| **National Center    for     Health Statistics            Division of Data     Services            6525 Belcrest Road     Hyattsville, MD     20782-2003     (301)458-4636      **

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**Application Guidelines**

An official certificate of every birth,    death, marriage, and divorce should be on file in the locality where the event occurred.    The Federal Government does not maintain files or indexes of these records. These records    are filed permanently in a State vital statistics office or in a city, county, or other    local office. 

To obtain a certified copy of any of the    certificates, write or go to the vital statistics office in the State or area where the    event occurred. Addresses and fees are given for each event in the State or area    concerned. 

To ensure that you receive an accurate    record for your request and that your request is filled expeditiously, please follow the    steps outlined below for the information in which you are interested:

For all requests make check or money    order payable to the identified office, in the correct amount for the number of copies    requested. Sending cash is not recommended because the office cannot refund cash lost in    transit.

Because all fees are subject to change, a    telephone number has been included in the information for each State for use in verifying    the current fee. 

Some States have provided their home page    address for obtaining current information.

Type or print all names and addresses in    the letter.

Give the following facts when writing for    birth or death records: - Full name of person whose record is        requested. 
- Sex. 
- Parents' names, including maiden name of        mother. 
- Month, day, and year of birth or death. 
- Place of birth or death (city or town,        county, and State; and name of hospital, if known). 
- Purpose for which copy is needed. 
- Relationship to person whose record is        requested. 

Give the following facts when writing for    marriage records: - Full names of bride and groom. 
- Month, day, and year of marriage. 
- Place of marriage (city or town, county,        and State). 
- Purpose for which copy is needed. 
- Relationship to persons whose record is        requested. 

Give the following facts when writing for    divorce records: - Full names of husband and wife. 
- Date of divorce or annulment. 
- Place of divorce or annulment. 
- Type of final decree. 
- Purpose for which copy is needed. 
- Relationship to persons whose record is        requested. 

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This page last reviewed August 25, 2000

**U.S.    DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES****Centers    for Disease Control and Prevention**    National Center for Health Statistics    Division of Data Services     Hyattsville, MD    20782-2003    (301) 458-4636
 

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