
Congratulations! If you've found yourself at this page it is likely that you are either planning to be married or have been asked to perform a wedding ceremony in West Virginia. Ordained ministers of the Universal Life Church have successfully performed thousands of legal marriages in West Virginia. The information provided below will walk you through the steps one must follow to become a minister and perform a valid wedding ceremony in the state of West Virginia.
- ULC Ordination Accepted: Yes
- Minister Registration Required: Yes
- Minister's Residency: Irrelevant
- Minister's Minimum Age: 18
- Marriage License Waiting Period: 3 Days
- Marriage License Valid For: 60 Days
- Marriage License Return Within: By Expiration
1 How to Become an Ordained Minister in West Virginia
If you haven't already, you should get ordained online with the Universal Life Church. Ordination is free and can be completed in just a matter of minutes. Thousands of legally valid marriages are performed by ULC ministers around the world every year. Begin the process by clicking the big blue button below!
2 Officiating a Wedding in West Virginia
Next, you should contact the office of your local marriage authority (typically your county clerk). Let them know that you are a minister of the Universal Life Church in Seattle, and ask what they will require of you to officiate a legal marriage.
Select your County Clerk to quickly generate the contact information for your local marriage authority.
Select a county contact

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Opossum Creek Retreat, in Lansing with easy access to hiking, river rafting and state parks
3 License to Marry in West Virginia
After you've contacted your marriage authority, you should visit our online store to purchase whatever documentation will be required. West Virginia county clerks have more specific policies in place than many other states in the country for wedding officiants. Additionally, you will want to add a Letter of Good Standing to your order. We've heard from other ULC ministers in the area that county clerks will typically ask for both documents before accepting any marriages that you perform as having been legally solemnized. Please attempt to leave at least 3 weeks between the date of the wedding ceremony and your order, to ensure that you receive all of your materials in advance.
You would be wise to add a Letter of Good Standing and might explore our entire catalog to see if there aren't any other neat ministerial items you'd like to add to your arsenal.
4 How to get Married in West Virginia
Now that you've done all of the above, you are ready to perform the wedding! Be sure that the couple has picked up their West Virginia marriage license from the appropriate office. This license is valid for 30 days, and there is a 3-day waiting period between when the couple applies for the marriage license in West Virginia and when they may pick it up and legally solemnize the marriage. Please be aware that the signed license must be returned to the issuing office before its expiry.
At the Universal Life Church we receive several calls from wedding officiants in West Virginia, after they've received their license to marry by getting ordained online, asking for guidance on how to perform a wedding ceremony. Once the legal matters have been taken care of, officiating a wedding (while a sometimes-daunting task) can be a great deal of fun. We would suggest that new West Virginia wedding ministers concerned about the ceremony peruse one of our helpful wedding guides. The minister training section of our website should offer a helpful refresher for more experienced ministers.
5 West Virginia Wedding Need-To-Knows
The mountainous state of West Virginia has an ideal wedding venue for every couple, no matter what they're looking for. West Virginia is particularly perfect for couples envisioning a stylistically rustic wedding. More and more couples are opting for the favorable climate of a West Virginia spring for their wedding but summer and early fall are popular too. However, it is important to be cautious and aware of the summer thunderstorms as the weather can be temperamental during the warmer months. As the largest cities in West Virginia, Charleston and Huntington offer a variety of venue options with some very affordable options starting at $2,000 to more extravagant venues that'll cost around $13,000. The most popular time to get married is early fall, so be sure to book your venue well in advance if you are considering a wedding at that time. There are many factors to consider when deciding how much to charge as an officiant, such as how experienced the officiant is, how much preparation will be involved and if travel will be required. However, the typical cost for an experienced officiant is between $200-$500.

West Virginia Marriage Code
Marriage in West Virginia is governed by West Virginia Code 48-2-201. Ministers who got ordained online with the Universal Life Church have successfully solemnized thousands of weddings in the state. Below, you will find that we have reproduced a relevant excerpt of this code.§48-2-401. Persons authorized to perform marriages. A religious representative who has complied with the provisions of section 2-402, a family court judge, a circuit judge or a justice of the supreme court of appeals, is authorized to celebrate the rites of marriage in any county of this state. Celebration or solemnization of a marriage means the performance of the formal act or ceremony by which a man and woman contract marriage and assume the status of husband and wife. View the West Virginia Statutes on the official state site.
