Marriage to a Californian

This page describes how to marry in California and how to sponsor your Californian spouse for permanent residence in Canada.

If you want to bring your American spouse or partner to live in Canada, you must then file a sponsorship application for them to become a permanent resident. For more information, please see our family sponsorship page.

 

Processing Time

If you file a Canadian sponsorship application for your American spouse or partner, this application takes an average of 15 months (as of June 2016). If you are sponsoring your American spouse “inland,” the process will take over two years.

Please see our pages on family sponsorship for more information on the processing times of these applications.

 

Californian Marriage Basic Requirements

In California, as with all US States, you need to apply for a marriage license and register your marriage with the local (county) authorities. A religious marriage that hasn’t been licensed and registered by the county is not considered legal in California and will not be accepted as a legal marriage in Canada either.

The legal age for marriage in California is 18. If you wish to marry under the age of 18, you can do so if you have the written consent of both your parents. At least one parent will have to submit this consent in person to the county office at the time of your marriage license application.

There are two types of marriage in California: ‘Public’ and ‘Confidential.’ ‘Public’ marriages are marriages that are made available in the public records. They the same as civil marriages. ‘Confidential’ marriages are not made public. A Confidential Marriage was initially created to allow people who were living together but not married to have the same legal rights as publicly married people.

Marriage license fees are determined by the county and each county has slightly different procedures about applying for a license. You will need to make sure you have the right documents for the county you are marrying in. Take your passport and all of the documents you brought with you from Canada with you to the court house. Your Californian spouse needs to present their passport, birth certificate and proof of single status. Appointments are not required.

In California, there is no delay for marriage license; it will be issued while you wait. You will have 90 days to marry.

 

Documents required from the Canadian Spouse

• Statement in Lieu of Certificate of Non-Impediment to Marriage Abroad
• Original valid Canadian passport
• Original birth certificate
• Original death certificate of deceased spouse if widowed
• Original divorce decree or annulment papers if divorced

 

Documents required form the American Spouse

• Original valid driver’s license
• Original birth certificate
• Original death certificate of deceased spouse if widowed
• Original divorce decree or annulment papers if divorced

Once you have your marriage license, you have 90 days to have the marriage ceremony.

 

Family Members

Having children does not affect the application for a Marriage License in California.

 

