Getting married - few questions

[GoodCredBen]

So our ceremony and everything will be October 19th 2012.... to get this straight. 

Our pastor is pushing us to have a private ceremony before hand and a fake one on oct 19th.... which i am fine with....

the thing is is that my fiance does not want to change her name immediately as then she would have to change all of her licenses as she is a licensed cosmo

here are my questions....

We will get the marriage certificate.... do we have to send that in? 

How soon after we get our Marriage License (is this the same thing as the certificate?) do we have to do name changes for her?

i am sure i will have more questions.... but right now i just need answers lol...

thank you all!!!! 

P.S. if it helps, we live in minnesota 

[MidnightVoice]

Ummm - changing her name is optional.  I know many female scientists who married after they started their career and never changes their names. 

[Booner72]

Wow!  Marriage, weight loss, and fico gains!  Whirlwind of changes for you......NICE.

WHY the fake ceremony?  I remember my cousin did that when I was a teenager and when my mom found out she was FURIOUS.  It just ticked her off, she felt "tricked."  Family spent tones of money traveling, staying over, wedding presents, buying new clothes, etc.....I didnt mind so much bc I got to take my boyfriend.

(Not saying you shouldn't do it, just sharing my experience).

i got married in Vegas and when i came back I took the marriage certificate to the SS office, ordered new SS card, then took that and marriage cert to the DMV.  The certificate I took wasn't even really a legal certificate, as those have to be ordered from the state or county...so she will have plenty of time to change her name if/when she wants to.

[haulingthescoreup]

Check with your County Clerk's office as to how all the paperwork is handled. Also, your pastor would (or should) know.

Typically, the two of you go and apply for the license and take it home with you within several weeks of the wedding. You give it to the officiant (pastor, Justice of the Peace, etc.) on the day of the ceremony, who fills in the various blanks. Then you send it back in (mail or hand-carry) to the County Clerk's office. (Make a photocopy first. ) Then X number of weeks later, you get the certificate.

But this is bound to vary by location.

Congrats!

[drkaje]

Why the fake ceremony?