Is same-sex marriage legal in Texas? Yes. It has been legal since June 26, 2015, the day the Supreme Court of the United States decided Obergefell v. Hodges. That decision holds that the Fourteenth Amendment requires a state to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and to recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex when it was lawfully licensed and performed in another state.

Three facts answer most of the questions people bring to this topic:

  • A license is available in any Texas county. Texas law lets a couple apply to the county clerk of any county of the state (Tex. Fam. Code § 2.001(a)), and Obergefell requires that marriage be open to same-sex couples on the same terms and conditions as opposite-sex couples.
  • A marriage from another state is recognized. A same-sex marriage lawfully licensed and performed in another state is recognized in Texas.
  • The same Family Code chapters apply. Divorce, property division, spousal maintenance, custody, child support and adoption run under the Family Code chapters that govern every other marriage. Parentage is the one area where the wording of the statutes still matters in practice, and it has its own section below.

The rest of this article walks through each of those, then covers the questions about adoption, informal marriage, and the Texas texts that still read as bans.

What the Texas statutes still say

Three Texas texts written before 2015 still read as bans on same-sex marriage:

  • Tex. Fam. Code § 2.001(b): “A license may not be issued for the marriage of persons of the same sex.”
  • Tex. Fam. Code § 6.204: a marriage between persons of the same sex, or a civil union, is “contrary to the public policy of this state and is void in this state,” and the state and its agencies may not give effect to one.
  • Tex. Const. art. I, sec. 32: “Marriage in this state shall consist only of the union of one man and one woman.” The section was added to the Texas Constitution in November 2005.

None of the three has been repealed. Section 2.001 has not been amended since it was added to the Family Code in 1997, and § 6.204 has not been amended since it was added in 2003. The Texas Legislature met in a regular session and two special sessions in 2025, and none of the three texts was changed.

They remain in the printed law, but they cannot be enforced against what Obergefell protects. When a Texas statute conflicts with a federal constitutional right as declared by the Supreme Court of the United States, the constitutional right controls. A county clerk in Texas cannot refuse a license to a same-sex couple on the strength of § 2.001(b), and a Texas agency cannot refuse to recognize a lawful same-sex marriage on the strength of § 6.204. The 2015 change is often called marriage equality.

The question of whether anything changed in 2025 also has a federal answer. On November 10, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States denied a petition from a former Kentucky county clerk (docket No. 25-125) that had asked the Court to overrule Obergefell. Obergefell remains the law.

Getting married in Texas

The license process is the same for every couple. Chapter 2 of the Family Code sets it out.

Who applies. Each person applying for a license appears before the county clerk, shows proof of identity and age, and signs the application under oath (§ 2.002). The accepted proof includes a current driver’s license or state identification card, a passport, a certified birth certificate, and the other documents listed in § 2.005(b). If one partner cannot appear, the other partner or another adult may apply on that person’s behalf with the absent applicant’s notarized affidavit; a license for two absent applicants is limited to members of the armed forces stationed in another country in support of combat or another military operation (§ 2.006).

Age. Both applicants must be at least 18 unless a court has removed the disabilities of minority for general purposes (§ 2.101).

Where you live. Chapter 2 does not require either applicant to live in Texas to obtain a license. Residency matters for divorce, not for marriage.

The 72-hour wait. The ceremony may not take place during the 72 hours after the license is issued (§ 2.204(a)). The wait does not apply to an applicant on active duty in the armed forces, to an applicant who works for the Department of Defense as an employee or contractor, to an applicant who obtains a written waiver for good cause from a judge or justice of the peace, or to an applicant who shows a certificate for a qualifying premarital education course completed within the year before applying (§ 2.204(b)).

How long the license lasts. The license expires if the ceremony has not taken place before the 90th day after it was issued (§ 2.201).

The fee. The marriage license fee is set by state law and paid to the county clerk when the license is issued. The clerk’s office publishes its current amount. State law also directs the clerk to issue the license without the fee to an applicant who completes a qualifying premarital education course within the year before applying and shows proof of Texas residency.

Who may officiate. Section 2.202(a) authorizes a licensed or ordained Christian minister or priest, a Jewish rabbi, an officer of a religious organization authorized by that organization to conduct marriage ceremonies, and a current, former or retired federal or state judge. On October 24, 2025, the Supreme Court of Texas adopted a comment to Canon 4 of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct that reads: “It is not a violation of these canons for a judge to publicly refrain from performing a wedding ceremony based upon a sincerely held religious belief.” A couple whose chosen officiant declines may ask any other authorized person.

Changing a name. Nothing in chapter 2 requires either spouse to change a surname. A spouse who decides to change it will meet each agency’s own documentation rules, and the county clerk issues certified copies of a recorded marriage license on request (§ 2.209(a)). A name change that does not come from the marriage goes through a court petition; our name change page explains that process.

Prior marriages. Each partner must be free to marry. A marriage is void if either party has an existing marriage to another person that has not been dissolved by legal action or ended by death (§ 6.202(a)), and an earlier marriage to a person of the same sex is an existing marriage for this purpose. After a divorce, neither former spouse may marry a third party before the 31st day after the decree unless the court waives that period for good cause (§§ 6.801, 6.802).

