Marriage licenses — Brevard County, Florida

Couples apply together, in person, at any branch office of the Brevard County Clerk of the Circuit Court, including the Palm Bay Office at 450 Cogan Drive SE and the Melbourne Branch Courthouse at 51 Nieman Avenue.

In Brevard County the county judge or the Clerk of the Circuit Court issues every marriage license, and the Clerk's page says both applicants must appear at the same time and that a Brevard license is good only inside Florida (Brevard County Clerk, Marriage Licenses). The office list printed on that page names six offices, from the Titusville Office on South Street to the Palm Bay Office on Cogan Drive SE.

The Palm Bay Office on Cogan Drive closes from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM every weekday, and so does the Merritt Island Office in the Merritt Island Service Complex, while Melbourne, Viera and the Titusville counters stay open straight through from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM (Clerk office hours and locations). The Clerk's main line for questions is (321) 637-5413.

The Brevard County Clerk of the Circuit Court charges $86.00 for a marriage license, or $61.00 when both applicants present premarital course certificates from a registered provider.

Both prices are on the Clerk's marriage page, which also says course certificates must be shown at the counter when the couple applies, in Palm Bay, Melbourne or any other branch (Brevard County Clerk). Payment may be made by cashier's check, certified check, money order or credit card. The Clerk takes Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover, and a card adds a convenience fee of $2.00 or 2.95% of the total charge, whichever is greater; the Clerk's Office does not receive any part of that fee.

State law fixes several pieces of the Brevard price. Section 741.01 raises the fee on every Florida license by $25 for the Domestic Violence Trust Fund, adds a second $25 that the clerk sends each month to the State Courts Revenue Trust Fund, and lets the clerk collect $2 for receiving the application (F.S. 741.01). Subsection (4) of that section cuts the fee by $25 for couples whose course was taken no more than 1 year before they apply, which matches the $25 gap between the two Brevard prices.

One wording difference sits in the statutes themselves. Section 741.0305, the course statute, now says the fee is reduced by $32.50 when the certificate is furnished (F.S. 741.0305), while the Brevard County Clerk's posted prices still differ by $25. The $86.00 and $61.00 figures above are the prices the Clerk posts.

Each applicant brings a state-issued picture ID, military ID or passport to the Brevard County Clerk of the Circuit Court and must know a Social Security number, plus the exact date any earlier marriage ended.

A recent change in the law, the Clerk's FAQ says, requires each applicant to give a Social Security number, naturalization number, immigration number or passport number (Clerk FAQ). Divorce papers or a death certificate are not needed at the Melbourne or Palm Bay counter; the application only asks when and how the last marriage ended. There is no citizenship requirement, no blood test, and the license is issued immediately, in a process that normally takes no more than 15 minutes.

The Clerk's Marriage License Kiosk is an online pre-application for Brevard residents. Applicants fill in every field, submit, and note the application number shown on the confirmation screen, then visit any Brevard County Clerk branch together with their IDs, that number and the fee to finish the license (Marriage License Kiosk).

Age and paperwork rules come from section 741.04. A Clerk of the Circuit Court may not license anyone younger than 18 unless that person is at least 17, has written consent from parents or a legal guardian acknowledged before an officer, and the older party is not more than 2 years older (F.S. 741.04). The same section requires a sworn affidavit with each party's Social Security or other identification number and age, a signed statement on the premarital preparation course, and a statement that both have read the state handbook on marriage rights; the Brevard Clerk posts that Family Law Handbook in English and Spanish. Same-gender couples have been able to marry in Brevard since 01/06/2015, according to the Clerk's FAQ.

Florida residents who have not both finished a premarital course wait three days before a Brevard County license takes effect, a rule the Clerk of the Circuit Court dates to January 1, 1999.

The Brevard County Clerk lists three ways around the wait: both applicants completed a course with a registered provider, the couple declares a hardship, or both applicants live outside Florida (Brevard County Clerk). The Clerk's FAQ adds that the partners may take the course separately, but both must take it to get the $61.00 price and skip the wait. Section 741.04(5) tells the clerk to print the delayed effective date in bold type on the license and lets a county court judge waive the delay for Florida residents who show good cause (F.S. 741.04).

The course itself must last not less than 4 hours. Instructors must come from the list in section 741.0305: psychologists licensed under chapter 490; clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists or mental health counselors licensed under chapter 491; an official representative of a recognized religious institution with relevant training; or any other provider a judicial circuit designates. Every area provider files an affidavit with the Clerk of the Circuit Court to register (F.S. 741.0305). The Brevard Clerk publishes a Marriage Course Provider Listing and the provider affidavit form on its marriage page.

A Brevard County license lasts 60 days, though the Clerk's page states the start of that window two ways. Its Time Limit section says the license must be used within sixty days from the effective date, while its FAQ says Florida licenses are valid for 60 days from the date of issuance. The Clerk's page also tells officiants to make sure the ceremony is performed between the license's effective and expiration dates.

Yes: deputy clerks of the Brevard County Clerk of the Circuit Court perform civil marriage ceremonies for $30.00, without an advance appointment, during normal business hours.

There is one catch for Florida residents without the course. The Brevard County Clerk's FAQ says its office cannot perform the marriage at the time the license is obtained if the three-day waiting period applies, so those couples cannot be married by a deputy clerk on the day the license is issued (Clerk FAQ). Outside the Clerk's office, section 741.07 allows ordained clergy, all judicial officers including retired judicial officers, clerks of the circuit courts and Florida notaries public to solemnize a marriage, and Quaker ceremonies are valid under the same section (F.S. 741.07).

The Halloween ceremonies on October 30, 2026 are performed by Clerk Sadoff, and couples must obtain their license by October 26 at any Brevard County Clerk office to keep the appointment (Brevard County Clerk). Couples check in no later than 15 minutes before their ceremony time, and the Clerk reminds Melbourne couples that they will go through security. The Clerk takes questions about these ceremonies at (321) 637-2006.

Within ten days of the ceremony, the officiant certifies the license and returns it to the Brevard County Clerk of the Circuit Court office that issued it, which records it in the county's Official Records.

According to the Clerk's FAQ, certified copies are normally received within 10 days after the completed certificate reaches the Clerk for recording (Clerk FAQ). Mail for the Recording Department goes to P.O. Box 2767 in Titusville, per the Clerk's mailing list (Clerk mailing addresses). A couple renewing vows needs no license at all, the FAQ adds.

State copies are a second route. Brevard marriages recorded from June 6, 1927 onward can also be ordered from the Bureau of Vital Statistics of the Florida Department of Health, at $15 for the first certificate, while anything earlier is obtainable from the clerk of court in the county where the license was issued (Florida Department of Health). For an old Brevard marriage, that means the Brevard County Clerk of the Circuit Court.

Last verified: October 12, 2026, on the Brevard County Clerk of Court marriage license page.