Tift County Marriage Licenses
The Tift County Probate Court issues marriage licenses. The office is located at 225 Tift Avenue, Room 117, Tifton, GA 31794, and the Probate Court phone number is 229-386-7914. Judge Suzanne Johnson is listed as the Probate Judge. General Probate Court office hours are Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., but the county lists narrower marriage-license appointment hours.
The county's marriage license information page is the local source for appointment hours, license requirements, fees, and payment rules.
That county page is especially important because it adds local timing and surname warnings that do not appear in every statewide summary.
| Appointment window | Marriage license service hours |
|---|---|
| Monday-Thursday | 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. |
| Friday morning | 8:30 a.m.-11:00 a.m. |
| Friday afternoon | 1:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. |
Tift County recommends that both parties come in at least one week before the wedding. Judges in Tift County do not perform wedding ceremonies, so applicants must arrange their own officiant. Both parties still must appear in Probate Court to obtain the license after completing the online application.
Apply for Tift Marriage Records
The application begins online through the Georgia Probate Records marriage application system. Applicants select the marriage application and choose Tift County. After submitting the online application, both parties call Probate Court at 229-386-7914 to make an appointment and then appear at Probate Court to complete the license process.
The official Georgia Probate Records marriage application is the source for the online field set used by Tift County applicants.
The application portal is a starting point only; the county still requires both parties to appear at the Probate Court office.
- Open the Georgia Probate Records marriage application and select Tift County as the county of application.
- Enter both applicants in the order they should appear on the marriage certificate.
- Call Tift County Probate Court at 229-386-7914 after the online application is complete.
- Both parties appear for the appointment with proof of age and any required prior-marriage proof.
- Pay the license and certified-copy total in cash or money order, based on whether a qualifying premarital counseling certificate is provided.
Tift County Marriage Requirements
Georgia residence affects where the license may be issued. If one party is a Georgia resident and the ceremony is in Georgia, a license may be issued in any Georgia county. If neither party is a Georgia resident, the license must be issued in the county where the ceremony will occur. Both parties must be at least 18, subject to statewide rules for 17-year-old emancipated applicants.
Each applicant must show proof of age over 18, such as a photo ID showing date of birth or a birth certificate. A previously married applicant must provide proof that the most recent marriage ended. Tift County lists a death certificate or a final divorce decree signed and dated by a judge as the required proof.
The statewide Council of Probate Court Judges marriage license page explains Georgia marriage-license rules, including statewide surname, age, residence, and premarital education topics.
That statewide source supports the local Probate Court process without replacing the Tift County appointment and fee instructions.
Surname warning: Tift County says a later change to a different surname than the one selected on the application requires a Superior Court name-change petition.
Tift County Marriage Fees
Tift County publishes marriage license totals that include certified copies. Payment is by cash or money order only. The lower fee applies when applicants present a notarized certificate showing completion of six hours of premarital counseling.
| License / copy item | Amount | Payment |
|---|---|---|
| License without six hours premarital counseling | $56.00 | Cash or money order only |
| Certified copy of marriage license | $10.00 | Included in total listed by county |
| Certified copy of application | $10.00 | Included in total listed by county |
| Total without counseling | $76.00 | Cash or money order only |
| License with notarized six-hour counseling certificate | $16.00 | Cash or money order only |
| Certified copy of marriage license | $10.00 | Included in reduced total |
| Certified copy of application | $10.00 | Included in reduced total |
| Total with counseling certificate | $36.00 | Cash or money order only |
Note: The research file did not locate an official local divorce filing fee table, so divorce filing costs should be confirmed with the Clerk of Court.
Tift Marriage Application Fields
The marriage application collects identity, residence, ceremony, parent, prior-marriage, surname, and premarital education information. It also includes sensitive fields, so public record copies may not display every value in the same way an applicant enters it during the license process.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Options / Format Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| County of Application | Dropdown | Yes | Includes Tift. |
| Applicant order | Instruction | n/a | Enter applicants in order to appear on certificate. |
| Name | Text | Yes or unspecified | Applicant 1 and Applicant 2. |
| Street Address, City, State, ZIP, County | Text and dropdowns | Unspecified | Residence information for each applicant. |
| Phone # and Email | Text | Unspecified | Contact fields. |
| Race and Gender | Dropdown | Unspecified | Race options include White, Black, Hispanic, Asian, American Indian, Other, Unknown; gender options are Male and Female. |
| Date of Birth and Birth City / State | Dropdowns and text | Yes or unspecified | Birth date uses month, day, and year dropdowns. |
| Social Security # | Text | Unspecified | Sensitive field, so do not expect full public display. |
| Occupation | Text | Unspecified | Applicant occupation. |
| # Prev Marriages, How Dissolved, When and Where | Text and dropdown | Conditional | Divorce, annulment, death, and related details. |
| Father and mother information | Text | Unspecified | Names, birthplaces, addresses, and mother's maiden name. |
| Ceremony details | Date picker and text | Unspecified | Contemplated marriage date, city, and county. |
| Surname after marriage | Text | Unspecified | Applicant 1 and Applicant 2 surname selections. |
| Relationship between applicants | Text | Unspecified | Kinship or legal relation field. |
| Premarital education course completed | Yes/no | Unspecified | Refers to O.C.G.A. 19-3-30.1. |
Tift County Divorce Records
Divorce records are not Probate Court marriage records. Georgia Superior Court has exclusive divorce jurisdiction, and Tift County divorce cases belong to the Tifton Judicial Circuit. The Clerk of Court keeps Superior Court files, including divorce pleadings and final decrees. Common divorce-file contents may include a complaint, answer or counterclaim, parenting plan or seminar materials, financial affidavits, settlement agreement, final decree, child support worksheet, and contempt or modification filings.
The Tifton Judicial Circuit legal forms page lists divorce forms and civil filing requirements. The circuit also publishes a divorce without minor children document page with a form checklist, instructions for a complaint for divorce without minor children, the divorce form, and an answer and counterclaim form.
The research found side navigation references to divorce with minor children and parenting seminar materials, but the exact live URL needed verification. The official divorce filing fee was not found in the reviewed sources. Call the Clerk of Court at 229-386-7810 for current filing cost and copy questions.
Certified Marriage and Divorce Copies
Certified marriage copies are built into the Tift County marriage fee table. Probate Court is the local marriage-license source, while the county also links official copy paths for marriage-related documents. Because the Tift-specific FeePay workflow was not fully inspected in the research file, a person needing a certified marriage record should confirm the current copy route with Probate Court at 229-386-7914.
Certified divorce decree copies come from the Superior Court case file through the Clerk of Court. The official research did not locate a local certified divorce-copy fee table. The clerk is the proper first contact when the record is needed for a name change, remarriage proof, benefits, immigration, or another legal purpose.