Kansas Marriage Records

The marriage rate in Kansas in 2022 was 5.5 marriages per 1,000 residents, a slight increase over the previous year when it was 5.4 per 1,000 total population. The state is one of the states with low marriage rates in the United States. Its 2022 marriage rate was also lower than the national average for that year, which stood at 6.2 marriages per total population. Generally, Kansas couples always delay marriage, which is partly responsible for the state's low marriage rate over the years.

Marriage is a legal contract. As such, understanding Kansas's marriage laws before entering into a marriage is essential. The option of covenant marriage is not allowed in the state. While state law requires that a person be at least 18 years old to get married, persons aged 16 to 17 years may still get married. To get married at 16 or 17 years, a person must have notarized written consent from both parents or legal guardians or a judge's permission. A judge's consent is still required if only one parent gave their written consent. Kansas prohibits a person from marrying their parent, sibling, aunt, or uncle. It is also illegal for cousins to marry each other in the state.

In Kansas, a marriage is registered after a couple obtains a marriage license from the Clerk of the District Court office in any county, gets married, and returns the license to the issuing District Court clerk's office within a specified period. After registration, all the documents and information submitted to the Clerk of the District Court become marriage records. Kansas marriage records are open to the public and may be accessed by interested persons. They are stored at the district courts within the states and the state's Office of Vital Records. The state allows proxy marriages. In other words, one of the parties to a marriage may have someone stand in for them if they are unavailable at the marriage ceremony. This is especially beneficial for couples who live apart, particularly when in different states or countries.

What are Marriage Records?

Kansas marriage records are records documenting legal unions between two individuals within the state and contain certain information about such marriages. These records are primarily generated by the Clerks of District Court offices, where marriage licenses are issued to individuals who intend to get married. In addition to marriage licenses, marriage certificates are also a common type of Kansas marriage records. Unlike certificates, which are issued after marriage ceremonies, marriage licenses are documents that must be obtained before any marriage can take place.

A typical record of marriage in Kansas will include the following:

The full names of both spouses named on the record
The full names of both spouses' parents
The residence addresses of both spouses at the time of applying for a marriage license
The name of the marriage officiant

Records of marriages held in Kansas are public records. They are considered public records under the state's Open Records Act because they are created, maintained, and kept by government agencies. Kansas marriage records may be made and stored in several forms, including paper forms, microfilms, and audio files. The state's Open Records Act gives members of the public the right to inspect marriage records. The filing of marriage records with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) through the Office of Vital Statistics began on May 1, 1913. The state's marriage records before May 1913 were recorded in the District Courts in the counties where the marriage licenses were issued. An Archive catalog (microfilm) for county marriage records from 1870 to 1910 is kept by the Kansas Historical Society.

Marriage records generally exist as indisputable and legal proof of marriage. In Kansas, they provide crucial documentation for a number of administrative and legal processes after marriage. For example, they may be used for name changes for a spouse who wants to change their last name to the other spouse's last name. Marriage certificates are used to establish the legitimacy of children in legal unions. Also, Kansas marriage records may be used to access a spouse's benefits. Furthermore, marriage records are vital for genealogical research. They facilitate tracing family history and establishing family ties.

Marriages in Kansas

Kansas has witnessed a declining marriage rate over the last two decades. The highest that has been recorded in the last twenty years was 7.0 marriages per 1,000 residents in 2004, while the lowest within this period was in 2020, at 4.9 marriages per 1,000 population. Kansas's marriage rate for each year within this period was lower than the national average. According to a report by the state's Department of Health (KDHE) and Environment, Kansas couples do not usually get married at an early age. For instance, the average marriage age for the males who got married in 2019 was 33.9 years, while it was 31.8 years for the females.

About 15,403 marriages took place in Kansas in 2019, representing a 5.9% decline from the previous year (2018), 16,362 marriages. Every year beginning in 1999, first marriages make up over half of the marriages in the state. According to the KDHE, at least 58.4% of all marriages in Kansas involved first-time spouses. About 34.3% of marriages dissolved in 2019 lasted only about four years. Kansas has consistently witnessed a declining divorce rate over the last two decades and had an all-time low of 1.8 divorces per 1,000 residents in 2020. In 2022, the state's divorce rate of 1.9 per 1,000 total population was lower than the national average of 2.4 per 1,000 people.

The following is the distribution of households with married couples in Kansas:

White (non-Hispanics) - 54.76%
Asian (including Hispanics) - 57.38%
White Hispanics - 47.08%
Blacks (including Hispanics) - 32.11%
Mixed (including Hispanics) - 32.28%
Others (including Hispanics) - 47.06%

All marriages in Kansas must be registered under the supervision of the KDHE's secretary. Anyone non-resident planning to get married in the state has nothing to worry about. The state does not require a person to have Kansas residency before they can marry there. If either of the two individuals planning to get married was previously married, it is important they know the date of death of their former spouse. If they are already separated from their ex-spouse, they will need to know the state of the final divorce decree. Blood tests are not necessary to marry in Kansas.

