesota do not happen automatically through the marriage license. If a partner wants to change their name, it is done through a separate court process unless the name change is declared at the time of the license application.

Minnesota has one additional procedure that can affect couples with a prior felony conviction. Under Minnesota law, if either applicant has a felony conviction in any state and wants to change their name when they marry, a special name change form must be submitted to the county attorney at least 30 days before the marriage license application is filed. The county attorney has 30 days to object. Couples who want to get married online in Minnesota through Utah avoid this pre-application process entirely, because Utah’s name change procedure is handled separately after the marriage rather than as a condition of the license application.

Documents, Waiting Period, and Age Requirements in Minnesota

Both applicants must be at least 18 years old to marry without additional authorization. Applicants who are 16 or 17 require parental consent and court approval. As of August 1, 2020, no person under 16 may marry in Minnesota under any circumstances.

County recorder offices across Minnesota list the following as standard requirements at the time of application:

Valid government-issued photo ID for each applicant, such as a driver’s license, state ID, or passport.
Social Security numbers for both applicants. Foreign nationals without a U.S. Social Security number must certify in writing that no number has been issued to them.
If either applicant was previously married, the date, location, and court name where the most recent marriage ended by divorce. If the previous marriage ended by death, the date and place of the spouse’s death are required.
For the reduced $50 fee, a signed, dated, and notarized educator’s statement on official letterhead confirming that at least 12 hours of premarital education was completed.
For either applicant with a prior felony conviction who wants a name change, confirmation that the special county attorney notice process was completed at least 30 days before the application date.

Minnesota’s marriage certificate is filed with the county where the license was obtained, not the county where the ceremony took place. The certified copy is mailed to the address provided at the time of application after the ceremony and filing.

Are Online Weddings Allowed Directly if You Want to Get Married Online in Minnesota?

Minnesota’s pre-application portal at moms.mn.gov allows couples to fill out the application form online before their in-person visit. This is a convenience feature, but it does not remove the in-person requirement for couples who want to get married online in Minnesota using the state’s own license system. However, Minnesota law does not allow the license to be issued without both partners appearing in person to sign and take an oath before a licensed clerk. The oath can be taken in person, by telephone, or by computer in certain counties, but the application itself and the payment must be completed in person at the county office.

Minnesota also does not provide a mechanism for a ceremony to be completed entirely by video under a Minnesota license. The ceremony must be conducted in person within the state of Minnesota by an authorized officiant who is at least 21 years old. These requirements are a primary reason couples who want to get married online in Minnesota choose Utah’s system through a live video ceremony and use their Utah marriage certificate in Minnesota instead.

4 Steps to Get Married Online in Minnesota with Distant Vows (Through Utah)

With Distant Vows, the same four-step process applies whether you want to get married online in Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, or Colorado. The legal engine is always Utah’s online marriage system, which allows couples to apply for a license and hold a ceremony entirely over video while still being recognized nationwide.

Step 1 – Verify Your Eligibility

First, you confirm that you and your partner meet basic Utah requirements and complete Distant Vows’ quick intake form. Typically, you both must be 18 or older, not currently married to anyone else, and able to join a live video call together. This foundation lets couples who want to get married online in Minnesota do so fully under Utah law, which Minnesota must recognize.

Confirm you are legally free to marry, whether single, divorced, or widowed.
Gather valid government-issued photo IDs, such as a Minnesota driver’s license, state ID, passport, or military ID.
Make sure you have a stable internet connection and a device with audio and video so you can comfortably get married online in Minnesota.

Step 2 – Choose Your Package and Ceremony Date

Next, you choose a Distant Vows package and select a ceremony date and time that works for your schedule in Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Rochester, Duluth, Bloomington, or anywhere else. You can keep the ceremony short and simple or personalize it with vows, readings, and guests watching online as you get married online in Minnesota.

Select a basic legal-only ceremony or a more personalized experience.
Pick a time that works for your time zone and any guests joining from Minnesota or overseas.
Tell us if you need witness support, custom vows, religious or civil wording, or language options.

Step 3 – Apply for Your Utah Online Marriage License

After you pick your date, you complete a Utah online marriage license application. Utah County’s system lets you submit everything digitally, including your information, ID uploads, and signatures. You never have to visit a Minnesota county office, you face no felony name change pre-application process, and you do not need to worry about finding a 21-year-old officiant, because the license is issued by Utah even though your goal is to get married online in Minnesota.

