Get a Marriage License in Sarasota County, FL

What the statute adds up to. $2 for receiving the application (§ 741.01(1)), $25 to the Domestic Violence Trust Fund (§ 741.01(2)), $25 to the State Courts Revenue Trust Fund (§ 741.01(3)), $4 under § 741.02, and $30 for issuing and recording the license with one certified copy (§ 28.24(24)) — $86.00, which is what the counties charge: 38 of the 39 Florida clerks that publish a figure publish $86.00, read from their own sites on 21 September 2026. Where a county publishes its own figure this page prints that, and where it does not the statutory composition is what it shows.

The 4-hour course takes $25 off at the counter, and there is no residency test. Two sections reduce this fee and they do not agree — § 741.0305(1) says $32.50, and § 741.01(4) says $25 — and what the clerks charge is the $25: every Florida clerk that publishes the reduced price publishes $61.00 against $86.00. Either way you need a certificate for a premarital preparation course of not less than 4 hours, taken within the year before you apply.

Without that certificate the license does not take effect for 3 days — and this applies to every couple, not only residents. § 741.04(5) has the clerk delay the effective date by 3 days and print it on the license in bold, and then says the clerk shall grant exceptions to non-Florida residents and to couples asserting hardship; a county court judge may waive it for Florida residents who show good cause. If you are coming from out of state, ask for the exception rather than planning around a wait.

No witnesses, and the clerk can marry you. § 741.07 lists who may solemnize — clergy, judicial officers, clerks of the circuit courtsand notaries public — and mentions no witness anywhere; nor does § 741.08, which requires only the license and the officiant's certificate within 10 days. A ceremony at the courthouse is priced by § 28.24(25): $30.00 for solemnizing matrimony. Confirm before you go — (941) 861-7400.