When addressing wedding invitations or other formal letters, you will need to know address couples. Though this doesn't seem like a problem at first glance, there are a surprising number of variables involved. For example, one spouse may be a doctor or have a military title that should be considered. Perhaps the wife has kept her maiden name. Whatever the situation, you want to address your envelopes according to the current rules of etiquette.
Use the following forms of address for the outside envelope in wedding invitations and for the only envelope in all other written correspondence.
Instructions
1. Address a married couple with no special provisions as Mr. and Mrs. Robert Smith.
2. Address a married couple in which the wife has kept her maiden name as Ms. Jane Davis and Mr. Robert Smith. Note that the wife's name is written first in cases where the names are separated.
3. Address a married couple in which the husband has a military or doctoral title as Dr. and Mrs. Robert Smith.
4. Address a married couple in which the wife has a military or doctoral title at Captain Jane Smith, US Army and Mr. Robert Smith. Here, the wife's name comes first because the names are separated and because she outranks him. If they are both in the military, and he outranks her, his name should appear first.
5. Address an unmarried couple who lives together as Miss Jane Davis, Mr. Robert Smith. In this case, leave out the conjoining "and," and separate the names by writing them on separate lines.
Tags: Robert Smith, Address married, Address married couple, married couple, couple which