Fill out the secure Utah County application form online from your home in Minnesota or anywhere in the world.
Upload clear images of your IDs and any requested documents, such as divorce decrees if applicable.
Respond to any brief follow-up from the Utah clerk if they need clarification before issuing the license.

A Utah online marriage license is valid for 32 days from the date it is issued, and Distant Vows schedules your ceremony within that 32-day window so your marriage is properly created under Utah law.

Step 4 – Attend Your Online Ceremony and Get Your Certificate

On your wedding day, you and your partner join a live video ceremony with a Utah-licensed officiant. Two adult witnesses are required and they can join from anywhere in the world. If you do not have friends or family available, you can invite them at no charge, or use our witness service for a small fee.

Join from your home in Minnesota or from anywhere in the world, as long as you are both on the same live video call.
Participate in a real-time ceremony where you exchange vows and say your “I dos.” This is the moment you actually get married online in Minnesota, even though the legal ceremony is taking place under Utah law.
After the ceremony, your officiant files the certificate in Utah and you receive your official Utah County marriage certificate digitally and, if requested, by mail.

Minnesota County Recorder System vs Online Utah Marriage

Before you decide how to get married online in Minnesota, it helps to compare the two approaches side by side. The table below shows the key differences between the traditional Minnesota county recorder process and using Distant Vows to get married online in Minnesota through Utah.

Feature	Traditional Minnesota Marriage	Get Married Online with Distant Vows (Utah)
Where to apply	Any county recorder or license service center in Minnesota. You may apply in any county regardless of where you live or where the ceremony will take place.	Utah County online application. No county office visit required.
In-person requirement	Both applicants must appear in person to sign the application. If one partner cannot appear, a notarized Supplemental form may be accepted at some counties, but varies by location.	No in-person visits required. Everything is completed online.
Waiting period	None. Eliminated August 1, 2016. License is typically issued the same day as the application.	No waiting period. Utah license is issued after online review and Distant Vows schedules your ceremony within the 32-day validity window.
License fee	$125 standard. $50 with a signed, dated, and notarized educator’s statement confirming at least 12 hours of premarital education completed.	Flat Distant Vows package pricing. No premarital education requirement.
License validity	6 months from issuance. Valid anywhere in Minnesota.	Utah license valid for 32 days. Ceremony can be attended from Minnesota or anywhere in the world.
Officiant age requirement	Minnesota requires all officiants to be at least 21 years old, which is unusual among states.	Not applicable. Distant Vows officiants are licensed under Utah law.
Felony name change	Applicants with a prior felony conviction who want a name change must file a special form with the county attorney at least 30 days before applying. The attorney has 30 days to object.	Not applicable. Utah’s name change process is handled separately after the marriage certificate is issued.
Witnesses required	Two witnesses, at least 16 years old, must be present at the ceremony.	Two adult witnesses required under Utah law. Distant Vows can provide them if needed.
Valid in Minnesota	Yes.	Yes, and in all 50 states once properly issued and filed in Utah, because Minnesota recognizes marriages that are valid where they were performed.
International use	May require apostille or legalization depending on the foreign country’s rules.	Utah certificates can receive an apostille for use in many countries, even if you get married online in Minnesota. Learn more at Distant Vows apostille services.

Military Couples in Minnesota

Minnesota does not host a large active-duty military installation, which distinguishes it from most states. The state’s military presence is centered on reserve and National Guard forces, and the 34th Infantry Division, known as the Red Bulls, is one of the most storied National Guard units in American history. The 34th was the longest-deployed American division in both World War I and World War II, and it is the most decorated National Guard division in U.S. military history. The division’s soldiers train primarily at the Arden Hills Army Training Site and at Camp Ripley, the Minnesota National Guard’s 53,000-acre primary training installation near Little Falls in Morrison County.