County Clerks

County	Office Address	Phone Number	Cost	Hours	Appointment Required?
Alameda County	1106 Madison Street Oakland CA 94607	888-280-7708	Public: $81 Confidential$90	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-4:00PM	None needed
Alpine County	99 Water St. Markleeville CA 96120	530-694-2281	$53.00	Monday to Friday: 8AM-12PM 1PM-5PM	None needed
Amador County	810 Court Street Jackson CA 95642	209-223-6468	Public: $65 Confidential: $78	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-3:30PM	None needed
Butte County	25 County Center Drive Suite 105 Oroville CA 95965	530-538-7691	Public: $84 Confidential: $94A	Monday to Friday: 9:00AM-4:00PM	None needed
Calaveras County	891 Mountain Ranch Road San Andreas CA 95249	209-754-6371	Public: $50 Confidential: $65	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM	None needed
Colusa County	546 Jay Street Suite 200 Colusa CA 95932	530-458-0500	$56	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-4:00PM	None needed
Contra Costa County	555 Escobar Street Martinez CA 94553	925-335-7900	Public: $86 Confidential: $90	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM	None needed
Del Norte County	981 H Street Suite 160 Crescent City CA 95531	707-465-0383 707-464-7216	$80	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM	None needed
El Dorado County	360 Fair Lane Placerville CA 95667 OR 3368 Lake Tahoe Blvd #108 South Lake Tahoe CA 96150	530-621-5490 (Placerville) 530-573-7955 x3407 (Placerville) 916-358-3555 x5490 (El Dorado Hills) 530-573-3407 (South Lake Tahoe) 530-621-7555 x5490 (South Lake Tahoe)	Public: $61 Confidential: $53	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM (Placerville) Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-11:30AM, 1:00PM-4:00PM (South Lake Tahoe)	Placerville office by appointment ONLY
Fresno County	2221 Kern Street Fresno CA 93721	559-600-2575	Public: $58 Confidential: $69	8:30AM-4:00PM	None needed
Glenn County	516 West Sycamore Street 2nd Floor Willows CA 95988	530-934-6412	Public: $56 Confidential: $60	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM	None needed
Humboldt County	825 5th Street 5th Floor Eureka CA 95501	707-445-7593	Public: $78 Confidential: $80	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-5:00PM	None needed
Imperial County	940 W. Main Street Suite 202 El Centro CA 92243	760-482-4427	Public: $87 Confidential: $100	Monday to Friday: 9:30AM-4:30PM	None needed
Inyo County	168 N. Edwards Street Independence CA 93526	760-878-0222	Public: $35 Confidential: $40	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-12:00P 1:00PM-5:00P<	None needed
Kern County	1115 Truxtun Ave. 1st Floor Bakersfield CA 93301	661-868-3743	Public: $68 Confidential: $80	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-4:00PM	None needed
Kings County	1400 W. Lacey Blvd Hanford CA 93230	559-582-3211 Ext 2470	$56	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM	None needed
Lake County	255 North Forbes St Lakeport CA 95453	707-263-2311	Public: $65 Confidential: $70	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM	None needed
Lassen County	220 S Lassen St Suite 5 96130 Susanville , CA		$51	Monday to Friday: 9:00AM-12:00PM 1:00PM-4:00PM	Unknown
Los Angeles	Downtown 4716 East Cesar Chavez Ave (Formerly Brooklyn Ave) Los Angeles CA 90022 Avalon Catalina Branch Court Avalon CA 90704 Beverly Hills 9355 Burton Way 1st Floor Beverly Hills CA 90210 Florence Firestone 7807 South Compton Ave Rm 102 Los Angeles CA 90007 Lancaster 1028 W. Avenue J2 Lancaster CA 93534 LAX 11701 S. La Cienega Blvd 6th Floor Los Angeles CA 90045 Norwalk 12400 East Imperial Hwy Norwalk CA 90650 Van Nuys 14340 West Sylvan Street Van Nuys CA 91316	323-260-2991 (Downtown) 310-510-0026 (Avalon) 310-288-1261 (Beverly Hills) 323-586-6192 (Florence Firestone) 661-945-6446 (Lancaster) 310-727-6142 (LAX) 562-462-2137 (Norwalk) 800-201-8999 (Norwalk) 818-376-3700 (Van Nuys)	Public: $91 Confidential: $85	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-4:30PM (All offices Note:Beverly Hills office closes 3rd Wednesday of each month)	Avalon office is by appointment ONLY
Madera County	200 W. 4th Street Madera CA 93637	559-675-7703	Public: $50 Confidential: $55	Monday to Friday: 8:00PM-4:00PM	None needed
Marin County	Marin County Civic Center Rm. 234 3501 Civic Center Drive San Rafael CA 94903	415-473-6772	Public: $85 Confidential: $93>strong>	Monday to Friday: 9:00AM-3:30PM	None needed
Mariposa County	5100 Bullion St. & 10th Mariposa CA 95338	209-966-2007	Public: $60 Confidential: $65	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM	None needed
Mendocino County	501 Low Gap Road Room 1020 Ukiah CA 95482	707-234-6822	Public: $85 Confidential: $87	8:30AM-5:00PM	None needed
Merced County	2222 M St Merced CA 95340	209-385-7627	Public: $61 Confidential: $70	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM	None needed
Modoc County	108 E. Modoc Street Alturas CA 96101 Room 107	530-233-6205	$60	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-12:00PM 1:00PM-5:00PM	By appointment ONLY
Mono County	74 School St Annex I Bridgeport CA 93517	760-932-5530	Public: $50 Confidential: $60	Monday to Friday: 9:00AM-4:00PM	None needed
Monterey County	168 West Alisal Street 1st Floor Salinas CA 93901	831-755-5450 831-647-7850	Public: $76 Confidential: $80	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM	None needed
Napa County	2751 Napa Valley Corporate Drive Building #4 Napa CA 94558	707-253-4247	$83	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:15PM	None needed
Nevada County	950 Maidu Avenue Suite 210 Nevada City CA 95959	530-265-1221	Public: $72 Confidential: $74	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM	None needed
Orange County	Fullerton 201 N. Harbor Blvd (NW corner of Amerige and Harbor Blvd) Fullerton, CA 92832 Laguna Laguna Hills Civic Center 24031 El Toro Road Suite 150 Laguna Hills CA 92653 Santa Ana 211 West Santa Ana Blvd Santa Ana CA 92701 Westminster 15460 Magnolia Street (Magnolia and McFadden) Westminster CA 92683	714-834-2500 (Fullerton) 714-834-2500 (Laguna) 714-973-6605 (Santa Ana) 714-834-2500 (Westminster)	Public: $61 Confidential: $66	Fullerton/Westminster: Monday to Friday: 9:00AM-4:30PM Laguna: Monday to Friday: 9:00AM-4:00PM Santa Ana: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM Wednesday: 8:00AM-5:30PM	Appointments made online
