Franklin County Marriage Licenses
Marriage licenses in Franklin County are issued by the Franklin County Recorder of Deeds, not by the Circuit Clerk. The Recorder is Lisa A. Smart, and the office records marriage licenses after the ceremony, preserves permanent marriage records, and also handles land records, subdivision plats, tax liens, military discharge recordings, and other recording work. That office split matters because a person looking for a divorce decree should not use the Recorder counter, while a person looking for a marriage license or recorded marriage return should not start with a court-record request.
The Recorder accepts marriage license applications during posted weekday application hours except legal holidays. Both applicants usually must appear and provide government-issued photo identification and Social Security numbers. If an applicant has not been issued a Social Security number, the Recorder provides an affidavit. Applicants must be at least eighteen, and a previously married applicant must provide the date the last marriage ended. Blood tests are not required in Missouri, and the Franklin County Recorder is not authorized to perform the ceremony.
The Recorder of Deeds page is the source for the local recording-office duties shown here.
The Recorder information helps separate Franklin County marriage records from divorce case records and other court files.
Apply for Franklin County Marriage Records
Franklin County uses an online marriage application before the in-office license visit. The web form is a pre-application, not the final act that creates the license. The final application still requires the required signatures and verification at the Recorder of Deeds office unless an absent-applicant exception applies. The license can be used anywhere in Missouri after issuance, but a Missouri license is valid only for a Missouri ceremony.
- Complete the online pre-application through the Franklin County marriage portal before going to the Recorder.
- Visit the Recorder of Deeds during marriage application hours with the required photo identification and Social Security information.
- Bring both applicants unless the Recorder accepts an Affidavit of Absent Applicant for active military, incarceration, or Americans with Disabilities Act qualification.
- Pay the license fee by an accepted method and sign the original application documents.
- Give the issued license to the officiant, who completes the ceremony portion and returns it to the Recorder after the wedding.
- Return an unused license marked "UNUSED" if the ceremony does not take place.
The Franklin County marriage license page provides the local application rules, fee, absent-applicant exceptions, and return instructions.
Those application rules are the controlling local source for Franklin County marriage license records and certified marriage copy requests.
Franklin County Marriage Search Fields
The county research identified both the online pre-application route and a marriage search route through the Recorder's online records platform. The captured source did not expose every private application field, so the public table stays with the fields and uses that the official research supports. Party names and marriage date are the core search facts because the Recorder maintains permanent marriage records alphabetically by party names and by marriage date.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Options / Format Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online marriage application | Web form | Required before arrival per county step | Details were not fully viewable in captured source; use the county portal before the office visit. |
| Party names | Text | Yes | Recorder maintains records alphabetically by the parties' names. |
| Marriage date | Date | Useful | Recorder maintains permanent record by date of marriage. |
| Certified copy request | Online or in person | Optional | Request in person or through Official Records Online. |
The Franklin County marriage application and search portal supports the online pre-application and search channel.
The portal is useful for marriage records, but divorce files still belong with Franklin County court records.
Franklin County Marriage and Divorce Fees
Franklin County publishes specific marriage license prices and court copy prices. The Recorder's marriage page lists a cash price and a credit-card price for the license. The Circuit Clerk page lists court copy and certification charges. Divorce filing totals were captured from the Franklin County Circuit Court fee source in the research, but the research also flags that filing fees should be confirmed before relying on a fixed current amount because court fee schedules can change.
| Item | Amount | Office |
|---|---|---|
| Marriage license, cash | $56.00 | Recorder of Deeds |
| Marriage license, credit card | $57.55 | Recorder of Deeds |
| Plain court copies | $1.00 per page | Circuit Clerk |
| Court certification | Additional $1.50 | Circuit Clerk |
| Divorce involving minor children filing total | $299.50, verify before filing | Circuit Court |
| Divorce without minor children filing total | $224.50, verify before filing | Circuit Court |
| Motion or petition to modify existing case | $77.00, verify before filing | Circuit Court |
Note: Certified marriage copy pricing was not separately captured in the official research beyond the Recorder's instruction to request copies in person or through Official Records Online.
Look Up Franklin County Marriage Records
Franklin County marriage records can be approached through the Recorder of Deeds because the Recorder issues the original license, records the completed return, and preserves the permanent record. A person searching by name should be ready to check both parties' names, prior names if applicable, and the marriage date or approximate date. The marriage license return is important because Missouri law requires the officiant to return the completed license after the ceremony. The Recorder then records and preserves the license and returns it as a keepsake with a certified copy under the county's described process.
Some online Recorder records are tied to the same recording ecosystem as land records. The Franklin County land records search page shows the Recorder's public record-search environment and explains that land records are searchable back to 1865 with Laredo available for high-volume users.
That Recorder search context helps explain why marriage license records are separate from court divorce records.
Find Franklin County Divorce Records
Divorce records are Circuit Court records. A dissolution case, custody dispute, parenting-plan change, child-support matter, or motion to modify is filed in the court system and maintained by the Franklin County Circuit Clerk. A divorce search can begin in Missouri Case.net by case number or litigant name, but the Circuit Clerk remains the local office for copies, certified decrees, and court files that are not available for remote public viewing.
Certified divorce decree copies require a Circuit Clerk records request. The request should include the case number, the document requested, the date of filing if known, the preferred delivery method, and whether certification is needed. For confidential domestic material, the Circuit Clerk page warns that photo ID may be required and an application to inspect confidential records may need judge approval before copies are released. That means a public case index result does not guarantee every filing in a divorce case can be copied by any requester.
Certified Franklin County Copies
Certified marriage records and certified divorce records serve different legal needs. A certified marriage copy comes through the Recorder's marriage-record channel after a license has been returned and recorded. A certified divorce decree comes through the Circuit Clerk because the decree is a court order in a dissolution case. For court copies, the Circuit Clerk notifies the requestor of estimated fees, and payment must be received before processing. Accepted payment methods include cash, check, money order, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express, with a convenience fee on debit or credit card payments.
A certified copy is a clerk-authenticated copy suitable for official use. If a requester only needs to confirm a case exists, Case.net may be enough. If the requester needs proof for a name change, benefits issue, remarriage question, agency filing, or formal legal purpose, the correct certified copy from the correct Franklin County office is usually required.