Minneapolis-Saint Paul Joint Air Reserve Station, located at MSP International Airport in the Fort Snelling area, is home to the 934th Airlift Wing, known as the “Global Vikings.” The 934th is Minnesota’s only Air Force Reserve unit and serves as the Department of Defense host for Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and other federal agency personnel at the joint station. The wing flies C-130H Hercules aircraft and conducts approximately 1,000 missions annually supporting airlift, aeromedical evacuation, and NATO interoperability training. The station was previously the location of Naval Air Station Twin Cities before its closure in 1991. The 133rd Airlift Wing, part of the Minnesota Air National Guard, also operates C-130H aircraft from the same MSP airport location.

The 148th Fighter Wing at Duluth Air National Guard Base operates F-16C/D Fighting Falcons and maintains 24-hour alert status for homeland defense and NATO air policing, conducting approximately 1,200 sorties per year. Fort Snelling, established in 1820 as a frontier outpost at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers, is now a National Historic Landmark managed by the National Park Service, but the Minneapolis Military Entrance Processing Station still operates within the Fort Snelling area, processing enlistees for all branches of the armed forces.

For Guard members at Camp Ripley or Reserve personnel at MSP ARS whose partners are stationed elsewhere, deployed, or living in a different state, Minnesota’s in-person license requirement is a real scheduling challenge. Getting both partners to a Minnesota county office during business hours is not always possible around drill weekends, training rotations, and deployment cycles. Utah online marriage removes that requirement entirely for couples who want to get married online in Minnesota. Both partners join a live video ceremony from wherever they are. You can read more at Distant Vows for Military Couples.

Immigration and Long-Distance Couples in Minnesota

Minnesota is home to some of the most distinctive immigrant communities in the entire United States, a consequence of the state’s decades-long role as a primary destination for refugees from East Africa and Southeast Asia. According to 2024 American Community Survey data, Minnesota has approximately 107,000 residents of Somali descent, representing the largest Somali community of any state in the country. Approximately 84,000 of those residents live in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area, with roughly 50,000 in Hennepin County alone.

The Cedar-Riverside neighborhood in Minneapolis, known informally as Little Mogadishu, is one of the most recognized centers of Somali-American culture in the world. Close to 58 percent of Somalis in Minnesota are U.S.-born, and of the foreign-born Somali population, approximately 87 percent are naturalized citizens.

Minnesota also has one of the largest Hmong populations of any state in the country. The Hmong community in Minnesota, concentrated in the Twin Cities and particularly in Saint Paul, traces its roots to the mid-1970s, when Hmong refugees began arriving after the fall of the pro-American government in Laos. Saint Paul has long had the largest urban Hmong concentration of any city in the world, with community organizations, Hmong-language media, and Hmong-owned businesses forming an established part of the city’s civic life. The broader Southeast Asian immigrant community in Minnesota also includes significant Vietnamese, Lao, Burmese, and Cambodian populations across the Twin Cities.

Mexico is the largest single country of origin for Minnesota’s foreign-born residents, with approximately 64,500 Mexican-born immigrants and a total Latino population of over 345,000. Approximately 60 percent of Mexican Minnesotans live in the seven-county Twin Cities metropolitan area, with the remaining 40 percent distributed across smaller cities and rural communities statewide. Minnesota’s East African community extends beyond the Somali population and includes approximately 21,900 Ethiopia-born immigrants, according to state demographic data.

For binational couples who want to get married online in Minnesota and where one partner remains abroad, the in-person license requirement is a real barrier when both partners cannot be in the same county at the same time. When you choose to get married online in Minnesota through Utah, your partner can be in Somalia, Laos, Mexico, or anywhere else in the world.

The Utah County certificate is accepted by USCIS for spousal visa and green card applications. Couples who get married online in Minnesota this way use their Utah certificate the same way they would use any Minnesota-issued license. If you need your marriage recognized in another country, Distant Vows can help you obtain an apostille. You can learn more at Distant Vows apostille services.

Couples researching international marriage recognition may also want to read our guide on whether getting married online affects immigration cases.

Using Your Utah Certificate in Minnesota

After you get married online in Minnesota through Utah, your Utah County marriage certificate is your primary legal document for updating your records. Minnesota agencies accept any valid U.S. marriage certificate and do not require it to be Minnesota-issued.