To view the in-depth wedding laws for West Virginia state:
West Virginia Marriage Laws⇓ Show the rest
Barbour County
26 North Main StreetPhilippi, West Virginia
26416
Phone: (304) 457-2232
Fax: (304) 457-5983
Barbour County website »
Berkeley County
100 West King StreetMartinsburg, West Virginia
25401
Phone: (304) 264-1927
Fax: (304) 267-1794
Berkeley County website »
Boone County
200 State StreetMadison, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 369-7301
Boone County website »
Braxton County
300 Main Street or PO Box 486Sutton, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 765-2833
Fax: (304) 765-2093
Braxton County website »
Brooke County
632 Main StreetWellsburg, West Virginia
26070
Phone: (304) 737-3661
Brooke County website »
Cabell County
750 5th Avenue Suite 108Huntington, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 526-8625
Fax: (304) 526-8632
Cabell County website »
Calhoun County
300 Main St.Grantsville, West Virginia
26147
Phone: (304) 354-6725
Fax: (304) 354-6447
Calhoun County website »
Clay County
200 Main St.Clay, West Virginia
25043
Phone: (304) 587-4256
Fax: (304) 587-4202
Clay County website »
Doddridge County
108 East Court Street, Suite 1West Union, West Virginia
26456
Phone: (304) 873-2631
Fax: (304) 873-1840
Doddridge County website »
Fayette County
120 Court StreetFayetteville, West Virginia
25840
Phone: (304) 574-4226
Fax: (304) 574-4335
Fayette County website »
Gilmer County
10 Howard StreetGlenville, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 461-7641
Fax: (304) 462-8855
Gilmer County website »
Grant County
5 Highland AvenuePetersburg, West Virginia
26847
Phone: (304) 257-4550
Fax: (304) 257-4207
Grant County website »
Greenbrier County
912 Court Street NLewisburg, West Virginia
24901
Phone: (304) 647-6602
Fax: (304) 647-6694
Greenbrier County website »
Hampshire County
19 E. Main StreetRomney, West Virginia
26757
Phone: (304) 822-5112
Fax: (304) 822-4039
Hampshire County website »
Hancock County
106 N Court StNew Cumberland, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 564-3311
Fax: (304) 564-5941
Hancock County website »
Hardy County
204 Washington St. Rm 111Moorefield, West Virginia
26836
Phone: (304) 530-0250
Fax: (304) 530-0251
Hardy County website »
Harrison County
301 W Main StClarksburg, West Virginia
26301
Phone: (304) 624-8675
Fax: (304) 624-8575
Harrison County website »
Jackson County
100 Court Street NorthRipley, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 373-2250
Fax: (304) 372-1107
Jackson County website »
Jefferson County
100 East Washington StreetCharles Town, West Virginia
25414
Phone: (304) 728-3215
Jefferson County website »
Kanawha County
409 Virginia Street EastCharleston, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 357-0130
Fax: (304) 357-0585
Kanawha County website »
Lewis County
110 Center AvenueWeston, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 269-8215
Fax: (304) 269-8202
Lewis County website »
Lincoln County
8000 Court AveHamlin, West Virginia
25523
Phone: (304) 824-7990 Ext 233
Fax: (304) 824-2444
Lincoln County website »
Logan County
300 Stratton StreetLogan, West Virginia
25601
Phone: (304) 792-8600
Fax: (304) 792-8621
Logan County website »
Marion County
219 Adams Street or PO Box 1267Fairmont, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 367-5440
Fax: (304) 367-5448
Marion County website »
Marshall County
600 7th St, Room 106Moundsville, West Virginia
26041
Phone: (304) 845-1220
Fax: (304) 845-5891
Marshall County website »
Mason County
200 Sixth StreetPoint Pleasant, West Virginia
25550
Phone: (304) 675-1997
Fax: (304) 675-2521
Mason County website »
McDowell County
90 Wyoming Street, Suite 109Welch, West Virginia
24801
Phone: (304) 436-8544
Fax: (304) 436-8576
