How To Obtain A New York City Birth Certificate
NEW YORK VITAL RECORDSThe New York State Division of Vital Records issues certified copies of New York birth certificates, New York death certificates, New York marriage records for events which occurred in the State of New York boroughs of New York City) and New Hyde Park. New York State Vital Records issues copies of New York divorce certificates for events that occurred anywhere in the State of New York, including New York City. You may order copies of New York Vital Records through VitalChek on an expedited basis.
NOTICE: Although VitalChek attempts to include accurate and up-to-date information on this site, state and agency information is subject to change without notice. VitalChek makes no representations or warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of the information herein and assumes no liability with respect to such information.
NEW YORK BIRTH CERTIFICATESNew York State Vital Records does not file and cannot issue copies of New York City birth certificates. For births that occurred in one of the five boroughs of New York City , Queens, The Bronx and Staten Island), you will need to place your order with the New York City Department of Health.
Who Can Order?You may order copies of New York birth certificates for yourself or for a child, as long as your name appears on the certificate*. Your name must also appear on the credit or debit card that is being used for payment.
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New York State Vital Records
An apostille or authentication for New York State is issued by the New York State Department of State. For further information and instructions on obtaining an apostille or authentication, visit the New York State Department of State web site.
If you are ordering a certificate from us and you need an apostille for it, we can help by forwarding yourcertificate to the Department of State which will return the certificate with apostille to you.
In order for us to forward your certificate to the Department of State, you must order by mail and pay for expedited processing by check or money order payable to the New York State Department of Health.
Enclose a check or money order for $10.00, per certificate to be apostilled, made payable to the New York State Department of State . You must also include a letter telling us for which country the apostille is needed .
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New York State Marriage Records
Researchers should begin by searching New York States index to all marriage records from 1881. Marriage indexes are available online at Internet Archive for 1881 to 1964. As with other vital records, compliance increased as time went on, and records between 1881 and 1913 may be incomplete.
Also, many counties hold marriage license files, some of which may be found in FamilySearchs New York, County Marriages, 1847-1848 1908-1936 database.
In many cases, marriage records can be located at the county level. For detailed information on marriage and other records available in each county, see our New York State County Guides for Genealogists for your county of interest.
Findmypast has a growing collection of county marriage records for New York State this includes a searchable index of brides and grooms, along with images of marriage records in many cases. NYG& B members can access these records for free as a benefit of membership.
Again, these indexes do not cover several notable locations. New York City marriage records have always been kept completely separate from vital records of other locations in New York State. See the New York City section of this guide for more information.
Additionally, New York State does not have marriage records for Albany, Buffalo, or Yonkers before 1914. Click the name of each municipality to find out about obtaining vital records for your ancestors in these cities.
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Who Is Eligible To Get A Copy Of A Birth Certificate
- The person named on the birth certificate.
- A parent of the person named on the birth certificate. The requesting parent’s name must be on the birth certificate.
- A spouse, child or others, but only by order of a New York State court.
What identification needs to be submitted by the applicant?
Application must be submitted with copies of either A or B:
Please submit a copy of your U.S. passport in addition to the above ID if you are applying from a foreign country that requires a passport for travel.
Birth Certificate Copies: Americans Born Abroad
If you were born to American parents abroad, they should have registered your birth with the country’s U.S. embassy or consulate. If they did, they would have received a Consular Report of Birth Abroad . You can get a copy of this report from the U.S. Department of State. Depending on the country, a vital records office in the nation may also list the birth.
What if the State Department cannot locate your CRBA? If you were born on a military base abroad, your parents might not have registered your birth with the U.S. embassy. In that case, you may have to contact the hospital where you were born.
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Certified Copies Of Birth And Death Records
For important information about what records are available and who is eligible to receive copies of records, visit the following:
Genealogy copies are not available for same day pick up at the Vital Records Office. However, we can accept your payment and application at the counter. Your record will be mailed to you when the research has been completed.
Getting Your Birth Certificate Apostille
PLEASE NOTE: NOTARIZED DOCUMENTS ACCEPTABLE FOR APOSTILLE ARE DOCUMENTS NOTARIZED BY A NYS NOTARY PUBLIC WHICH MUST CONTAIN A PROPERLY EXECUTED NOTARIZATION WHICH INCLUDES THE JURAT IN ORDER TO BE ACCEPTABLE FOR AN APOSTILLE.
New York counties served: Albany,Allegany, Bronx, Broome, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Chemung,Chenango, Clinton, Columbia, Cortland, Delaware, Dutchess, Erie,Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Genesee, Greene, Hamilton, Herkimer,Jefferson, Kings , Lewis, Livingston, Madison, Monroe,Montgomery, Nassau, New York City, New York , Niagara, Oneida,Onondaga, Ontario, Orange, Orleans, Oswego, Otsego, Putnam, Queens,Rensselaer, Richmond , Rockland, Saratoga,Schenectady, Schoharie, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, St. Lawrence,Suffolk, Sullivan, Tioga, Tompkins, Ulster, Warren, Washington,Wayne, Westchester, Wyoming, Yates
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Early New York City Vital Records
Where to look and what methods to use can vary depending on the county or borough youre looking in, as well as the exact year.
If youre looking for a birth, marriage, or death certificate from the early 1800s or before, a good place to start is Harry Macys detailed New York Knowledge Base guide to New York City vital records.
