Alaska Vital Records
Table of Contents
What are Alaska Vital Records?
Alaska's vital records are the official records of all births, deaths, marriages, and divorces in the State of Alaska. The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services' (ADHSS), Division of Health Analytics and Vital Records, is the Alaska government agency that maintains all Alaska vital records. While these vital records are public records, access to them is limited.
How Can I Get a Copy of a Birth Certificate in Alaska?
Births certificates and reports of adoption in Alaska are confidential records for 100 years from birth. Anyone can obtain a copy of an Alaska birth certificate that is older than 100 years through the office of health statistics; otherwise, Alaska birth records are limited to:
- The person named on the birth certificate (if at least 14 years old, with a current school picture I.D.).
- The parents or legal guardians of the person named on the birth certificate.
- The legal representative of eligible persons.
- Persons authorized by a court order.
- Persons authorized via a notarized letter of consent by the person named on the birth certificate.
To obtain a copy of an Alaska birth certificate, you should contact the department of public health, ADHSS, Division of Health Analytics, and Vital Records and make your request through the Alaska birth certificate request form. The application requires the following information:
- Name of the person listed as registrant on the birth certificate.
- The maiden name of the person's mother and the full name of the father.
- The place and date of birth.
- The relationship of the person requesting the certificate to the name on the certificate.
- The purpose of the request.
How Can I Get a Copy of a Death Certificate in Alaska?
Alaska death records are restricted for 50 years from the date of death. After 50 years, anyone can access an Alaska birth certificate by contacting the Alaska State Archives. You may visit the State Archives in person at 395 Whittier Street, Juneau, Alaska 99801. Currently, you must make an appointment at least two days in advance before visiting the State Archives.
For the first 50 years after a death, only the following people, mostly family members, can obtain an Alaska death certificate or record of Alaska fetal death, from the Alaska bureau of vital statistics:
- The spouse listed on the certificate (with a copy of the marriage certificate).
- Parents listed on the death certificate (with a copy of the child's birth certificate listing the same parents).
- Children of the decedent (with a certified copy of their birth certificate listing the decedent as a parent).
- Siblings to the decedent (with a certified copy of their birth certificate with one parent in common to the decedent).
- A person authorized by court order.
To obtain a copy of an Alaska death certificate, you should contact the ADHSS, Division of Health Analytics, and Vital Records and make your request through the Alaska Death Certificate Request Form. The application requires the following information:
- The full name of the decedent.
- Date of birth and date of death of the decedent.
- City of death.
- Full name of the decedent's mother and father.
- The full name of the person requesting the certificate.
- The relationship of the person requesting the decedent.
- The purpose of the request.
How Can I Get a Copy of a Marriage Certificate in Alaska?
Anyone can obtain a copy of a marriage certificate in Alaska if more than 50 years old. However, access to Alaska marriage records less than 50 years old is restricted to specific persons.
Only the following people may obtain a copy of an Alaska marriage certificate that is less than 50 years old from the Alaska vital records office:
- The married parties.
- The legal representative of the married parties.
- Any person with a court order.
To obtain a copy of marriage records less than 50 years old, you should contact the court where the marriage license was filed or the ADHSS, the vital records section, via the Alaska Marriage Certificate Request Form. The accepted forms of identification, including a valid driver's license, are listed on the request form instructions.
How Can I Get a Copy of an Alaska Divorce Certificate?
Alaska divorce records are protected for the first 50 years. If the divorce record is older than 50 years, anyone can access it. During the first 50 years of the divorce decree, only the following people can access the Alaska divorce record:
- The parties involved in the divorce.
- The legal representatives of the parties involved in the divorce.
- Anyone with a court order.
In Alaska, divorce records consist of three categories: (1) the divorce certificate, (2) the divorce decree, and (3) the divorce record.
The divorce certificate states that the parties were divorced on a specific date. This document is most often used when one of the divorced parties intends to remarry or file for a name change.
The divorce decree is the judgment issued by the family court judge that declared the parties divorced. It contains the information in the divorce certificate and the terms of the divorce, such as custody, visitation, spousal support, and more.
The divorce record is the complete case file for the divorce proceeding. It contains all pleadings filed in the divorce case and the minutes of all hearings and trials. It is most often used when one of the parties wants to appeal the judgment.
You may obtain a copy of a divorce certificate from the Alaska Health Analytics and Vital Records by completing the Divorce Certificate Form.
The ADHSS, Division of Health Analytics and Vital Records charges a fee of $30, which may be made by personal check, or money order, to search for a vital record and a copy of a government-issued photo identification document is required. Additional copies may be obtained for $6 per copy.
Currently, requests for copies of Alaska vital records can be made at either the Anchorage office (only in-person requests) or the Juneau office (requests may be made in person or via mail).
For the Juneau office, requests may be made in person at 5441 Commercial Blvd, Juneau, Alaska 99801, or via mail to P.O. Box 110675, Juneau, AK 99811-0675. The telephone number for the Juneau office is (907) 465-3391.
A request may be made for the Anchorage office at 3901 Old Seward Highway, Suite 101, Anchorage, Alaska 99503. The telephone number for the Anchorage office is (907) 269-0991.