Officiating at a wedding ceremony is a high honor that will require some preparation to ensure everything is conducted in a legal and memorable manner. Today, many couples are choosing to personalize their wedding by having a close friend or family member serve as the ordained minister for their ceremony. While it is easy to get caught up in all of the excitement, you will need to take the following steps to perform a wedding that will be tailored to the couple’s preferences as well as legally recognized by their community.

Get Ordained Prior to Filing the License

The first thing you will need to do before the wedding is get ordained as a minister. This can be done online in a short period of time. However, you will need to do this before the betrothed couple files for their marriage license in case you need to register before you perform a wedding. It is also important to know that those who do not belong to a specific church or faith can still become ordained as an interfaith minister.

Find Out if You Must Register as a Minister

After getting ordained, you will need to find out where the couple will be filing their marriage license. This way, you can contact the office and find out if you will need to provide documentation before you are able to perform a wedding. If you do not, then you can proceed with the ceremony and simply give the license back to the couple to submit after it is over. In instances where you must register, the office will inform you of the appropriate document to turn in. It is best to begin this process at least a month in advance due to the fact that some locations have restrictions regarding when the ceremony can take place after the documents are filed.

Discuss the Couple’s Preferences

With the necessary paperwork out of the way, you will be ready to begin planning the ceremony. Most couples will have preferences regarding the vows they would like to say and the series of events that take place. While you and the couple can customize the ceremony to their preferences, it is important to keep in mind that you must ask for informed consent to marry the partners while in the presence of witnesses. You must also pronounce them as married at the end to make it official. Make sure to rehearse your script so that nothing is left out, and try to practice the entire ceremony with the couple if time permits.

Finalize the Wedding after the Ceremony

Once the wedding is complete, you will need to finalize the union by filling out your portion of the marriage license. On the license, you may be asked to include your name, official title, address and possibly your denomination, which it is acceptable to list as non-denominational. If they ask for the address of the church at which you minister, simply include your home address. However, some marriage licenses will request the information where you were ordained. In that case, use the address listed on our website. Then, give the license back to the couple and your part of the ceremony is complete.