FAQ

Please Contact Us for an update on your order.

If you have submitted incorrect information, please Contact Us as soon as possible.

The online Vital Certificate Processing Fee is payable upon ordering and the relevant Vital Statistics Agency Fee and any other shipping fees are payable upon review and acceptance by the State Agency and will appear on your credit card statement separately.

Please note: All state certificate fees are subject to change without notice.

To find the cost of your order, select the relevant state and the vital certificate type (birth, death, marriage or divorce). The payment information is provided on that page, including additional certificates.

We accept payment by Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, and debit credit cards.

We are a service oriented business, committed to the highest quality in customer service. We cannot provide refunds or cancel an application for any of our services as all vital record applications are reviewed and processed upon receipt. However, in some cases we do make exceptions to this policy.

Yes. All certificates ordered through this website are certified photocopies of the original record with the embossed seal from the state issued and can typically be used for travel, passport, proof of citizenship, social security, driver's license, school registration, personal identification, and other legal purposes.

Please contact The State's Department of Health Statistics if you have mailed your order form and/or provided a check or money order, you have not used our services. All orders we receive are submitted online. We do not have an option to receive mailed applications.

Although we do not offer a walk-in service our safe and easy online order form allows you to request your vital certificate in less than 10 minutes.

Processing and delivery times vary by state and certificate type. Detailed delivery times are listed on the order form. Depending on the state and certificate type you may request a minimum of 1 to a maximum of 20 certificates at one time. Additional fees apply per copy ordered.

If the last name was legally changed to the adoptive parent's name use that name, unless there has been a legal name change after adoption.

A maiden name is your last name at birth. If you have had a legal name change your original vital records would have been permanently changed either by yourself or the courts. Your new legal name would be your new maiden name. Taking your spouse's last name is not a legal name change and would not have altered your original birth vital record.

In most situations the Court will file the documents for you which will be automatically transferred to your original vital record of birth. However, there are states that you will receive a certified copy of the order from the judge or magistrate and will be required to update your own vital record of birth. Any further questions regarding your legal name change please contact The State's Department of Health Statistics of the state you legally changed your name.

As time of birth is not necessarily registered with the government you may wish to contact the hospital the birth occurred in. If that is unsuccessful you may wish to contact The State's Department of Health Statistics

There are states on this website that not all vital certificate types are available at this time. Please contact The State's Department of Health Statistics they will be able to assist you.

Please contact The State's Department of Health Statistics. If your relationship is not on the order form, you may not be eligible to apply.

No. Vital records offices do not fax or email certificates.

To find out if it is registered please contact The State's Department of Health Statistics they will be able to assist you.

A marriage certificate is a legal document that provides proof that a couple are already married. A marriage license is the permission required by law to get married.

The government agency issuing your certificate requires certain information to process your request. If you are unable to get the information required, you may wish to discuss this in person or by mail with The State's Department of Health Statistics

City not listed: Based on information from the United States Postal Service, some cities no longer exist and they may have been replaced with a new name or joined with a neighboring city or town.

If the city where the event occurred is not listed in the drop-down list, you can use the link below to the United States Postal Service web site to verify if the city has changed their name or has joined with a neighboring city:

United States Postal Service

  1. Enter the city and the two letter state abbreviation.
  2. Click on the submit button.

County not listed: One helpful online resource in narrowing your search is Zipinfo.com's Free Zip Code Lookup. Follow the instructions below:

  1. Click on the box that says "county name and FIPS code".
  2. Enter the city and the state below in the field below (i.e. Buffalo, NY).
  3. Click "go".

The county and other details will be displayed on the following page.

Disclaimer

Our online service is open to the legal profession and general public to obtain original certified copies of state vital records. Vital certificates and forms may be ordered from the relevant government agency for free or a lesser cost. No visit to the government agency is required through USVitalRecords.org's online ordering service. The online processing fee is for the cost of providing a secure online ordering service, expert assistance and thorough review of all pertinent information to ensure compliance with government rules and regulations.