Placer County	2954 Richardson Drive Auburn CA, 95603 North Lake Tahoe License Bureau 5225 N. Lake Blvd Carnelian Bay CA 96140	530-886-5600 (Auburn) 530-546-1900 (North Lake Tahoe)	Public: $57 Confidential: $60	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-4:30PM North Lake Tahoe office only open 9:00AM-11:00AM	North Lake Tahoe office by appointment ONLY
Plumas County	520 Main Street Courthouse, Room 102 Quincy CA 95971	530-283-6218	Public: $60 Confidential: $65	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM	None needed
Riverside County	Downtown County Administrative Center 4080 Lemon St, 1st Floor Riverside CA 92501 Gateway Drive 2720 Gateway Dr Riverside CA 92507 Blythe 270 N Broadway Blythe CA 92225 Hemet County Administrative Center 880 N. State Street, Suite B-6 Hemet CA 92543 Temecula 41002 County Center Drive #230 Temecula, CA 92591-6027	800-696-9144 (All) 951-486-7000 (Downtown and Gateway) 760-921-5050 (Blythe) 951-486-7000 (Hemet and Temecula)	Public: $90 Confidential: $100	Riverside offices: Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM Blythe: Monday and Wednesday: 8:00AM-12:00PM, 1:00PM-4:00PM Hemet: Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-12:00PM, 1:00PM-4:00PM Temecula: Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:000PM	None needed
Sacramento County	600 8th Street Sacramento CA 95814	916-874-6334 800-313-7133	Public: $84 Confidential: $95	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM AND 5:00PM-8:00PM 1st, 3rd and 5th Thursday of each month	None need except By appointment only on Thursday evenings
San Benito County	440 Fifth Street Room 206 Hollister CA 95023	831-636-4029	Public: $75 Confidential: $85	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-5:00PM	None needed
San Bernardino County	Hall of Records Bldg 222 W. Hospitality Lane 1st Floor San Bernardino CA 92415	909-387-8306	Public: $89 Confidential: $90	Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 8:00AM-11:00AM, 2:00PM-4:00PM Monday and Friday: 8:00AM-3:00PM	By appointment only on Mondays and Fridays
San Diego County	1600 Pacific Highway Suite 273 San Diego CA 92101 Chula Vista 590 3rd Ave Chula Vista CA 91910 El Cajon 200 S. Magnolia Ave El Cajon CA 92020 San Marcos 141 E. Carmel St San Marcos CA 92078	619-237-0502	Public: $70 Confidential: $89	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM	By appointment only except 4:30-5:00PM
City and County of San Francisco	City Hall, Suite 168 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place San Francisco CA 94102	415-554-4950	$105	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM	Appointments recommended
San Joaquin County	44 North San Joaquin St Second Floor, Suite 260 Stockton CA 95202	209-468-3939	Public: $65 Confidential: $73	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM
San Luis Obispo County	1055 Monterey St Room D120 San Luis Obispo CA 93408 Atascadero 6565 Capistrano Avenue (2nd Floor Atascadero Library) Atascadero CA 93422	805-781-5080 (San Luis Obispo) 805-461-6041 (Atascadero)	$100	San Luis Obispo: Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM Atascadero: Monday to Friday: 7:30AM-4:00PM	None needed
San Mateo County	555 County Center 1st Floor Redwood City CA 94063	650-363-4500	Public: $79 Confidential: $80	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM	No appointments allowed but Complete this form first
Santa Barbara County	1100 Anacapa Street Santa Barbara CA 93101 Lompoc 401 E. Cypress St Room 102 Lompoc CA 93436 Santa Maria 511 E. Lakeside Parkway Suite 115 Santa Maria CA 93455-1341	805-568-2250 (Santa Barbara) 805-737-7705 (Lompoc) 805-346-8370 (Santa Maria)	Public: $100 Confidential: $110	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM Lompoc: 9:00AM-4:00PM except 12:00PM-1:00PM Monday, Wednesday, Friday
Santa Clara County	70 West Hedding Street at First St E. Wing, 1st Floor San Jose CA 95110	408-299-5688	Public: $80 Confidential: $83	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-4:30PM	None needed
Santa Cruz County	701 Ocean Street Room 210 Santa Cruz CA 95060	831-454-2060	$90	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM	None needed
Shasta County	1643 Market St Redding CA 96001	530-225-5730	Public: $72 Confidential: $77	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM	None needed
Sierra County	100 Courthouse Sq Room 11 Downieville CA 95936	530-289-3295	Public: $66 Confidential: $71	Monday to Friday: 9:00AM-12:00PM 1:00PM-4:00PM	None needed
Siskiyou County	510 North Main St Yreka CA 96097	530-842-8084	Public: $71 Confidential: $78	Monday to Friday: 9:00AM-12:00PM 1:00PM-4:00PM	None needed
Solano County	675 Texas Street Suite 1900 Fairfield CA 94533	707-784-7510	Public: $85 Confidential: $95	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM	None needed
Sonoma County	La Plaza West Building 2300 County Center Drive Suite B-177 Santa Rosa CA 95403	707-565-3800 707-565-3700	Public: $84 Confidential: $100	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:00PM	None needed
Stanislaus County	1021 I Street Modesto CA 95354	209-525-5250	$76	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-4:00PM	None needed
Sutter County	433 Second Street Yuba City CA 95991	530-822-7134	Public: $59 Confidential: $77.50	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM	None needed
Tehama County	633 Washington St Room 11 Red Bluff CA 96080	530-527-3350	$64	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-5:00PM
Trinity County	11 Court St Weaverville CA 96093	530-623-1215	Public: $49 Confidential: $54	Monday to Friday: 10:00AM-1:00PM
Tulare County	2 S. Green Street Second Floor Sonora CA 95370	209-533-5573	Public: $65 Confidential: $83	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM	None needed
Tuolumne County	221 S Mooney Blvd Courthouse, Room 105 Visalia CA 93291	559-636-5051	Public: $93 Confidential: $95	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-3:30PM	None needed
Ventura County	Hall of Administration, Main Plaza 800 So. Victoria Ave Ventura CA 93009	805-654-2263	Public: $98 Confidential: $109	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-5:00PM	Appointments recommended
Yolo County	625 Court Street Room B01 Woodland CA 95695	530-666-8130	Public: $98 Confidential: $109	Monday to Friday: 8:30AM-4:00PM	None needed
Yuba County	915 8th St, Suite 107 Marysville CA 95901	530-749-7851	Public: $65 Confidential: $70	Monday to Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM	None needed

