The
Official Website of
Florida Vital
Records
To protect, promote & improve the health of all people in Florida
through integrated state, county, & community efforts.
Amendments
Birth Amendments Legal Name Change
Death Amendments
Adoption Procedures
Paternity Acknowledgement
Foreign Born Procedures Delayed Birth Procedures
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.
If you need assistance with your request for an amendment to a
vital record, call (904) 359-6900, Extension 9005 or email us at
VitalStats@doh.state.fl.us.
The Bureau of Vital Statistics has the authority to correct
errors or complete omissions on a birth record. It does not have the authority
to change a registrant's name.
For Amendment
applications and forms, please see our State
Applications and Forms page.
Birth Amendments
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Depending on the type of correction and the age of the registrant, documentary
evidence may be required to support the correction.
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If the correction is to the name of a minor
child, the signatures of both parents, if listed on the original birth record, are required.
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A non-refundable fee of $20.00 which includes one certification of the record is required
by Florida law.
Death Amendments
Demographic Amendments
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Depending on the type of correction,
documentary evidence to support the requested correction may be required.
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A non-refundable fee of $20.00 which includes one certification of the record
is required by Florida law.
Medical Amendments
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To amend the medical certification or cause of
death section on the death certificate requires the certifying
physician or medical examiner to complete and file the
notarized Affidavit of Amendment to Medical Certification of
Death, DH 434A (2005 Version)
or Affidavit of Amendment to Medical Certification
of Death, DH 434 (2004 and prior).
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This includes not only the cause of death and
manner of death, but also"...the date of death, hour or time of death or the
place of death other than street address..."
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There is no amendment fee associated with a medical amendment; however, if a
certification of the amended death record is desired, a fee of $5.00 for the
first copy and $4.00 for each subsequent copy ordered at the same time is
required.
Questions on the medical affidavit should be directed to (904) 359-6900,
extension 9013.
Paternity Acknowledgement
A father's name may be added to his child's birth record only
in the case where
the mother was unmarried at the time of the child's birth and no father is
listed on the birth record.
Notarized signatures of both parents are required. If parents have married and they wish marital status
to be amended
to show "married", a certified copy of the
parents' marriage record is also required.
A non-refundable fee of $20.00, which includes one certification of the record, is required by
Florida law.
If you need additional assistance, call (904) 359-6900, Extension 9004 or email us at VitalStats@doh.state.fl.us.
Legal Change of Name
If you have had a legal name change in a Florida court, a report of legal
change of name will be forwarded to our office by the clerk of the court,
usually within 30 days. The
birth record will be amended by attaching the change of name report to the
original birth record.
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If an address is provided, we will notify you or
your attorney in writing of the amendment and the fee required.
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A
non-refundable fee of $20.00 is required for
amending the record and includes one certification of the amended record.
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If you were born in another state, the clerk of
court will provide you with
a copy of the name change. You should contact your state of birth regarding
their procedures in this matter.
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If you had your name changed in another state, a
certified copy of the legal name change must be submitted with your request.
For additional assistance, call
(904) 359-6900, Extension 9005 or email us at
VitalStats@doh.state.fl.us.
Adoption Procedures
If an adoption has occurred, the clerk of the court will forward to our office
a report of the adoption within thirty days of the order.
Based on
this document, a new birth record will be filed for the child.
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A non-refundable fee of $20.00 is required for
amending the record and includes one certification of the amended record.
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If the
required fee does not accompany the report of the adoption, the
record will be amended and either the parent or attorney will be
notified in writing of the amendment and the fee requirement.
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If adopted in Florida but born in another state, the report of adoption received from the clerk of
the court will be forwarded to the child's state of birth. Contact the Bureau of Vital Statistics in the
child's state of birth regarding their requirements in this matter.
For additional assistance, call (904) 359-6900, Extension 9001
or email us at VitalStats@doh.state.fl.us.
Foreign Born
Vital
Statistics is able to file Certificates of Foreign Birth for children born in
foreign countries to non-US citizens, based on orders of adoption whose
judgment occurs in the State of Florida . The court reports a foreign born adoption on the same
form,
Certified Statement Of Final Decree Of Adoption DH Form 527
as used
to report an adoption for a child born in Florida.
The
Certificate of Foreign Birth shows the adoptive name, the adoptive parents, and will
show the true country of birth. The
record also bears information regarding the court order, and has a
disclaimer regarding the record not being proof of citizenship.
Certificates of Foreign Birth are not filed for Canadian born children
as by mutual agreement those orders are forwarded on
to the Vital Statistics office in the province in which the child was born.
The fee for filing a Certificate of Foreign Birth is $20.00. A second copy of
the record is $9.00, and any
subsequent copies requested at the same time is
$4.00 each.
An optional application is available for requesting the filing of a
Certificate of Foreign Birth.
Application For Certificate Of Foreign Birth DH Form 1178
For those who have
already filed a Certificate of Foreign Birth, and just wish to obtain additional
copies, please use Form DH726 which is the
application for requesting any birth record placed on file in Florida.
Delayed Birth Procedures
Florida law allows for the filing of a delayed birth certificate when no
birth certificate was filed
within one year of the child's birth.
If the
child is not yet one year old, the record may still be registered by
contacting the vital statistics office at the county health department
in the
county of the child's birth for assistance in registering the birth.
If the
child is over one year, the following information applies:
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A non-refundable fee
of $20.00 is required by Florida law and will entitle you to one
certification of the record, if filed.
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Forms for filing a delayed birth record are mailed
on an individual basis and only after a result of a search of the State Bureau
of Vital Statistics' birth records when it is found that no birth record is on
file for the individual.
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Documentary evidence supporting the birth facts is required. The number
of documents as well as the age of documents varies depending on the age of
the applicant.
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Such evidence must be in the form of original
documents or notarized or certified copies and must show the
child's full name, age or date of birth, place of birth and the date
the original record was established.
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At
least one document must also show the
father's name and the mother's full maiden name.
If you have not yet had our records searched for your birth record and
wish to do so, submit your request in writing along with the search fee
of $9.00 to:
Bureau of Vital Statistics
Post Office Box 210
Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042
If no
record is found, you will be provided with a certified "not found" statement and
instructions for filing a delayed birth certificate.