Incestuous marriages are considered void under the state's Statutes Annotated, Section 23-2503. Under state law, all marriages between children and parents, including grandchildren and grandparents of any degree, are deemed incestuous. Also, marriages between first cousins, nephews and aunts, brothers and sisters (whole or half-blood), and uncles and nieces are considered incestuous in Kansas and are completely void. As a result, before issuing a license to any intending couple in the state, Section 23-2515 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated requires the clerk or judge of the District Court to have license applicants take and subscribe to an oath that they are not closely related.

How To Get Married in Kansas

The process of getting married in Kansas begins with obtaining a marriage license from the clerk of the District Court in any county within the state. A prospective couple may apply for a marriage license online using the Kansas Marriage License Application Form managed by the state's Judicial Branch. Generally, a couple will need an email address to apply for a marriage license online. Each party will also provide their full name, gender, date of birth, current address, place of birth, race, ethnicity, education level, Social Security number, race, parents' names, and parents' place of birth. Anyone with no social security number can enter 999-99-9999 as their number while applying for a license.

Kansas does not require anyone applying for a marriage license to submit documents or show identification. Unlike some states, there is a waiting period before a marriage ceremony after applying for a marriage license because no applicant will get the license the same day they apply. Typically, after submitting an application for a marriage license, the clerk of the selected District Court will process it, which may take anywhere between 3 days and two weeks from the date of application. It costs $85.50 to obtain a Kansas marriage license. However, there is usually an additional $1.25 fee if paying by electronic check and a $2.14 charge if making payment by debit or credit card.

Once issued, a Kansas marriage license is valid for six months from the date it was issued, a period in which both parties are expected to marry each other in a marriage ceremony. If the parties named on the license fail to get married within this period, they will have to apply for a new marriage license. Per Section 23-2504 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated, the joining of two parties in a legal union should be done in the presence of any of the following authorized marriage officiants:

Any current justice or judge of a court of record
Any currently ordained clergy or religious authority of any religious society or denomination
Any retired justice or judge of a court of record
Any municipal judge of a city within the state

Under Kansas marriage laws, the two parties to a proposed marriage may take each other as spouses by mutual declarations without an authorized officiant. In such a situation, they will marry in accordance with the rules, customs, and regulations of any religious denomination, society, or sect to which either of the spouses belongs. Regardless of who officiates a marriage ceremony in the state, two qualified witnesses aged at least 18 are required.

After a marriage ceremony, the new couple or the marriage officiant must return their completed and signed marriage license to the clerk of the District Court in the county where the license was issued. Submission may either be in person or by U.S. mail. Afterward, the couple may order a certified copy of their marriage certificate from the county where they filed for the license or the state's Office of Vital Statistics.

Kansas Marriage Certificate

A Kansas marriage certificate is an official document that proves that the union between two individuals within the state is legally recognized and valid. Typically, the state's marriage certificates are created by the clerk of District Courts after marriage licenses are returned to the issuing courts following marriage ceremonies. They contain information such as the names of the married individuals, the names and signatures of witnesses, the location and date of the marriage, and the name of the marriage ceremony officiant.

Interested persons may obtain copies of Kansas marriage certificates from the District Court clerks' offices in the counties where the marriage licenses were filed. To facilitate these searches, they will need to provide certain details, including the names of the spouses named on the certificates. Copies of Kansas marriage certificates are also available for retrieval at the state's Office of Vital Statistics. They may be retrieved in person, online, or by mail.

How To Find and Access Kansas Marriage Records

In Kansas, completed marriage licenses are originally filed with the county clerk of the issuing District Court. Afterward, copies of the completed licenses (certificates, which are a part of the state's marriage records) are forwarded to the Office of Vital Statistics. Generally, it is possible to find and access Kansas marriage records online or offline.

Accessing Kansas Marriage Records Offline

The clerks of District Courts in the counties keep records of marriages that have taken place in each county. These records (not certified copies) may be accessed in person or by mail at the clerk's office, but requesters must provide certain information to help facilitate the searches. Searches conducted at the county level will largely provide information about marriage licenses and marriage ceremonies.

The state's Office of Vital Statistics also provides an avenue for eligible people who wish to access copies of Kansas marriage records offline. For in-person or walk-in requests, requesters must provide their government-issued photo IDs while submitting their requests between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. at:

Office of Vital Statistics

Curtis State Office Building

1000 SW Jackson

Suite 120

Topeka, KS 66612-2221

To order a Kansas marriage record by mail from the Office of Vital Statistics, an eligible, interested person should complete the Application for Certified Copy of Kansas Marriage Certificate and mail it alongside all required documents to the office. Generally, it costs $20 to obtain the first copy of a Kansas marriage record from the Office of Vital Statistics and $20 for each additional copy of the same record requested at the same time.

Accessing Kansas Marriage Records Online

Some counties in Kansa maintain online resources that enable the public to find and access certain marriage records. For instance, the Document Search maintained by the Johnson County District Court allows anyone to look up information about marriage licenses issued in the county. Similarly, eligible individuals may order Kansas marriage records online from the Office of Vital Statistics through the office's approved vendor. Alternatively, they may call the office at (877) 305-8315 to make their requests.

References

Counties in Kansas

List of Content

What are Marriage Records?
Marriages in Kansas
1. How To Get Married in Kansas
2. Kansas Marriage Certificate
How To Find and Access Kansas Marriage Records