Note: All courthouses are closed for government holidays.

 

Wedding Customs

Coming Soon

 

Wedding Food

Coming Soon

 

Religion

The most common religion in California, like most of the US, is forms of Protestantism; nearly one third of Californians are members of some kind of Protestant sect. However, Roman Catholics make up more than a quarter of the population. California is one of the least religious states in the United States; over a quarter of the population is agnostic or atheist or otherwise does not follow an organized religion. California has the most Jews of state outside of New York.

Religion	Percent
Protestant	32%
Roman Catholic	28%
No religion	27%
Judaism	2%
Buddhism	2%
Hinduism	2%
Islam	1%
Mormons	1%
Other	5%

 

List of American Consulates in Canada

Embassy in Ottawa

Consulate General in Calgary

Consulate General in Halifax

Consulate General in Montreal

Consulate General in Quebec

Consulate in General Toronto

Consulate in General Vancouver

Consulate in Winnipeg

 

US Visa Requirements

Canadian citizens do not need a visa to travel to the United States for tourism as long as you are staying for less than 3 months. However you may need a visa if you are travelling for another reason (in addition to getting married).

If you are a Canadian permanent resident, you may need a visa.

 

Calling California from Canada

The country code for the US is 1, which is also the code for Canada.

To call California just dial 1 – area code – local number, like you would for any long distance number in Canada.

