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IMPORTANT NOTE: If you want to order a birth or death certificate for
yourself or a family member, please click
here for instructions. The instructions below are only for researchers and
government agencies.
Researchers and government agencies who request birth or death certificates will receive
"certified informational copies." These copies are regular
certified copies, but have "INFORMATIONAL, NOT A VALID DOCUMENT TO ESTABLISH
IDENTITY" printed across them. Requests for certified informational copies do not require a sworn statement or notarization.
Birth Certificates
The top portion of the birth certificate is considered non-confidential. This
section contains basic information on the child (such as name, sex, birth place, birth
date), the parents (names and birth places), and the attendant/certifier. The
bottom portion, which is confidential, contain parent's demographic data,
medical information related to the pregnancy and delivery, and mother's residential
address. To see a sample of a birth certificate, please click here.
Birth Certificates - Non-Confidential Portion Only
To request the non-confidential (top) portion of birth certificates, please provide
the following:
- a list (preferably in an electronic format such as Excel) of the Full Names and Birth Dates
(partial dates are acceptable) for the requested certificates and any of the following (if
known):
- State File Number (SFN)
- Local Registration Number (LRN)
- County of Birth
- Mother’s Maiden Name
- appropriate payment. The cost is $10 per birth certificate for government
agencies. For all other
requesters, the cost is $14 per birth certificate.
Please see below for more information on submitting your request and payment.
Birth Certificates - Confidential and Non-Confidential
Portions
To request the confidential (bottom) portion along with the non-confidential (top)
portion of
birth certificates, you must provide the following:
- a copy of the Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects (CPHS) approval letter. For guidelines on the
approval process, please go to www.oshpd.ca.gov/cphs.
Signed consent forms are not sufficient approval for releasing the confidential portion of the birth certificate.
- a brief statement with (1) your name and title, (2) your
organization affiliation, and (3) and the specific purpose for which the
birth certificate information is
to be used.
- a list (preferably in an electronic format such as Excel) of the full names and birth dates for the requested certificates and any of the following (if
known):
- State File Number (SFN)
- Local Registration Number (LRN)
- County of Birth
- Mother’s Maiden Name
- appropriate payment. The cost is $10 per birth certificate for government
agencies. For all other
requesters, the cost is $14 per birth certificate.
Please see below for more information on submitting your request and payment.
Death Certificates
To request death certificates, please provide both of the following:
- a list (preferably in an electronic format such as Excel) of either:
- the State File Number (SFN) or Local Registration Number (LRN) for each requested
certificate and at least two confirmatory fields from the list below,
or
- If SFN and LRN are unknown, provide as much information as possible about
each decedent from among the fields listed below:
- Names (first, middle, last, maiden, mother's maiden)
- Date of Death
- Date of Birth
- Social Security Number
- County Where Death Occurred
- appropriate payment. The cost is $12 per death certificate.
Please see below for more information on submitting
your request and payment.
Submitting Your Request and Payment
The costs for performing a certificate search are set by California State law.
There are no refunds for certificates that we are not able to locate. There are no
discounts for certificates.
Checks or money orders should be made payable to the California Department of Health
Services (Federal Taxpayer ID Number 94-6001347). Cash, credit cards, and
purchase orders are not accepted. If an invoice is needed in order to process a check, please contact Jane
McKendry at 916-552-9873 or jmckendr@dhs.ca.gov.
Payment must be received before certificates are released unless the request is from a government agency.
Requests should be sent to:
Eric Joe, Chief
Vital Statistics Section
Office of Health Information and Research
MS 5103
P.O. Box 997410
Sacramento, CA 95899-7410
Processing time varies based on the number and age of the certificates requested.
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