McDowell County website »
Mercer County
1501 West Main Street, Suite 121Princeton, West Virginia
24740
Phone: (304) 487-8455
Fax: (304) 487-9842
Mercer County website »
Mineral County
150 Armstrong St # 103Keyser, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 788-3924
Mineral County website »
Mingo County
36 Court StWilliamson, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 235-0330
Fax: (304) 235-0565
Mingo County website »
Monongalia County
243 High St., Courthouse Room 123Morgantown, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 291-7230
Fax: (304) 291-7233
Monongalia County website »
Monroe County
350 Main StreetUnion, West Virginia
24983
Phone: (304) 772-3096
Monroe County website »
Morgan County
77 Fairfax Street, Room 102Berkeley Springs, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 258-8547
Fax: (304) 258-8545
Morgan County website »
Nicholas County
700 Main, First FloorSummersville, West Virginia
26651
Phone: (304) 872-7820
Nicholas County website »
Ohio County
1500 Chapline StreetWheeling, West Virginia
26003
Phone: (304) 234-3656
Fax: (304) 234-3829
Ohio County website »
Pendleton County
100 South Main StreetFranklin, West Virginia
26807
Phone: (304) 358-2505
Fax: (304) 358-2473
Pendleton County website »
Pleasants County
301 Court Ln, Room 101St Marys, West Virginia
26170
Phone: (304) 684-2202
Fax: (304) 684-7569
Pleasants County website »
Pocahontas County
900C 10th AvenueMarlinton, West Virginia
24954
Phone: (304) 799-4549
Fax: (304) 799-6947
Pocahontas County website »
Preston County
106 West Main St, Suite 103Kingwood, West Virginia
26537
Phone: (304) 329-0070
Fax: (304) 329-3192
Preston County website »
Putnam County
12093 Winfield Road, Suite 3Winfield, West Virginia
25213
Phone: (304) 586-0202
Putnam County website »
Raleigh County
215 Main StBeckley, West Virginia
25801
Phone: (304) 255-9123
Raleigh County website »
Randolph County
2 Randolph AvenueElkins, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 636-0543
Fax: (304) 636-0544
Randolph County website »
Ritchie County
115 East Main Street, Room 201Harrisville, West Virginia
26326
Phone: (304) 643-2164 ext 221
Fax: (304) 643-2906
Ritchie County website »
Roane County
200 Main StreetSpencer, West Virginia
25276
Phone: (304) 927-2860
Fax: (304) 927-2489
Roane County website »
Summers County
120 Ballengee Street, Suite 106Hinton, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 466-7104
Fax: (304) 466-7146
Summers County website »
Taylor County
214 West Main Street, Room 101Grafton, West Virginia
26354
Phone: (304) 265-1401
Fax: (304) 265-5450
Taylor County website »
Tucker County
211 First Street, Suite 205Parsons, West Virginia
26287
Phone: (304) 478-2414 ext 201
Fax: (304) 478-2217
Tucker County website »
Tyler County
121 Main StreetMiddlebourne, West Virginia
26149
Phone: (304) 758-2102 ext 3
Fax: (304) 758-2126
Tyler County website »
Upshur County
40 West Main Street, Room 101Buckhannon, West Virginia
Phone: (304) 472-1068
Fax: (304) 472-1029
Upshur County website »
Wayne County
700 Hendricks StreetWayne, West Virginia
25570
Phone: (304) 272-6362
Wayne County website »
Webster County
2 Court Square, Room G1Webster Springs, West Virginia
26288
Phone: (304) 847-2508
Fax: (304) 847-5780
Webster County website »
Wetzel County
200 Main St.New Martinsville, West Virginia
26155
Phone: (304) 455-8224
Fax: (304) 455-5256
Wetzel County website »
Wirt County
50 Court StElizabeth, West Virginia
26143
Phone: (304) 275-4271
Fax: (304) 275-3418
Wirt County website »
Wood County
1 Court SquareParkersburg, West Virginia
26101
Phone: (304) 424-1850
Wood County website »
Wyoming County
506A River RoadPineville, West Virginia
24874
Phone: (304) 732-8000
Fax: (304) 732-9659
Wyoming County website »