Records by Mail

Certified copies of birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates may be ordered directly from the New York State Department of Health Vital Records Section. Two levels of service are offered.

Regular handling: Requests submitted for regular handling will be processed within ten (10) to twelve (12) weeks from the day they are received.

Requests for regular handling should be sent to the following address:

New York State Department of Health
Vital Records Certification Unit
P.O. Box 2602
Albany, NY 12220-2602

Fees

• The fee is $30.00 per copy for birth, marriage, death and divorce records
• Please enclose check or money order made payable to the New York State Department of Health.
• Payment submitted from foreign countries must be made by a check drawn on a United States bank or by international money order.
• Do not send cash.

For Copies which are not available from the New York State Department of Health

• For copies of New York City birth and death certificates, visit the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene web site
• For copies of New York City issued marriage licenses, visit the New York City Marriage Bureau web site
• For genealogy copies, visit our genealogy web page

Identification Requirements

Application must be submitted with copies of either A or B:

1. One (1) of the following forms of valid photo-ID:
   • Driver license
   • State issued non-driver photo-ID card
   • Passport
   • U.S. Military issued photo-ID
   
   
2. Two (2) of the following showing the applicant's name and address:
   • Utility or telephone bills
   • Letter from a government agency dated within the last six (6) months

• Failure to include necessary identification will result in rejection of your application.
• Copy of Passport required in addition to the above ID if request is made from a foreign country that requires a U.S. Passport for travel.

Printing the Forms

• You can get an application form in Portable Document Format (.pdf) by downloading from the links below.
• Adobe ® Reader ® (version 5.0 or later) will allow you to enter your information directly into the form and then print it out ready to sign and mail with check or money order.
• We recommend that you save the form to a location where you will be able to find it, before you start to enter your information.
• When completing the form, please be aware that you will not be able to save the form with any information you have entered.
• You must print the form after you complete it, then sign and mail with check or money order.
• You may also print the form and complete it by typing or printing, then sign and mail with check or money order.

• Visit Help with PDF Files if you have questions or to download Adobe's free Adobe Reader program.

Select a mail-in application form from the list below:

Download PDF Application Forms For use with Adobe Reader

• Birth Certificate Mail-in Application (PDF)
• Death Certificate Mail-in Application (PDF)
• Marriage Certificate Mail-in Application (PDF)
• Divorce Certificate Mail-in Application (PDF)

Application Forms by Mail

If you would prefer, we can mail a hardcopy of the form to you. Send a note with the name of the form you are requesting (i.e., "Birth Certificate Mail-in Application"), your name and your mailing address to:

New York State Department of Health
Vital Records Certification Unit
P.O. Box 2602
Albany, NY 12220-2602