Florida Vital Records

What are Florida Vital Records?

Vital records in Florida are records of all births, deaths, marriages, and divorces that occur in the State of Florida. The Florida Department of Health, Office of Vital Statistics, maintains these records.

How Can I Get a Birth Certificate in Florida?

Anyone can search for and obtain, when available, a Florida birth record that is more than 100 years old. However, Florida birth certificates that are less than 100 years old from the date of birth are considered confidential records, and only the following persons may obtain a copy:

• The person named as the registrant on the birth certificate, if they are at least 18 years old.
• The mother, father, or legal guardian of the person named on the birth certificate.
• The registrant's immediate family member, if the registrant is deceased.
• A legal representative of one of the authorized persons.
• Any person with a court order.

You will need your driver's license or another form of valid photo ID, or state identification card when you request the birth record. If you are not one of the above persons, you would need to have a notarized affidavit, provided by the Florida Department of Public Health, Office of Vital Statistics, signed by one of the above persons, along with proof of identification of the person authorizing the release of the birth record.

If you are eligible, you may obtain a Florida birth certificate online through VitalChek, from the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics, either by mail or in person, or from a Florida county health department.

To obtain a Florida birth record from the state bureau of vital statistics, you should complete the Application for Florida Birth Record (a Spanish language application is also available).

You may contact the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics by phone at (904) 359-6900, ext. 9000.

You may mail your application with a copy of your proof of eligibility, and payment in the amount of $9 (which is a non-refundable search fee) to:

The Bureau of Vital Statistics
P.O. Box 210
Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042

You may also obtain your Florida birth record by visiting the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics in-person by visiting:

The Bureau of Vital Statistics
1217 N Pearl Street
Jacksonville, FL 32202

This office is open Monday through Friday, except for holidays, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You may also contact this office at the phone number (904) 359-6900. Walk-in payments may be made in the form of cash, check, money order, Visa, and Mastercard in the amount of $9.

The fee of $9 includes the first computer-generated certification. An additional $4 fee is charged for each additional computer-generated certification. For walk-in services, there is an additional $14 fee for the first photocopy birth certificate, and for all additional photocopies, the charge is $4.

You may also obtain a copy of a Florida birth certificate from the local Florida county health department where the birth occurred.

How Can I Get a Death Certificate in Florida?

Florida death certificates, including fetal death records, are public records and may be accessed by anyone. However, they exclude the cause of death and the full social security number of the deceased person for the first 50 years. By Florida statute, for the first 50 years, only the following persons may obtain a copy of a Florida death certificate that includes the cause of death and the full social security number of the deceased person:

• The mother or father of the deceased person.
• The current husband or wife of the deceased person.
• The child or grandchild of the deceased person.
• A sibling of the deceased person.
• The legal guardian of the deceased person.
• An authorized representative of an eligible person.
• Any person who can show a tangible interest, such as inclusion in a Last Will and Testament, or an insurance policy beneficiary.
• Any person with a court order.

The Florida vital records office provides an application for a certified copy(a Spanish language application is also available) of a Florida death certificate, which requires you to provide the following information:

• The full name of the deceased.
• The county or city of death.
• The date of death.
• The gender of the deceased.
• Your name.
• Your signature.
• Your relationship to the deceased.
• The address where the certificate should be mailed.

The Florida Office of Vital Statistics charges a fee of $5 to conduct a search for a death certificate for searching one calendar year. If the year of death is not known, there is an additional fee of $2 per calendar year searched, up to a maximum of $50. The search fee includes one certified copy of the death certificate. Each additional copy of the death certificate will incur an additional fee of $4. For walk-in service and for records before 2009, there is an additional $10 fee.

The Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics does not offer online access to Florida death records. You may obtain a Florida death certificate in person or by mail.

To obtain the death certificate by mail, you should mail the completed application, along with your payment by personal check or money order, to the following address:

Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics
P.O. Box 210
Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042

To obtain the death certificate in person, you should visit:

Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics
1217 N Pearl Street
Jacksonville, FL 32202

This office is open Monday through Friday, except holidays, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. For walk-in service, payment may be made by cash, money order, personal check, Visa, and Mastercard.

For death records from 2009 and more recently, you may also mail your request to, or visit, a local Florida county health department.

How Can I Get a Marriage Certificate in Florida?

Florida marriage records are public records and may be accessed by anyone. However, these public records usually exclude personal information such as the social security numbers of the married parties, as well as birth information. Only the married parties may obtain a marriage certificate that includes that information.

You may obtain a copy of a Florida marriage record by completing the Application for Marriage Record when making your request. You should then either contact the Clerk of Circuit Court for the Florida county where the marriage license was obtained, or mail or visit the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics. You may mail in your request to:

Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics
P.O. Box 210
Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042

Mail-in fees may be paid by personal check or money order.

You may make your request in person at:

Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics
1217 N Pearl Street
Jacksonville, FL 32202

This office is open Monday through Friday, except holidays, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You may also contact this office at the phone number (904) 359-6900. Walk-in service fees may be made by cash, personal check, money orders, Visa, or Mastercard.

There is a $5 search fee for a certified copy of a marriage certificate and a fee of $4 for each additional certified copy. For walk-in service or rush service, there is an additional $10 fee.

How Can I Get a Divorce Certificate in Florida?

Unless a Florida court rules otherwise in a specific court case, Florida divorce records are accessible to anyone.

To obtain a copy of a Florida divorce record, you should contact the Clerk of Circuit Court where the divorce was granted, or you may make your request at Florida's Bureau of Vital Statistics. You may complete the Florida Application for Dissolution of Marriage Report and then submit it, with payment of fees, in person or by mail to:

Florida Department of Health
Office of Vital Statistics
1217 North Pearl Street
Vital Records Section
P.O. Box 210
Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042

This office is open Monday through Friday, except holidays, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Payment in the amount of $5 plus $4 for each additional certificate and $2 for each additional year searched (if the year of divorce is not known) may be made by personal check or money order for mail-in service or by cash, personal check, money order, Visa and Mastercard for walk-in service.

Helpful State Resources

• Florida Driving Records
• Florida Plate Lookup
• Florida Arrest Records
• Florida Inmate Search
• Florida Court Records
• Florida Property Records