Marriage Licenses at the Midland County Clerk
Every Midland County marriage begins with a license, and the license comes from the Midland County Clerk. The Midland County office sits in the County Services Building at 220 W. Ellsworth Street, Midland, MI 48640. Jim Stamas serves as County Clerk, and the office can be reached at (989) 832-6739. This is the same office that handles vital records, so marriage license work and certified marriage copies both run through the county clerk's office. The clerk does not perform the ceremony. It issues the license that lets a couple marry in Midland County.
One applicant must be a resident of the county where the application is filed, and that resident must appear in person. The resident rule does not bind out-of-state couples. If both partners live outside Michigan, they apply in the county where the wedding will take place. Both applicants must be 18 years of age. The county marriage license procedure spells out these terms and the data each partner must supply.
Photo identification is required at application, and a driver's license works best. If no photo ID is available, a certified birth certificate or a Social Security card paired with another ID can serve as a last resort. Michigan sets a three-day waiting period, counted from the day after you apply, before the license can be used.
Only the partner who appears at the counter must show identification, so the second partner's ID is not needed at that moment. The clerk also hands out required health-education materials about disease prevention as part of the process. Plan the visit around the three-day wait, since a license issued too close to the wedding date will not be ready. The County Clerk office in Midland keeps regular weekday hours, and the resident applicant should arrive with time to complete the paperwork.
How to Apply for a Marriage License
A little preparation keeps the counter visit short. Gather both partners' details, sort out any prior marriage paperwork, and bring a valid photo ID. The steps below follow the county clerk's published procedure.
- Confirm that at least one applicant lives in Midland County, or, if both live out of state, confirm the wedding will happen in Midland County.
- Gather photo ID and the required personal, parent, and prior-marriage details for both applicants.
- If either partner divorced within the last six months, obtain a certified copy of the divorce judgment.
- Visit the Midland County Clerk at 220 W. Ellsworth Street during regular office hours, with the resident applicant present.
- Pay the $20 resident fee or the $30 out-of-state fee at the counter.
- Accept the required health-education materials on disease prevention that the clerk provides.
- Wait the three-day Michigan waiting period before the license becomes valid for the ceremony.
Midland County Marriage License Fields
The Midland County application asks for detailed facts about both partners and their parents. Have the answers ready so nothing stalls the request. Some fields apply only when a prior marriage ended in divorce. The table lists the information the county clerk collects, drawn from the official procedure.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Full legal name | Yes | Both parties |
| Age | Yes | Both must be 18 |
| Date of birth | Yes | Both parties |
| Current address | Yes | Both parties |
| County of residence | Yes | Resident rule applies to at least one party |
| Birthplace | Yes | Both parties |
| Number of previous marriages | Yes | Both parties |
| Prior divorce county and judgment date | Conditional | Needed if a prior marriage ended in divorce |
| Certified divorce judgment | Conditional | Needed if the divorce was final within six months |
| Father's full name | Yes | First, middle, last |
| Mother's full maiden name | Yes | First, middle, maiden last |
| Parents' state or country of birth | Yes | Both parents |
| Social Security numbers | Yes | Both parties |
| Identification | Yes | Photo ID preferred |
How to Look Up Midland County Marriage Records
Midland County marriage records reach back to 1867. That long run makes the Midland County clerk a strong source for both recent unions and older family history. Marriage licenses are filed in the county where the couple applied. Midland County can pull a record only when the license was applied for in Midland County. If the couple applied elsewhere, that other county holds the file. Marriage records are public in Midland County, so anyone may request a copy.
The Midland County clerk offers three ways to request a certified marriage copy. You can visit the counter in person during regular business hours. You can call and pay by credit card over the phone. Or you can mail the copy request form with a check or money order to the County Clerk at 220 W. Ellsworth Street. Each channel returns the same certified record.
The county explains its vital records services on the Midland County vital records page.
That page links birth, death, and marriage record services together, since the same clerk maintains all three for Midland County residents.
Midland County Marriage and Divorce Fees
Midland County marriage license and copy fees are set and easy to plan for. The license price depends on residency, and certified copies cost more for the first copy than for extras of the same record ordered together. Divorce judgment copies are court records, so those come from the trial court that holds the file rather than from this fee schedule.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marriage license, Michigan resident | $20 |
| Marriage license, out-of-state residents marrying in Midland County | $30 |
| Certified marriage copy, first copy | $14 |
| Additional certified marriage copies, same record, same request | $6 each |
Note: A certified divorce judgment copy is obtained from the Circuit Court that entered the judgment, not from the county clerk's marriage-copy process.
How to Find Midland County Divorce Records
Divorce records are court records, not vital-record copies. In Midland County, a divorce is a domestic-relations matter handled in Circuit Court. To obtain a divorce judgment, start with the Clerk of Circuit Court at the Midland County Courthouse, 301 W. Main Street, reachable at (989) 832-6735. The marriage-copy form does not apply here. The file lives with the court, so the request goes to the court.
A Midland County divorce file can hold the complaint, the judgment of divorce, and orders on property, support, and parenting time. Portions that name minor children or list protected addresses may be sealed or redacted. That is why an online docket often shows the case exists without releasing every page. When you need the full judgment, ask the Circuit Court counter how to obtain a certified copy of the divorce record you seek.
Public docket details for many domestic cases appear through MiCOURT Case Search, the statewide trial-court case tool. A search can confirm that a case exists and show basic status. Full judgments, confidential attachments, support and custody details, and any documents involving minor children may require authorized access or redaction. Michigan trial courts manage record access under court rule rather than ordinary open-records law, as the state describes on its records management page.
If either partner's divorce became final within the last six months, the marriage license application requires a certified copy of that divorce judgment. Request it from the court that issued it before you apply.
Certified Copies of Midland Marriage Records
A certified copy carries the clerk's seal and stands as legal proof. You need a certified Midland County marriage copy for a name change, a passport, Social Security updates, immigration steps, or estate matters. An uncertified printout will not satisfy those legal uses. For marriage records, the certified copy comes from the county clerk, at $14 for the first copy and $6 for each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time.
To order by mail, send the completed copy request form with the names on the license, the marriage date if known, your name and address, and payment by check or money order. In-person requests are filled during regular office hours, and phone requests are paid by credit card. Divorce judgment copies follow the court process instead, through the Clerk of Circuit Court.
Michigan Vital Records and Local Copies
Michigan keeps vital events at the state level for verification, but a Midland County marriage record is issued and held locally. For a marriage that took place after a Midland County application, the fastest path is the county clerk, not a statewide office. The Midland County clerk maintains the county's birth, death, and marriage files and issues certified copies of each. Divorce judgments remain court records held by the Circuit Court, while estate and guardianship matters after a death run through the county's probate records.
The county describes its marriage record years, fees, and request channels on its Midland County marriage records page.
That page confirms records back to 1867 and the certified-copy fees, and it points requesters to the County Clerk on Ellsworth Street.
Midland County Clerk, Vital Records
220 W. Ellsworth Street
Midland, MI 48640-5194
(989) 832-6739