Membership with The National Association of Wedding Officiants (NAWO) is open to ALL who perform as Wedding Officiants/Celebrants in the United States. This applies to all certifications: Ordained Ministers/Clergy, Justice Of The Peace, Notary Public, Individual State Certifications and yes, even Ships Captains! We are an Association of professionals in a wonderful industry. The NAWO does not judge its members by his or her certifications; we verify credentials based on the laws of each individual state as a courtesy to couples searching for an Officiant on the Internet. However, but alas........

We do look for those that are dedicated to the ceremony and their experience as an Officiant. Sites with inappropriate content will not even be considered. Those that are clearly out to make a quick dollar will also be denied.

There are many copycat associations and organizations that have popped up on the Internet that don't carry the same requirements that we do.

Note for those individuals ordained by their Christian Church: Each state has their own rules and statutes regarding rights given to those of the Ministry. In some cases, if you are an ordained minister upholding to the rules of your Church and you claim the Church giving you that right to solemnize a marriage, you would not be able to offer or perform "Non-Religious" ceremonies. A non religious ceremony would have to be performed by a Justice of the Peace, Notary or the like. We do our best to verify and make sure our member's meet this criteria.

Our mission is to have our logo represent a higher standard, a "Good Housekeeping®" seal sort of speak, that assures couples that the Officiant they are reviewing has gone through an application process, been reviewed by our panel, have met a strict screening process and have agreed to follow our Code of Ethics.

Members MUST be licensed/credentialed by their individual state and/or community or by accepted Ordination by the state and/or community to perform ceremonies and sign legal documentation and must show Proof of License, Ordination or Ministry to the satisfaction of the NAWO. This will assure couples searching the Internet for an Officiant of his or her qualifications.

Members in good standing will receive an individual page of membership that includes; status with the NAWO, information of services, an email and website link, full access to the NAWO membership area, all of it's forums,  links to resources, pre-written ceremony scripts and vows. Members also receive permission to display the NAWO logo on all media. Website logo links direct to your membership page for clients to review your membership status, not the home page of the NAWO. We are not trying to sell anything to those visiting the NAWO site nor do we harvest email or contact information from our Brides and Grooms.

Be assured, we are not a "PAY FOR A LINK" referral website (Although it is one of the benefits). If that is what you are looking for, you might want to keep searching the Internet. We do not host a FREE listing page for Officiants. All of our Officiants meet the Standards of the NAWO as listed above.

The National Association of Wedding Officiants does provide a service to couples to help them locate an Officiant and charges a referral fee from the Officiant if booked.

Thank you for your interest in The National Association of Wedding Officiants.

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