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Birth

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Florida Dept. of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics

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The Bureau of Vital Statistics is Proudly PHAB Accredited

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How to order a Florida Birth Certificate 

Who can request a birth certificate?

Births less than 125 years old are confidential and may only be issued to:

  • Registrant (name on the record) if of legal age (18)
  • Parent(s) listed on the Birth Record
  • Legal guardian (must provide guardianship papers)
  • Legal representative of one of the above persons (must provide documentation)
  • By Court Order (must provide copy of court order)
  • Upon receipt of registrant’s death record, a birth certificate marked “Deceased” may be issued to the spouse, child, grandchild, or sibling, if of legal age. Please notate “Registrant Deceased” on the application and include a photocopy of the death certificate.

VALID PHOTO IDENTIFICATION IS REQUIRED WHEN REQUESTING A BIRTH RECORD.

If applicant is not one of the above, the application must be accompanied with a notarized Affidavit to Release a Birth Certificate (DH Form 1958) signed by one of the above, along with any supporting documentation and a copy of valid photo ID of both the person authorizing release and the applicant.

 

Ordering a Florida Birth Certificate

Any person who willfully and knowingly provides any false information on a certificate, record or report required by Chapter 382, Florida Statutes, or on an application or affidavit, or who obtains confidential information from any Vital Record under false or fraudulent purposes, commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in Chapter 775, Florida Statutes.

Please note that limited births were recorded between 1850 and 1917

  • ORDER ONLINE WITH VITALCHEK

Click here to order online with a credit card from VitalChek® and have your certificates delivered right to your door.

VitalChek is our only contracted vendor for the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics. We do not recommend using any other online vendor. The application process requires you to share personal information, so security and confidentiality is critical. We can only guarantee your privacy if you order through VitalChek.

Fees:

$19Florida Bureau of Vital Statistic fee for the first computer-generated     certification (includes $9.00 search fee + $10 rush fee). Please note: Some county health departments accept VitalChek orders, and county health department fees do vary.
$ 7VitalChek process fee to verify your identity, obtain ordering information and download your request directly to the Bureau of Vital Statistics.
$ 4Additional computer-generated certification.

 

UPS shipping is available for an additional fee and requires signature upon delivery. Regular mail may be selected as a shipping method for no additional cost.

PLEASE NOTE: Manually produced photocopy certificates are not available through VitalChek and must be ordered by mail directly from the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics.

Click VitalChek® to start your online order or call VitalChek at 1-877-550-7330 to order by phone. If calling from outside the U.S., call 1-615-372-6800.

  • ORDER FROM FLORIDA BUREAU OF VITAL STATISTICS

The Bureau of Vital Statistics offers walk-in or mail-in services. To save time, download and complete the forms you need. The Bureau of Vital Statistics may be reached at (904) 359-6900, ext. 9000.

DH726 Application for a Florida Birth Record (English PDF 99K)

DH726S Application for a Florida Birth Record (Spanish PDF 378K)

Fees:    A 9.00 search fee is included in all orders and is NON-REFUNDABLE.

$ 9First computer-generated certification
$ 4Additional computer-generated certification
$14First photocopy certificate (same day walk-in service requires $10 rush fee, when available).
$ 4Additional photocopy certificate
$ 1Shipping and Handling Fee

 

Walk-in:  1217 N Pearl Street, Jacksonville, FL 32202

Lobby hours: M-F 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Walk-in payments may be made in the form of cash, check, money order, Visa, and Mastercard. 

Mail-in:  Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics, P.O. Box 210, Jacksonville, Fl 32231-0042

Normal processing time for computer generated birth certificates is 3 to 5 business days, not including shipping time to and from our office. Photocopy generated certificates and amended records require additional processing time.

Rush orders are given priority processing and require an additional $10 fee. Mark the outside of your envelope “RUSH”.  All orders, including RUSH orders are mailed Standard U.S. Postal delivery unless a special prepaid delivery envelope is provided.

If you are unable to access our application forms, you may submit your request in writing. Please include the following information along with a copy of your identification, payment, and any supporting documentation.

  • Information about the person named on the certificate:
Full name on birth record
Sex
Date of birth (if unknown, specify range of years to be searched and provide additional fee of $2.00 per calendar year)
City or County of birth
Parent(s) full name(s) prior to first marriage. 
  • Information about you (or the person requesting the certificate):
Full Name
Relationship to person named on record
Mailing address
Phone number
Signature of Applicant
  • Type of Certificate:
    • Computer generated birth certificate printed on security paper with the Florida embossed seal, which is accepted by all state and federal agencies.
    • Photocopy generated certificate printed on security paper with the Florida embossed seal. Photocopy certificates are manually produced and require an additional fee and additional processing time.
  • Payment:  Check or money order payable to "Vital Statistics". DO NOT send cash. International payments must be made by Cashier’s Check or Money Order in U.S. Dollars drawn upon a U.S. Bank. Florida Law imposes an additional service charge of $15.00 for dishonored checks. Fees are nonrefundable, except fee paid for additional copies when no record is found. These are refunded on written request.
  • Photo Identification:  Applicant’s valid photo identification is required: Driver’s License, State Identification Card, Passport, Military Identification Card.
  • ORDER FROM LOCAL COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENTS

Mail-in or Walk-in to a local county health department for Florida birth records from 1917 to present. Find a location near you, ordering information, and fees at Florida County Health Departments

Please Note: County Health Department fees vary.

For information on home births, please contact your local County Health Department.

Need information on births that occurred outside of Florida or the United States?

For births that occurred outside of Florida, visit the National Center of Health Statistics website at www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w.htm

For births that occurred outside of the United States, visit the National Center for Health Statistics website at www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w/foreign.htm

 

Under Florida law, e-mail addresses are public records. If you do not want your e-mail address released in response to a public records request, do not send electronic mail to this entity. Instead, contact this office by phone or in writing.

Email to VitalStats@flhealth.gov