If you married in another state

A couple lawfully married in another state does not need to marry again in Texas. Obergefell holds that there is no lawful basis for a state to refuse to recognize a lawful same-sex marriage performed in another state on the ground of its same-sex character. A couple who wants a Texas ceremony anyway may have one: the county clerk may not refuse a license on the ground that the applicants are already married to each other (§ 2.009(b)).

Congress addressed recognition in the Respect for Marriage Act of 2022. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1738C, no person acting under color of state law may deny full faith and credit to another state’s public acts, records or judicial proceedings pertaining to a marriage between two individuals on the basis of the sex, race, ethnicity or national origin of those individuals, and the U.S. Attorney General or any person harmed by a violation may sue in federal court for declaratory and injunctive relief. Under 1 U.S.C. § 7, a marriage between two individuals that was valid in the state where it was entered into counts as a marriage for any federal law, rule or regulation in which marital status is a factor.

What the Act does not do is require any state to issue marriage licenses. Its provisions concern recognition and federal law. In Texas, the obligation to license same-sex marriages comes from Obergefell.

Informal (common-law) marriage

Texas also recognizes informal marriage, often called common-law marriage. Under § 2.401(a), a marriage may be proved by a signed declaration of informal marriage or by evidence that the couple agreed to be married and after that lived together in Texas as spouses and represented to others that they were married.

The statute’s wording (“a man and woman,” “husband and wife”) has not been amended since Obergefell. Whether an informal marriage exists, and from what date, are questions of fact. For a relationship that began before June 26, 2015, the date question in particular is one to put to a lawyer, and this article does not answer it. Our article on common-law marriage in Texas covers the elements in more detail.

Divorce for same-sex couples

A same-sex couple divorces under the same provisions of the Family Code as any other married couple. Our divorce page covers the process; the core rules are these.

  • Grounds. A court may grant a divorce without regard to fault if the marriage has become insupportable because of discord or conflict of personalities (§ 6.001). Chapter 6 also lists fault grounds.
  • Residency. A divorce suit may be maintained in Texas only if, when it is filed, either spouse has been domiciled in Texas for the preceding six months and has lived in the county of filing for the preceding 90 days (§ 6.301). A couple married in another state who now lives in Texas can file here once one of them meets that rule.
  • Timing. A court may not grant a divorce before the 60th day after the suit was filed, with narrow exceptions involving family violence (§ 6.702).
  • Property. Community property is the property, other than separate property, that either spouse acquired during the marriage (§ 3.002), and the court divides the estate in a manner it deems just and right (§ 7.001). How these rules apply to property acquired before 2015, or while a couple lived in another state, depends on the facts and is a question for a lawyer. See our property division page.
  • Spousal maintenance. Court-ordered maintenance, sometimes called alimony, follows the same eligibility rules in Chapter 8 for every divorcing spouse. See our spousal support page.
  • Children. Conservatorship and possession are decided under Chapter 153, where the best interest of the child is always the primary consideration (§ 153.002(a)), and child support is set under Chapter 154. Who counts as a legal parent comes first, and for a same-sex couple that question is covered in the next section.

Children and parentage

Parentage is where the gendered wording of the statutes matters most in practice.

Section 160.204(a)(1) of the Family Code presumes “a man” to be the father of a child if he is married to the mother of the child and the child is born during the marriage. The text of § 160.204 was last amended in April 2015, before Obergefell. Two later decisions bear on how it applies to a same-sex spouse:

  • In the 2017 decision Pavan v. Smith, the Supreme Court of the United States held that Arkansas could not, consistent with Obergefell, put a birth mother’s male spouse on a child’s birth certificate while denying that recognition to a birth mother’s female spouse.
  • In a 2020 decision, Treto v. Treto, the Texas Thirteenth Court of Appeals (Corpus Christi and Edinburg) read § 160.204(a)(1) together with § 160.106, which applies the chapter’s paternity provisions to determinations of maternity, and in light of Pavan affirmed a divorce decree that treated the non-gestational spouse of a woman who conceived during the marriage as a parent of the child, with conservatorship and a child support obligation. The opinion notes an earlier unpublished Beaumont court of appeals decision, issued before Pavan, that reached the opposite result.

The statute’s text still speaks of a man and a father, and how it applies to a particular family can depend on the facts and on the court. Ask a lawyer before relying on the presumption. A parent who wants a status that does not depend on how a court reads it can ask a lawyer whether an adoption fits the family: under § 162.017(a), an order of adoption creates the parent-child relationship between the adoptive parent and the child for all purposes. Our paternity page covers how Texas establishes legal parentage generally.

Adoption by same-sex couples

Same-sex couples can adopt in Texas. Adoption rights for LGBTQ parents run through the same statute as every other adoption, chapter 162 of the Family Code, and no provision of that chapter excludes a petitioner because of the petitioner’s sex or the sex of the petitioner’s spouse.