These are some area codes for California:

[Public Domain]

• 209: Stockton and central California
• 213: Downtown LA
• 310: Santa Monica, Malibu
• 323: Los Angeles
• 408: San Jose
• 415: San Francisco
• 424: Santa Monica, Malibu
• 442: Palm Springs
• 510: Oakland
• 530: Redding and northeastern California
• 559: Fresno and central California
• 562: Long Beach
• 619: San Diego
• 626: Pasadena
• 628: San Francisco
• 650: San Mateo, Palo Alto
• 657: Anaheim
• 661: Bakersfield
• 669: San Jose
• 707: Santa Rosa and northwestern California
• 714: Anaheim
• 747: Burbank
• 760: Palm Springs
• 805: Ventura and the Central Coast
• 818: Burbank
• 831: Monterey and the Central Coast
• 858: northern San Diego
• 909: San Bernardino
• 916: Sacramento
• 925: Concord
• 949: Irvine
• 951: Riverside

 

Time Differences

California is on Pacific Coast Time, the same time zone as Vancouver. They are 3 hours behind Eastern.

 

Calling Canada from the United States

List of Canadian Area Codes:

Province	Code	Province	Code
Alberta	403 / 587 (southern Alberta) 587 / 780 (central and northern Alberta)	Nunavut	867
BC	236 / 250 / 778 (majority of BC) 236 / 604 / 778 (Metro Vancouver)	Ontario	226 / 519 (southwestern Ontario) 249 / 705 (northeastern Ontario) 289 / 365 / 905 (Greater Toronto Area) 343 / 613 (eastern Ontario) 416 / 647 (Toronto) 807 (northwestern Ontario)
Manitoba	204 / 431	PEI	782 / 902
New Brunswick	506	Quebec	418 / 581 (eastern Quebec) 438 / 514 (Montreal) 450 / 579 (Greater Montreal) 819 / 873 (remainder of Quebec)
Newfoundland and Labrador	709	Saskatchewan	306 / 639
Northwest Territories	867	Yukon	867
Nova Scotia	782 / 902

 

Emergency Information for Canadians in the United States

The Department of Homeland Security Traveller Redress Inquiry Program (DHS TRIP) in US is a single point of contact for individuals who have inquiries or seek resolution regarding difficulties they experienced during their travel screening at transportation hub like airports, train stations or crossing U.S. borders, including:

• watch list issues
• screening problems at ports of entry
• situations where travellers feel they have been unfairly or incorrectly delayed, denied boarding or identified for additional screening.

 

List of Canadian Consulates in California

Consulate General of Canada in Los Angeles 550 South Hope Street, 9th Floor Los Angeles, California U.S.A., 90071-2327 Telephone: (213) 346-2700 Fax: (213) 620-8827 E-mail: [email protected] Website: losangeles.gc.ca
Consulate General of Canada in San Francisco 580 California Street, 14th Floor San Francisco, California U.S.A., 94104 Telephone: (415) 834-3180 Fax: (415) 834-3189 E-mail: [email protected] Website: sanfrancisco.gc.ca

 

Romantic, Scenic and Historic Places

 

Lake Tahoe

Located on the California-Nevada border, Lake Tahoe has long been a favourite vacation spot, because of the granite cliffs, mountain tops, crystal clear waters and hiking trails.

Hot air balloon trips and mountain rides are also activities worth paying for.

 

Monterrey

This area makes for a tremendous road-trip stop, honeymoon or romantic weekend stay. With an abundance of natural wonders, luxury resorts and seafood restaurants, Monterey is no doubt the ideal destination for a getaway.

 

Napa Valley

The Napa Valley is located in California and has become a vacation hot spot due to its growing wine industry.

The tiered hillsides, wine caverns and illustrious estates make for stellar scenery, and top-class hotels have joined in to receive guests. Scattered between the vineyards, sumptuous resorts cater to every indulgence ranging from golfing, spa pampering, and gourmet dining.

Map of Napa valley:

 

Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara was famous in the early 20^th century when the movie industry in America was booming. This city stretches from San Francisco to L.A, and is a haven for luxury boutique shops and world-class resorts that scream opulence.

This is an expensive city so it is wise to carry credit cards, and be ready to spend.

 

Bringing Your Gifts Back to Canada

Learn More

 

Sponsoring Your American Spouse to Come to Canada

Learn More