SB 1956

relating to an application for and the issuance of a marriage
license after the marriage ceremony has been conducted.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1.  Section 2.001(a), Family Code, is amended to
(a)  A man and a woman desiring to enter into a ceremonial
marriage must obtain a marriage license from the county clerk of any
county of this state.  The man and woman may obtain the marriage
license after the marriage ceremony only in accordance with Section
SECTION 2.  Subchapter A, Chapter 2, Family Code, is amended
by adding Section 2.0025 to read as follows:
Sec. 2.0025.  APPLICATION FOR LICENSE AFTER MARRIAGE
CEREMONY; AFFIDAVIT REQUIRED.  To apply for a marriage license
after the marriage ceremony has been conducted, in addition to
satisfying the requirements under Section 2.002, each person
applying for the marriage license must submit to the county clerk an
affidavit in the form prescribed by the bureau of vital statistics
(1)  contains a heading entitled, "Post-Ceremony
Marriage Affidavit, ____________ County, Texas";
(2)  attests the marriage ceremony has taken place;
(A)  the date of the marriage and the county in
which the marriage was performed; and
(B)  the name of the person who conducted the
(A)  both applicants for the marriage license;
(B)  two witnesses to the ceremony; and
(C)  the person who conducted the ceremony.
SECTION 3.  Section 2.004, Family Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (b) and (d) and adding Subsection (e) to read
(b)  The application form must contain:
(1)  a heading entitled "Application for Marriage
License, ____________ County, Texas";
(2)  spaces for each applicant's full name, including
the woman's maiden surname, address, social security number, if
any, date of birth, and place of birth, including city, county, and
(3)  a space for indicating the document tendered by
each applicant as proof of identity and age;
(4)  spaces for indicating whether each applicant has
been divorced within the last 30 days;
(5)  printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"
or "false" in response to the following statement:  "I am not
presently married and the other applicant is not presently
(6)  printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"
or "false" in response to the following statement: "I am
ceremonially married to the other applicant and am including a
completed Post-Ceremony Marriage Affidavit with this application,
I am not presently married to a person other than the other
applicant, and the other applicant is not presently married to a
person other than myself" together with an explanation that an
applicant who checks "true" in response to the statement is not
required to check "true" or "false" under Subdivision (5);
(7)  printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"
or "false" in response to the following statement:  "The other
applicant is not related to me as:
(A)  an ancestor or descendant, by blood or
(B)  a brother or sister, of the whole or half
(C)  a parent's brother or sister, of the whole or
(D)  a son or daughter of a brother or sister, of
the whole or half blood or by adoption;
(E)  a current or former stepchild or stepparent;
(F)  a son or daughter of a parent's brother or
sister, of the whole or half blood or by adoption.";
(8) [(7)]  printed boxes for each applicant to check
"true" or "false" in response to the following statement:  "I am not
presently delinquent in the payment of court-ordered child
(9) [(8)]  a printed oath reading:  "I SOLEMNLY SWEAR
(OR AFFIRM) THAT THE INFORMATION I HAVE GIVEN IN THIS APPLICATION IS
(10) [(9)]  spaces immediately below the printed oath
for the applicants' signatures;
(11) [(10)]  a certificate of the county clerk that:
(A)  each applicant made the oath and the date and
(B)  an applicant did not appear personally but
the prerequisites for the license have been fulfilled as provided
(12) [(11)]  spaces for indicating the date of the
marriage and the county in which the marriage is performed;
(13) [(12)]  a space for the address to which the
applicants desire the completed license to be mailed; and
(14) [(13)]  a printed box for each applicant to check
indicating that the applicant wishes to make a voluntary
contribution of $5 to promote healthy early childhood by supporting
the Texas Home Visiting Program administered by the Office of Early
Childhood Coordination of the Health and Human Services Commission.
(d)  An applicant commits an offense if the applicant
knowingly provides false information under Subsection (b)(5), [or]
(6), or (7).  An offense under this subsection is a Class A
(e)  An applicant who checks "true" under Subsection (b)(6)
is not required to check "true" or "false" under Subsection (b)(5).
SECTION 4.  Section 2.008(a), Family Code, is amended to
(A)  all necessary information is recorded in the
application, other than, if the ceremony has not yet been
performed, the date of the marriage ceremony, the county in which
the ceremony is conducted, and the name of the person who performs
the ceremony;[, is recorded on the application] and
(B)  [that] all necessary documents are
(2)  administer the oath to each applicant appearing
(3)  have each applicant appearing before the clerk
sign the application in the clerk's presence; and
(4)  execute the clerk's certificate on the
SECTION 5.  Sections 2.009(a) and (b), Family Code, are
(a)  Except as provided by Subsections (b) and (d), the
county clerk may not issue a license if either applicant:
(1)  fails to provide the information required by this
(2)  fails to submit proof of age and identity;
(3)  is under 18 years of age and has not presented:
(A)  a court order granted by this state under
Chapter 31 removing the disabilities of minority of the applicant
(B)  if the applicant is a nonresident minor, a
certified copy of an order removing the disabilities of minority of
the applicant for general purposes filed with this state under
(4)  checks "false" in response to a statement under
Section 2.004(b)(5), (7), or (8) in the application, except as
provided by Subsection (b) or (d), or fails to make a required
declaration in an affidavit required of an absent applicant; or
(5)  indicates that the applicant has been divorced
within the last 30 days, unless:
(A)  the applicants were divorced from each other;
(B)  the prohibition against remarriage is waived
(b)  If an applicant checks "false" in response to the
statement "I am not presently married and the other applicant is not
presently married[,]" under Section 2.004(b)(5), the county clerk
shall inquire as to whether the applicant is presently married to
the other applicant. If the applicant states that the applicant is
currently married to the other applicant, the county clerk shall
record that statement on the license before the administration of
the oath. The county clerk may not refuse to issue a license on the
ground that the applicants are already married to each other.
