Louisiana Marriage Records Search

Whether you have just gotten married or want to find out more about your family members, you might want to know how to find marriage records online in Louisiana. 

Marriage records in Louisiana are in high demand for couples who wish to change their last names on legal documents such as a bank, social security, and ID cards. Louisiana marriage records are also needed when deciding to relocate to another country, purchase property or even apply for spousal benefits together. 

Read this article to learn how to find marriage records online in Louisiana and how you can run a free marriage records search.

Louisiana Marriage Records

Before running a Louisiana marriage records search, ensure you know which Louisiana marriage records you need. In essence, marriage records in Louisiana are described by marriage licenses and certificates. The marriage license is a document obtained before marriage to authorize the couple to get married. 

The purpose of this document is to prove that there are no legal, religious, or health impediments to the couple from getting married. It is worthy of note that there are only 60 days for the couple to get married once the marriage license is issued. In case the ceremony does not take place within 60 days, the couple must apply for the marriage license again. 

A marriage certificate, on the contrary, is issued right after the ceremony and contains the following information:

- Names of the Spouses
- Birth Dates of the Spouses
- Addresses (Residence)
- Occupation of the Spouses
- Parent`s Full Names
- Witnesses' Names
- Name of Officiating Minister of Registrar
- Religious Denomination of the Spouses
- Place and Date of the Ceremony

For the most part, when you are asked to provide official marriage records by any legal institution, you will most likely be asked to provide your marriage certificate.

Who is eligible to run Louisiana marriage records search?

It is well-known that Louisiana marriage records are public. This means that all people of age can run a Louisiana marriage records search. However, there are a few remarks one needs to take into consideration:

1. Fee

Every US state charges a specific fee for those who want to find some marriage records online. Most states` prices range from $5 to $20 per download. Nonetheless, the fee size depends on the type of service you are asking for: for instance, amendments in marriage records would cost cheaper than a download of those records.

2. Legal Authorization

Whether you want to find your own Louisiana marriage records online or those of third parties, you need to fill a written request with the following information on it:

- Personal and contact information of the requestor
- Personal Data of the party whose name is on the record
- Relationship between the requestor and the party on the record (e.g., father, mother, son, daughter, husband, sibling, aunt, uncle, grandparent, legal guardian, etc.)
- The reason for the request (e.g., insurance proceeds, authentication, death benefits, private purposes, etc.)
- The date of marriage
- The place of marriage
- Scope of search required (statewide or county limited)
- ID photo

Once your request has been approved, you are eligible to find any of the Louisiana marriage records online. However, if you were refused to run a Louisiana marriage records search, you can apply again with permission from the parties whose marriage records are online you wanted to obtain. 

In most cases, rejection happens if you want to look up the Louisiana marriage records of third parties. Important: the signatures of both spouses must be present on the document.

How to Find Marriage Records Online in Louisiana?

Now that you know who can find marriage records online in Louisiana, you can check your options to run a free marriage records search. We recommend using the following websites to run a free marriage records search:

Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Website | (cdc.gov)

CDC website is considered one of the best tools to run a free marriage records search. Unlike other websites, CDC does not allow running Louisiana marriage records search directly; it instead provides general information you would need to find the marriage records in Louisiana on the websites it redirects you to.

Louisiana Department of Health Website | (ldh.la.gov)

This website will be the only official website CDC will redirect to you. Once you send an application and pay the fee, you can find any Louisiana marriage records online.

Independent Platform | (backgroundcheck.co)

Another great tool to back up the free marriage records search with some background information on the parties mentioned in the Louisiana marriage records:

· Employment and Education History
· Contact Information
· Civil and Criminal Court Records (if applicable)

This article has explained how to find marriage records online in Louisiana. If you have more questions about finding marriage records online in Louisiana, contact the vital records office via phone or email.