Thank you for your interest in the Orange County Clerk-Recorder Department’s newsletter. We will be bringing you periodic updates on the latest news, information and events affecting the department. I am honored and privileged to serve as your County Clerk-Recorder. Please contact my office at (714) 834-2500 or visit us at OCRecorder.com for more information about the department and the services provided to the public.
Sincerely,
After a two-year pandemic forced pause, Orange County Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen is happy to announce that he will be hosting special one-time Saturday hours this coming October. The department’s offices in Anaheim, Laguna Hills, and at the Old County Courthouse in Santa Ana will be open to the public on Saturday, October 22, 2022, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and will be offering marriage services at all three locations. Passport services will also be available at the Old County Courthouse in Santa Ana and at the department’s North County branch office in Anaheim. Please note, no passport services will be offered at the department’s South County branch office in Laguna Hills. Appointments are highly recommended due to the demand for marriage and passport services during these special hours. Walk-ins are welcomed. For more information and to complete an online application for a marriage license, ceremony, or passport in advance, please visit us at OCRecorder.com.
“I am excited to be able to host this special one-time Saturday opening,” said Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen. “Demand has been building and I look forward to seeing working families, students, and busy individuals take advantage of this special occasion to obtain important services without missing work or school.”
Another reason to join us during these special hours, the department has one of the lowest costs for a marriage license and a marriage ceremony in the state. In Orange County, couples can obtain a public marriage license for $61 and a confidential marriage license for $66. A civil marriage ceremony can be performed for an additional $28. The department processes new passport applications only. Passport photos are available for $7 - which may be the lowest passport photo fee in the county.
Again, appointments are highly recommended due to the popularity of these special Saturday hours; however, walk-ins will be served on a first-come-first-served basis. No additional Clerk-Recorder services will be available during this special opening. To save time, marriage license, ceremony, and passport applications can be completed online in advance at OCRecorder.com. As an added convenience, passport photos are available on the spot for $7. Free parking will be available at all three locations.
Clerk-Recorder Nguyen started offering special Saturday hours back in early 2013. In March of 2020, he was forced to stop hosting special Saturday hours due to state mandated office closures aimed at helping stop the spread of COVID-19. The last special Saturday hours held by the department were on February 29, 2020. In 2014, the California State Association of Counties recognized the department with a Merit Award and in 2015, the National Association of Counties also recognized the department with an Achievement Award for its efforts in making its offices more accessible to working families by opening one Saturday per month during which customers were able to obtain marriage and passport services.
For more detailed information or to learn about the services available at the Clerk-Recorder Department, please visit: OCRecorder.com.
Thank you for your interest in the Orange County Clerk-Recorder Department’s newsletter. We will be bringing you periodic updates on the latest news, information and events affecting the department. I am honored and privileged to serve as your County Clerk-Recorder. Please contact my office at (714) 834-2500 or visit us at OCRecorder.com for more information about the department and the services provided to the public.
Sincerely,
Orange County Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen is proud to announce the grand opening of the expanded South County Branch Office in Laguna Hills on May 25, 2022. The office of the Clerk-Recorder will be conducting a ribbon cutting ceremony on Wednesday, May 25, 2022, at 10:30 a.m. in the Laguna Hills Civic Center located at 24031 El Toro Road, Suite 160, in Laguna Hills. Several civic leaders plan to attend, and the public is invited.
“After 16 years of serving a growing South County community, the South County branch office has become extremely popular for marriage licenses, ceremonies, and real property recordings” said Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen. “This expansion suite will help us address the increasing demand for our services and provide a more efficient and smooth process for customers” he added.
The new expansion suite will offer marriage services that include a larger ceremony room. Clerk-Recorder Nguyen also announced that two document examiners will be on site to provide real property recording services, eliminating the need for lunch closures. Customers will save time and money by not having to travel to the department’s central office in Santa Ana. The Laguna Hills office will continue to offer free and convenient parking.
Customers can still obtain birth, death, and marriage certificates, file fictitious business name statements, complete their notary public registrations, and much more at the department’s existing office in Suite 150 of the Laguna Hills Civic Center.
For more information about the services available at the Orange County Clerk-Recorder Department, please visit us at OCRecorder.com.
Thank you for your interest in the Orange County Clerk-Recorder Department’s newsletter. We will be bringing you periodic updates on the latest news, information and events affecting the department.