  • Who may adopt. Subject to the Family Code’s standing requirements, an adult may petition to adopt a child who may be adopted (§ 162.001(a)).
  • Married couples. If the petitioner is married, both spouses must join in the petition (§ 162.002(a)).
  • The stepparent route. A child may be adopted when the parent whose rights have not been terminated is the petitioner’s spouse and the proceeding is a stepparent adoption (§ 162.001(b)(2)). The statute’s word is “spouse,” which does not depend on either spouse’s sex. Whether any other parent’s rights are involved depends on the family’s facts, which is a question for a lawyer.
  • Evaluation and background. An adoption evaluation is conducted unless the court waives it (§ 162.003), and the court orders each person seeking to adopt to obtain their own criminal history record information (§ 162.0085).
  • Residence. The court may not grant an adoption until the child has lived with the petitioner for at least six months, though the court may waive that requirement in the child’s best interest (§ 162.009).
  • Consent. A managing conservator who is not the petitioner must consent in writing (the court may waive that consent if it is refused without good cause), a parent who is the petitioner’s spouse joins the petition, and a child 12 or older must consent in writing or in court unless the court waives it in the child’s best interest (§ 162.010).

Second-parent adoption. Some states let an unmarried partner adopt a partner’s child without ending the partner’s parental rights, a procedure often called second-parent adoption. Chapter 162 does not name that procedure, and the stepparent route depends on marriage. An unmarried partner who wants to adopt a partner’s child should ask a lawyer what Texas law allows on their facts.

Providers with religious objections. In 2017 the Legislature passed H.B. 3859, which added rights-of-conscience provisions for child welfare services providers to the Texas Human Resources Code. Under it, a provider other than a government entity may not be required to provide a service that conflicts with the provider’s sincerely held religious beliefs. A provider that declines must direct the person to other licensed providers, either with written information or by referral, and the government entity or contractor that refers or places children must ensure that a secondary provider is available in the same area or a nearby one. The law does not name any group of applicants.

Our adoption page covers the Texas process in more detail.

If you do not marry

Section 6.204 defines civil unions in order to declare them void, and art. I, sec. 32(b) of the Texas Constitution says the state may not create or recognize any legal status identical or similar to marriage. Obergefell concerns marriage. For a couple who does not marry, an agreement between the partners about property is an ordinary contract. Premarital and marital property agreements under Chapter 4 are for couples who are about to marry or are married; see our prenuptial agreements page.

If you are not safe

If a partner or spouse is hurting or threatening you, our protective orders page explains the Texas process, and you can call us at (945) 300-5522.

Frequently asked questions

Yes. Same-sex marriage has been legal in Texas since June 26, 2015, under Obergefell v. Hodges. A same-sex couple can get a marriage license from any Texas county clerk on the same terms as any other couple.

Was there a new ban in 2025?

No. Texas did not ban same-sex marriage in 2025. Texas statutes and a constitutional section from before 2015 still read as bans, and the 2025 legislative sessions did not change them, but they cannot be enforced against the rights Obergefell protects. On November 10, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States declined to hear a petition that asked it to overrule Obergefell.

Is our marriage recognized?

Yes. Texas recognizes same-sex marriages: a same-sex marriage lawfully licensed and performed in another state is recognized in Texas under Obergefell, and federal law bars anyone acting under color of state law from denying full faith and credit to it because of the spouses’ sex. A couple married elsewhere does not need to marry again.

Can same-sex couples divorce?

Yes. Same-sex couples can divorce in Texas under the same Family Code provisions as any other couple, including the six-month state and 90-day county residency rule and the 60-day minimum after filing. Property, spousal maintenance, custody and child support follow the same chapters.

Can same-sex couples adopt?

Yes. Same-sex couples can adopt in Texas. Chapter 162 of the Family Code allows an adult to petition to adopt, requires both spouses to join when the petitioner is married, and provides a stepparent route for the spouse of a child’s legal parent. No provision of the chapter excludes a petitioner because of the petitioner’s sex or the sex of the petitioner’s spouse.

Whether a non-biological spouse is a legal parent can depend on the facts. The Family Code’s marital presumption is written in terms of a man and a father; one Texas court of appeals has applied it to a same-sex spouse in light of Pavan v. Smith, and an earlier decision, issued before Pavan, went the other way. Ask a lawyer, and ask whether an adoption fits your family.

Can a judge refuse to marry us?

Under the comment the Supreme Court of Texas adopted on October 24, 2025, a judge who publicly refrains from performing a wedding ceremony because of a sincerely held religious belief does not violate the Code of Judicial Conduct. The license is issued by the county clerk, not the officiant, and any other person authorized by § 2.202 may conduct the ceremony.

Does Texas have civil unions?

No. Section 6.204 of the Family Code declares civil unions void, and the Texas Constitution says the state may not create or recognize a status similar to marriage. For couples who do not marry, agreements between the partners are ordinary contracts.

This article states the law as of its publication date. It is general legal information, not legal advice; for guidance on your situation, consult a licensed Texas family law attorney.