Change your name with the Social Security Administration first. Minnesota’s Driver and Vehicle Services checks SSA records for name changes on driver’s licenses, so updating SSA before visiting DVS prevents delays.
Update your Minnesota driver’s license or state ID through Minnesota Driver and Vehicle Services. This step is the same whether you used a Minnesota license or chose to get married online in Minnesota through Utah.
Adjust your name and marital status with banks, employers, schools, and insurance providers.
Use your certificate for USCIS spousal visa and green card applications. The Utah County certificate is treated the same as any Minnesota-issued certificate for immigration purposes.

Many couples who get married online in Minnesota also use their Utah marriage certificate to complete a legal name change, and they can do this from any county in the state using the same process as any other married couple. You can learn more in our guide on how to change your name after getting married online.

Related Online Marriage Guides

If you are researching how to get married online in Minnesota or nearby Midwest states, you may also want to read:

FAQ: Getting Married Online in Minnesota

Is it legal to get married online in Minnesota?
Minnesota recognizes marriages valid where they are performed. When you get married online in Minnesota through Utah’s system, your marriage is valid in Utah and must be recognized in Minnesota even though the ceremony happens over video. Minnesota’s own requirements about in-person county appearances and in-state ceremonies apply only to Minnesota marriage licenses, not to marriages legally performed in Utah.

Do we still need to visit a Minnesota county office?
No. If you choose the Utah online route, your license is issued by Utah County. You do not need to visit any Minnesota county recorder, license center, or government office. Every couple who chooses to get married online in Minnesota through Distant Vows completes the process entirely online, with no in-person steps anywhere in Minnesota.

Why does Minnesota require officiants to be at least 21?
Minnesota Statutes Section 517.04 requires that anyone who solemnizes a marriage be at least 21 years old. This minimum age is unusual among states and affects couples who might otherwise ask a younger friend or family member to officiate. The Utah online route uses Distant Vows officiants who are licensed under Utah law, so no Minnesota-specific age requirement applies.

What is the felony name change rule in Minnesota?
Under Minnesota law, applicants with a prior felony conviction in any state who want to change their name as part of marriage must submit a special form to the county attorney at least 30 days before filing the marriage license application. The county attorney has 30 days to object. Couples who get married online in Minnesota through Utah bypass this process entirely because Utah’s name change procedure is handled separately after the ceremony, not as a pre-condition of the license.

Does Minnesota recognize common-law marriage?
No. Minnesota does not recognize common-law marriage. Couples who have lived together for years have no automatic legal marital status under Minnesota law. Choosing to get married online in Minnesota through Utah is a fast, fully legal way to establish that status.

Can Guard members at Camp Ripley get married online in Minnesota?
Yes. Both partners join the ceremony by video from wherever they are. A Guard member on a training rotation or deployed federally can participate from any location while the other partner remains in Minnesota or elsewhere. No county office visit is required. You can read more at Distant Vows for Military Couples.

Can same-sex couples get married online this way?
Yes. Minnesota legalized same-sex marriage on August 1, 2013. Same-sex marriages are treated the same under Utah and federal law, so same-sex couples who want to get married online in Minnesota can do so through Utah and receive the same legal certificate as any other couple.

How fast can we get married online from Minnesota?
Many couples complete all four steps and receive their digital certificate within a few days. Rush options are available for couples who need to get married online in Minnesota on a tighter timeline. The process to get married online in Minnesota is the same in every county and from any location. Whether you are in Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Duluth, Rochester, or a rural community, the process is the same.

For details on Minnesota’s traditional process for couples who choose not to get married online in Minnesota, the Minnesota Statutes Chapter 517 and your local county recorder’s office provide official guidance. For couples who want to get married online in Minnesota without visiting a county office or coordinating an in-person application, Distant Vows handles everything remotely.

Ready to Get Married Online in Minnesota?

If you are ready to get married online in Minnesota, Distant Vows makes the process simple. Whether you are Somali-American, Hmong-American, or from any other community, the process to get married online in Minnesota through Distant Vows is identical. Our four-step system walks you from eligibility to your official U.S. marriage certificate, with licensed Utah officiants, witness support, and clear guidance at every stage.

Start today, choose your date, and let us handle the legal details so you can get married online in Minnesota without visiting a county office. Every week, couples from Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Duluth, Rochester, Bloomington, and across the Land of 10,000 Lakes choose Distant Vows to get married online in Minnesota. You can begin by completing our intake form at get married online. Hundreds of couples have already used Distant Vows to get married online in Minnesota.

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