During the COVID-19 mandated office closures in March 2020, the Orange County Clerk-Recorder Department managed to continue recording real property documents without experiencing any service disruptions. Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen credits the department’s multi-county SECURE electronic delivery system for this accomplishment. Despite the closures, the department experienced a significant increase in the number of documents submitted electronically from 68% in 2019 to its current level of 85%. SECURE, which launched in 2007, became essential during a time when contactless recordings became crucial, especially during an unprecedented, once-in-a-lifetime pandemic.
“SECURE allowed us to continue this vital service for the public,” Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen said. “I am glad to see that the system worked despite the pandemic and that customers were still able to record their important real property documents during these unprecedented times.”
Despite the closures, in 2020, the department recorded 781,414 documents, 83% electronically. Compared to 2019, the year before the pandemic, the department recorded 552,688 documents, 68% electronically. In 2020, new California Department of Justice regulations helped the department approve 1,011 new SECURE authorized submitters. Currently, there are 16 SECURE partner counties. In October 2021, the department reached a major milestone by reaching its 10 millionth electronically recorded document since the implementation of electronic recording back in 1997. This number makes Orange County the nationwide leader in electronic recordings. SECURE has seen steady growth since the program’s inception, though the past couple of years has been unprecedented.
SECURE allows title, escrow, and financial companies to record property documents electronically and safely to multiple counties from a single computer screen, providing efficiency by reducing delivery expense, staff time, and allowing quicker confirmation times. Orange County is the lead county for the system which it co-owns with Los Angeles, San Diego, and Riverside Counties. As lead county, Orange County works closely with the California Department of Justice (DOJ) to ensure that all regulations meant to keep SECURE safe are strictly adhered. This includes working with the DOJ to ensure that every SECURE submitter passes a thorough background check and is issued the proper credentials prior to using the system.
The department also has a government-to-government component to SECURE (SECURE G2G) which allows other government entities to submit recordable documents electronically. This has allowed several government entities to continue recording documents even during the pandemic.
To learn more about the services offered by the Clerk-Recorder Department, please visit OCRecorder.com or contact the department’s information line at (714) 834-2500. The information line is available Monday – Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen is proud to announce the reopening of all marriage ceremony rooms at his department’s offices effective Thursday, March 24, 2022. After being closed for the past two years due to the pandemic, the Clerk-Recorder Department will resume civil marriage ceremonies inside ceremony rooms located at its office locations in Anaheim, Laguna Hills and at the Old County Courthouse in Santa Ana. The department is also increasing the number of guests allowed to attend the ceremonies from one to five guests. Demand is expected to increase, so appointments are highly recommended. For those interested in having a civil marriage ceremony performed at one of the department’s beautiful ceremony rooms, please visit OCRecorder.com to complete a marriage license application and/or to make an appointment.
“I am looking forward to seeing couples exchange vows, in the company of their loved ones, inside one of our beautiful ceremony rooms,” said Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen. “My department has been waiting for this day and believe me, so has the public,” he added. “It will be great to see couples taking full advantage of all the available and convenient marriage venues.”
The ceremony rooms have been closed since March 2020 when state mandated office closures took effect. Currently the department performs marriage ceremonies at the point of service and has also been limiting the number of guests that may be present during the ceremony to one. The reopening of the ceremony rooms will be a welcomed change for all. The department is excited to welcome back couples and their loved ones as they come together to celebrate their special occasion.
The Orange County Clerk-Recorder has the lowest costs for a marriage license and a civil ceremony in the state. In Orange County, couples can obtain a public marriage license for $61 and a confidential marriage license for $66. Couples can have a civil ceremony performed in one of the department’s ceremony rooms for an additional $28. They can also prepay $17 for a certified copy of their marriage certificate.
For more detailed information about marriage services or to learn more about the services offered at the Clerk-Recorder Department, please visit OCRecorder.com or contact the department’s information line at (714) 834-2500. The information line is available from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday – Friday, except holidays.
Orange County Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen would like to invite the public to take advantage of Passport Day which he will be hosting on Saturday, April 2, 2022, at the Old Orange County Courthouse in Santa Ana from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Only new passport applications will be accepted. No renewal applications. With people now feeling safe to travel and the upcoming travel season closing in, now is the time to apply for your passport! Due to increasing demand, appointments are highly recommended however, walk-ins are welcomed. To take advantage of Passport Day, all applicants must bring a completed and unsigned passport application prior to visiting the office. To complete an online application and/or to make an appointment for this special opening, please visit OCRecorder.com.
