Marriage for a minor in Texas

[kristen_wright]

I am 16 i will be 17 on october 28th and my boyfriend is 20 can I legally get married or do I need a parents permission? If I need a parents permission do I need both parents permission or can I have just one of my parents permission if my parents are going threw a divorce and for right now I live with my mom?

[aaron]

According to Texas law:

(a) If an applicant is 16 years of age or older but under 18 years of age, the county clerk shall issue the license if parental consent is
given as provided by this section.

(b) Parental consent must be evidenced by a written declaration on a form supplied by the county clerk in which the person consents to the marriage and swears that the person is a parent (if there is no judicially designated managing conservator or guardian of the applicant ’s person) or a judicially designated managing conservator or guardian (whether an individual, authorized agency, or court) of the applicant ’s person.

(c) Except as otherwise provided by this section, consent must be acknowledged before a county clerk.

(d) If the person giving parental consent resides in another state, the consent may be acknowledged before an officer authorized to issue marriage licenses in that state.

(e) If the person giving parental consent is unable because of illness or incapacity to comply with the provisions of Subsection (c) or (d), the consent may be acknowledged before any officer authorized to take acknowledgments. A consent under this subsection must be accompanied by a physician ’s affidavit stating that the person giving parental consent is unable to comply because of illness or incapacity.

(f) Parental consent must be given at the time the application for the marriage license is made or not earlier than the 30th day preceding the date the application is made.

(g) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly provides parental consent for an underage applicant under this section and the person is not a parent or a judicially designated managing conservator or guardian of the applicant. An offense under this subsection is a Class A misdemeanor.

(h) A parent or judicially designated managing conservator or guardian of an applicant commits an offense if the parent, managing conservator, or guardian knowingly provides parental consent under this section for an applicant who is younger than 16 years of age or who is presently married to a person other than the person the applicant desires to marry. An offense under this subsection is a felony of the third degree.

Hidalgo County further explains,

Minors must have their original or certified copy of their birth certificate that includes the parent(s) name(s). We do not accept hospital records. Parents must be present to sign a parental consent from. In case of divorced parents, the parent with legal custody of the minor is required to sign the parental consent form and is also required to bring the final divorce decree signed by the Judge. Court appointed legal guardians must present the court order signed by a Judge. Parents are required to present identification