SECTION 6.  Section 2.203(a), Family Code, is amended to
(a)  On receiving an unexpired marriage license, or, if
applicable, on being informed by each person requesting to be
married in the ceremony that the persons to be married intend to
apply for a marriage license after the ceremony in accordance with
Section 2.0025, an authorized person may conduct the marriage
ceremony as provided by this subchapter.
SECTION 7.  Section 2.204, Family Code, is amended to read as
Sec. 2.204.  72-HOUR WAITING PERIOD;  EXCEPTIONS.  (a)
Except as provided by this section:
(1)  [,] a marriage ceremony may not take place during
the 72-hour period immediately following the issuance of the
(2)  if the marriage ceremony is conducted before the
marriage license is issued, the applicants may not apply for a
marriage license under Section 2.0025 during the 72-hour period
immediately following the ceremony.
(b)  The 72-hour waiting period under Subsection (a) [after
issuance of a marriage license] does not apply to an applicant who:
(1)  is a member of the armed forces of the United
(2)  is not a member of the armed forces of the United
States but performs work for the United States Department of
Defense as a department employee or under a contract with the
(3)  obtains a written waiver under Subsection (c); or
(4)  completes a premarital education course described
by Section 2.013, and who provides to the county clerk a premarital
education course completion certificate indicating completion of
the premarital education course not more than one year before the
date the marriage license application is filed with the clerk.
(c)  An applicant may request a judge of a court with
jurisdiction in family law cases, a justice of the supreme court, a
judge of the court of criminal appeals, a county judge, a judge of a
court of appeals, an associate judge appointed under Chapter 201,
an associate judge appointed under Chapter 54A, Government Code, or
a justice of the peace for a written waiver permitting the marriage
ceremony to take place during the 72-hour period immediately
following the issuance of the marriage license or permitting the
applicant to apply for a marriage license under Section 2.0025
during the 72-hour period immediately following the marriage
ceremony, as applicable.  If the judge, associate judge, or justice
finds that there is good cause [for the marriage to take place
during the period], the judge, associate judge, or justice shall
sign the waiver.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a
judge, associate judge, or justice under this section has the
authority to sign a waiver under this section.
SECTION 8.  The heading to Section 2.206, Family Code, is
Sec. 2.206.  RETURN OF LICENSE OR POST-CEREMONY MARRIAGE
SECTION 9.  Section 2.206(a), Family Code, is amended to
(a)  The person who conducts a marriage ceremony shall, as
(1)  record on the license the date on which and the
county in which the ceremony is performed and the person's name,
subscribe the license, and return the license to the county clerk
who issued it not later than the 30th day after the date the
(2)  record on a Post-Ceremony Marriage Affidavit the
date on which and the county in which the ceremony was performed and
the person's name, subscribe the affidavit, and return the
affidavit to a person who was married in the ceremony.
SECTION 10.  Section 2.207(a), Family Code, is amended to
(a)  A person who is to conduct a marriage ceremony shall, if
applicable, determine whether the license has expired from the
county clerk's endorsement on the license.
SECTION 11.  Section 2.208(a), Family Code, is amended to
(a)  The county clerk shall record a [returned] marriage
license returned after a marriage ceremony has been conducted or a
marriage license that includes a completed Post-Ceremony Marriage
Affidavit and mail the license to the address indicated on the
application.  On request by the applicants, the county clerk may
e-mail the marriage license to an e-mail address provided to the
county clerk by the applicants in addition to mailing the license.
SECTION 12.  Section 6.110, Family Code, is amended to read
Sec. 6.110.  VIOLATION OF 72-HOUR WAITING PERIOD [MARRIAGE
LESS THAN 72 HOURS AFTER ISSUANCE OF LICENSE].  (a)  The court may
grant an annulment of a marriage to a party to the marriage if:
(1)  the marriage ceremony took place [in violation of
Section 2.204] during the 72-hour period immediately following the
issuance of the marriage license in violation of Section
(2)  the parties to the marriage ceremony applied for a
marriage license during the 72-hour period immediately following
the ceremony in violation of Section 2.204(a)(2).
(b)  A suit may not be brought under this section after the
30th day after the date of the marriage.
SECTION 13.  The changes in law made by this Act apply only
to an application for a marriage license submitted on or after
December 1, 2025.  An application for a marriage license submitted
before that date is governed by the law in effect immediately before
the effective date of this Act, and the former law is continued in
SECTION 14.  Not later than December 1, 2025, the vital
statistics unit of the Department of State Health Services shall:
(1)  prescribe the form of the affidavit required by
Section 2.0025, Family Code, as added by this Act; and
(2)  update as necessary the form required by Section
2.004, Family Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 15.  This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2025.