“Now that people are feeling safe to travel again, demand for passport services is on the rise,” said Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen. “Passport Day is the perfect day for busy individuals and families to obtain these important services without having to miss work and to avoid travel delays,” he added.
Passport Day is geared towards individuals and families who can’t make it to our offices during normal operating hours due to work, school, or other time constraints. These special openings make the passport process easier for parents, as both parents must be present to obtain passports for children younger than 16 years of age. Currently, processing service times at the federal level can take up to 11 weeks total from the day an application is submitted at our offices so please plan according to your travel needs. Again, only new passport applications will be accepted. No renewal applications.
Passports for those age 16 and older cost $165, made in two separate payments: a check or money order for $130 made payable to the U.S. Department of State and a separate processing fee of $35 paid to the Clerk-Recorder Department using a separate form of payment. For those under age 16, the cost is $135 made in two separate payments: a check or money order for $100 made payable to the U.S. Department of State and a separate processing fee of $35 paid to the Clerk-Recorder Department using a separate form of payment. As an added convenience, passport photos are available on the spot for the low cost of $7.
For more detailed information about Passport Day or to learn more about the services offered at the Clerk-Recorder Department, please visit OCRecorder.com or call the department’s information line at (714) 834-2500. The information line is available from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday – Friday, except holidays.
Today, Orange County Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen is pleased to announce that he will be reducing the cost of passport photos from $10 to $7 effective Wednesday, March 9, 2022. This will provide a cost savings to the public obtaining passport services from the department without affecting the department’s ability to recover costs for providing these services. This fee reduction is possible due to Clerk-Recorder Nguyen’s continued efforts to reduce expenses by adopting technology that helps increase efficiency throughout the department. The department currently offers passport services at its North County branch office in Anaheim and at the County Service Center located inside the County Administration South building in Santa Ana.
“With the cost of everything on the rise, I am pleased to be able to offer the public our services at a lower price”, said Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen. “I would like to thank the Orange County Board of Supervisors for their support in my efforts to reduce costs to the public,” he added.
The reduced fee means that the Clerk-Recorder Department offers the cheapest passport photos in Orange County compared to many major, local retailers. This is the second time Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen has been able to reduce passport photo fees since taking office. He was successful, in 2017, with getting the Board of Supervisors to adopt a resolution that reduced the cost of passport photos from $15 to $10. In 2019, he began updating the department’s passport photo printers and related equipment making it possible for the department to produce the photos faster and cheaper than ever before.
In 2021, the department processed 3,406 passport photos and accepted 5,160 passport applications. Before the pandemic in 2019, the department processed 6,736 passport photos and accepted 10,740 passport applications. During a normal year, the department processes an average of 6,000 passport photos and accepts an average of 10,000 passport applications.
To learn more about passport services available at the Clerk-Recorder Department, please visit OCRecorder.com or contact the information line at (714) 834-2500. The information line is available from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday – Friday, except holidays.
Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen will be celebrating the three-year anniversary of the opening of his department’s North County Branch Office in Anaheim. The office opened in March of 2019 and has grown busier day by day in serving the needs of residents from north Orange County. The office will be decorated for the occasion and there will be light refreshments and snacks starting at 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Tuesday, March 1, 2022. The North County Branch Office is located inside the Wells Fargo Building at 222 N. Harbor Blvd., Ste. 110, Anaheim, CA 92805. Free parking is available in the Wells Fargo parking garage which enters on Broadway or street side in the free 90-minute parking zones.
“I am amazed at how well the public has responded to this office,” said Clerk- Recorder Hugh Nguyen. “The last couple of years have been tough due to the pandemic but our office has been fully open to serve the residents of our county,” he added.
During 2021, the North County office issued 9,726 marriage licenses, performed 3,371 marriage ceremonies, issued 44,175 copies of vital records, filed 2,821 fictitious business name statements, issued 1,602 official records copies, accepted 1,726 passport applications, and staff took 1,096 passport photos.
The department’s North County Branch Office opened in 2019 after shutting down the previous location in Fullerton. The Anaheim office added passport services, expanded document recording services, and features two marriage ceremony rooms. The office has dedicated free parking in the Wells Fargo Building parking lot and is located close to Interstate 5 and State Route 91 for easy access. The office is also located near many enticing restaurants and food venues such as the Anaheim Packing District and Center Street Promenade.
For more information about the department’s various convenient locations, please visit OCRecorder.com or call the information line at (714) 834-2500. The department’s information line is available from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except holidays.