§ 19-3-44.Return of license to parties

Chapter 3. Marriage Generally · Article 2. License and Ceremony · Last amended 1958 · Last verified October 9, 2026

In one sentenceO.C.G.A. § 19-3-44 requires the probate judge to return the original marriage license, with the officiant’s return on it, to the couple after recording it, and lets the judge, on either party’s request, return a license recorded before March 25, 1958, to the party or parties the section names.

Full Text of § 19-3-44

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b)

(a) The judge of the probate court of each county shall return to the parties to a marriage the license and the return thereon after the same have been recorded as provided by law. This subsection shall be applicable to all marriage licenses and the returns thereon recorded after March 25, 1958.

(b) Upon request of either of the parties, the judge of the probate court of each county is authorized, as to marriage licenses with the returns thereon recorded prior to March 25, 1958, to return the license:

(1) To the parties to the marriage if the marriage is not dissolved and the parties are not living in a state of separation;

(2) To the surviving party to the marriage if one of the parties is deceased; or

(3) To the party first requesting the license if the parties are divorced.

End

Plain-English Summary

After a wedding, the officiant returns the marriage license to the probate court with a certificate of the fact and date of the marriage, and the judge records it, as § 19-3-30(c) requires. This section says what happens to the original document next. The probate judge shall return the license and the return on it to the parties after they have been recorded. That rule covers all marriage licenses and returns recorded after March 25, 1958.

Older licenses follow a different rule. For licenses with returns recorded before March 25, 1958, the judge is authorized, but not required, to return the license on request of either party. Who receives it depends on the marriage’s status. If the marriage has not been dissolved and the parties are not living in a state of separation, the license goes to both parties. If one spouse has died, it goes to the survivor. If the parties are divorced, it goes to the party who asked first.

The probate court keeps its record in the book the judge maintains under § 19-3-30; this section deals with the paper original. The section dates from 1958 and has not been amended since. If a license was never returned for recording, § 19-3-30(e) lets either party to a ceremonial marriage establish the marriage with the affidavits of two witnesses to the ceremony.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I get my original marriage license back in Georgia?

Yes. Once the officiant returns the license and the probate court records it, the judge of the probate court shall return the license and the return on it to the parties. That rule applies to all licenses recorded after March 25, 1958. The court’s record stays in the book the judge keeps under § 19-3-30.

How do I get back a marriage license recorded before March 25, 1958?

Either party may ask the probate judge, who is authorized to return it. Where it goes depends on the marriage’s status: to both parties if the marriage isn’t dissolved and they aren’t living in a state of separation; to the surviving party if one has died; or to the party who asked first if they’re divorced. The word is “authorized,” so the return is permitted, not required.

We divorced. Which of us gets the old marriage license?

For a license recorded before March 25, 1958, the party who first requests it. For licenses recorded after that date, the section sends the license back to the parties once it’s recorded, which happens around the time of the wedding. The section doesn’t address who keeps that document after a later divorce.

Who returns the marriage license to the probate court after the wedding?

The officiant. Under § 19-3-30(c), the person who performed the ceremony must return the license to the probate judge with the certificate of the fact and date of marriage within 30 days after the marriage. The judge records it, and then this section requires the judge to return the license and the return on it to the couple.

What if my marriage license was never returned or recorded?

Code Section 19-3-30(e) gives a remedy. Either party to a ceremonial marriage may submit to the probate judge the affidavits of two witnesses to the ceremony, giving the date, the place and the name of the official or minister who performed it. The judge then reissues the license, enters the certificate of marriage and records it.

Amendment History

Laws 1958, p. 331, §§ 1, 2.

Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, enacted by the Georgia General Assembly, and checked word for word against the Georgia Code Revision Commission’s public-domain edition and the acts that later amended it. Section headings are the Code’s official catchlines. Last verified October 9, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: original marriage license georgiaget marriage license back probate courtmarriage certificate georgia probate courtold marriage license georgia