§ 19-3-2.Who may contract marriage; emancipation requirement; minimum age for marriage
Chapter 3. Marriage Generally · Article 1. General Provisions · Last amended 2019 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-3-2
Plain-English Summary
This section sets the capacity rules for marriage. To be able to contract marriage, a person must meet four conditions in subsection (a): be of sound mind; be at least 18 years of age, except as subsection (b) allows; have no living spouse from a previous marriage that hasn’t been dissolved; and not be related to the other party by blood or marriage within the prohibited degrees, which Code Section 19-3-3 lists.
The prior-marriage rule carries an important evidence point. A divorce ending the earlier marriage must be affirmatively established — the law won’t presume it. And the paragraph says nothing in it affects the legitimacy of children.
Subsection (b) is the only exception to the age rule, and it is narrow. If either applicant is 17, the probate court needs documentary proof that the 17-year-old was emancipated, either by operation of law or by a court order on a petition under Article 10 of Chapter 11 of Title 15. Four more conditions apply: if emancipation came by court order, a certified copy of that order is the proof; at least 15 days must have passed since the emancipation; the older party can be no more than four years older than the younger; and each 17-year-old party must present a certificate of completed premarital education under Code Section 19-3-30.1. Parental consent isn’t one of the listed paths.
Subsection (c) is a flat bar: no license may be issued for the marriage of anyone under 17. The section was last amended in 2019. Code Section 19-3-36 requires the probate judge to check proof of age, and Code Section 19-3-5 explains what happens when a marriage is entered despite one of these impediments.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the legal age to get married in Georgia?
Eighteen. A 17-year-old may marry only with documentary proof of emancipation, at least 15 days after the emancipation, to someone no more than four years older, and with a certificate of completed premarital education. No marriage license can be issued for anyone under 17.
Can a 17-year-old get married in Georgia with parental consent?
Parental consent isn’t the test this section uses. A 17-year-old needs documentary proof of emancipation — by operation of law or by a court order under Article 10 of Chapter 11 of Title 15 — plus the waiting period, the age-gap limit, and the premarital education certificate the section requires. If the emancipation came by court order, a certified copy of the order is required.
Can I get married before my divorce is final?
No. A person able to marry must have no living spouse from a previous undissolved marriage. The section adds that the end of a prior marriage by divorce must be affirmatively established and won’t be presumed. A marriage entered while the first spouse is living and the first marriage is undissolved is void under Code Section 19-3-5.
Does a void second marriage affect whether the children are legitimate?
No. The prior-marriage paragraph says nothing in it shall be construed to affect the legitimacy of children. Code Section 19-3-5 adds that children of a void marriage born before the marriage is annulled by a competent court are legitimate. So children born before an annulment don’t lose legitimacy because of a defect in their parents’ marriage.
Can someone with a mental illness get married in Georgia?
The test is whether the person is “of sound mind” when contracting the marriage. The section doesn’t define the phrase, so whether a particular person met it is a question of fact. If a marriage was void for that reason, Code Section 19-3-5 lets later free consent and ratification, accompanied by cohabitation and made after the impediment is removed, make it valid.
Amendment History
Laws 1957, p. 83, § 1; Laws 1962, p. 138, § 1; Laws 1963, p. 485, § 1; Laws 1965, p. 335, § 1; Laws 1965, p. 500, § 1; Laws 1976, p. 1719, § 1; Laws 1979, p. 872, § 1; Laws 1999, p. 81, § 19; Laws 2006, Act 466, § 6A, eff. July 1, 2006; Laws 2019, Act 187, § 1-1, eff. July 1, 2019.
Formerly Code 1863, § 1654; Code 1868, § 1698; Code 1873, § 1699; Code 1882, § 1699; Civil Code 1895, § 2412; Civil Code 1910, § 2931; Code 1933, § 53-102.