In three weeks’ time, getting hitched in Los Angeles County will become significantly more expensive. But cash-strapped lovers can obtain a marriage license for $115 less if they come south, Orange County Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen said.
Nguyen said his staff has been strategizing how to accommodate a potential rush of customers expected from the Los Angeles area ahead of Oct. 17, when the cost of a standard marriage license will jump from $91 to $176 and a confidential license from $85 to $220. The ceremony fee will rise from $35 to $44, and the witness fee from $20 to $26.
In Orange County, where marriage service fees are among the lowest in the state, a public license costs $61 and a confidential license costs $66. The ceremony fee is $28, and there is no witness fee.
“If it gets busy, I don’t want the office to be bombarded,” Nguyen said. “We welcome neighboring counties, but I don’t want to take away from all our residents in OC.”
Nguyen said his office is planning to issue marriage licenses once a week at Ralph B. Clark Park, which straddles the Buena Park-Fullerton border and is less than 8 miles away from several inland cities in LA County, including Norwalk, Downey and Cerritos.
Every Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m, customers who make an appointment online and submit an application online will be able to pick up their license at the park. Ceremony service is not offered.
Nguyen said he’s also looking to open the clerk-recorder’s Anaheim office for an additional Saturday a month, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., to provide license and ceremony services to customers from LA. (The office is currently open one Saturday each other month).
Wedding chapel owners and officiants in LA County have expressed concern that the higher fees will drive their clients to neighboring counties where marriage licenses cost much less. The fee increase, passed by the LA Board of Supervisors on Sept. 16, is expected to generate about $5.1 million in additional revenue for the Registrar-Recorder and County Clerk offices. LA County Clerk Dean Logan said the costs reflect “inflationary factors or mandated minimum wage increases.”
Nguyen said his office has avoided fee increases and kept costs low by automating administrative tasks and incorporating new technology such as an AI chatbot, which has significantly reduced call volume.
Nguyen has come up with creative ways in the past to serve couples, including from other regions. When the pandemic shut down wedding venues and public facilities in 2020, Nguyen arranged to use ticket booths at the Honda Center where masked lovers could tie the knot with officiants safely behind glass. His office ended up issuing more than 17,000 licenses and holding 11,000 ceremonies in nine months, he said.
This year, Nguyen extended hours on Valentine’s Day at all three of the county office’s locations.
“It brings me so much joy to witness couples on one of the most meaningful days of their lives,” Nguyen said. “Seeing the happiness in their eyes as they say I do is truly heartwarming. It’s an honor to be part of such a special moment, and I’m always reminded of the beauty and significance of love and commitment.”
In 2024, the Clerk-Recorder’s Office issued 25,688 marriage licenses and fulfilled 23,741 pre-paid marriage certificate orders.
Staff Writer Steve Scauzzillo contributed to this report.