This guide provides comprehensive information on locating vital records in New Netherland, colonial New York, and in the five boroughs of New York City. His suggested repositories and record sets also include many vital record substitutes for periods and locations when official city copies are unavailable.
Introduction To New York Birth Marriage And Death Records
Official birth, marriage, and death recordsalso called vital recordsare crucial family history sources that every researcher should seek.
These deep and rich sources can provide names, relationships, locations, dates of events, and other essential details about your family.
Many states in the U.S. have well-organized and complete collections of vital recordsbut not New York!
For many reasons, finding vital records in New York State can be confusing and challenging. The purpose of this guide is to help clarify:
- Where to look for vital records, which depends on the time and place of the event
- How to find the vital record certificate number
- How to locate or request a copy of the vital record
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Where To Order A Ny Birth Certificate Copy
A person born in New York state can order a copy of their birth certificate from the New York State Department of Healths Vital Records Office. It holds birth records for the entire state, with the exception of New York City.
For births that occurred in one of New York Citys five boroughs Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens the Bronx and Staten Island as well as New Hyde Park, applicants must order birth certificates from the New York City Department of Healths Vital Records Office.
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DISCLAIMER: I am not a lawyer. Ill be updating this as I get new information but as of now I have not actually gone through with this procedure due to delays related to COVID-19. This information is not verified by me but rather a collection of information from around the internet. Please comment with any corrections and/or additions, thank you!
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New York City Birth Certificate Requirements
To get your New York City birth certificate you simply have to fill out an online application with your details or the details of the person you need the certificate for.
New York City has records of the people who have been born in the area, including its five boroughs: Kings, Queens, Manhattan, Bronx, and Staten Island.
All of the above have vital records offices, as well as the cities of Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers, and Syracuse.
Once you have completed your application form, you can print it out to send to the vital records office along with a copy any of the following acceptable photo identification documents:
- Drivers License or non-drivers ID from any state or US territory
- Public benefit card
- Student ID and current transcript from accredited and verifiable institution
- Inmate photo ID with release papers
In the case that you do not have any of the documents listed above, you can, instead, provide proof of address.
Once the application has been processed, the NYC birth certificate will be mailed to the address listed on the documents provided.
The proof of address can be sent as follows:
- Two different documents dates within the past 60 days, showing your name and address
- Letter from a government agency
How Do I Get A Long Form Birth Certificate In New York
You can order a birth certificate for yourself or your child online. If you need a birth certificate for any other person, you must request it by mail or in person at the Office of Vital Records. Order a birth certificate for yourself or your child. Vitalchek.com is the official website for ordering birth certificates.
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How Long Will It Take
- Internet or telephone requests receive priority handling and are processed within five to ten business days of receipt. The cost is $45.00 per copy ordered plus $8.00 vendor processing fee. If you chose to have the copy returned to you by UPS overnight delivery, there is an additional UPS fee of $15.50.
- Mail requests ordered with priority handling are currently processed within two to four weeks from when they are received. Submitting the application to theVital Records Processing Center by overnight delivery is recommended. Completed requests will be returned by first class mail unless a prepaid return mailer for overnight delivery is provided with the request.
- Mail requests ordered with regular handling are currently processed within ten to twelve weeks from when they are received.
Requesting A New York City Birth Certificate Through The Mail
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Genealogy Request Processing Times
Processing a genealogy request may take eight months or longer.If the municipality where the event took place is known, submitting your request directlyto the local registrar or municipal clerk may save considerable time.
To order genealogy copies, visit our Genealogy web page for more information and to download an application.
Important Update To Apostille Request Form
The Apostille/Certificate of Authentication Request Form was recently updated to request a CVV for all credit card payments. Due to upcoming system changes, a CVV will be required for all credit card payments. Please be sure to use the newest request form and include this information for all apostille credit card payments to avoid rejection of your payment and return of your documents.
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Short Form Birth Certificate Format
A short-form birth certificate contains almost all of the important information that is on a long-form birth certificate except it may not have signatures or detailed parents information on it depending on the state location.
With a birth certificate, you can use it for several purposes, for example, renew a drivers license registry at school, proves your American citizenship, proves your identity.
To see if your state accepts a short-form birth certificate as proof of identity or citizenship, you can contact your local governing body such as city hall.
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Who Can Apply For A New York Birth Certificate
The following people are able to apply for an authorized copy of a birth certificate from the state of New York:
- The certificate holder, a parent or legal guardian of the certificate holder.
- A child, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner of the certificate holder.
- A member of a law enforcement agency or a representative of another governmental agency, as provided by law, who is conducting official business.
- A party entitled to receive the record as a result of a court order, or an attorney or a licensed adoption agency seeking the birth record.
- An attorney representing the certificate holder or the certificate holders estate, or any person or agency empowered by statute or appointed by a court to act on behalf of the certificate holder or the certificate holder’s estate.
If you need to get your drivers license, apply for a passport, get married, register for school, you will need a certified copy of your birth certificate.
Remember that what differentiates this type of birth certificate copy is the official state registrars raised, embossed, impressed or multicolored Seal of New York, the registrars signature, and the date the certificate was filed with the registrars office.
All those born in the state of New York that need to request a certified copy of their birth certificate will need to include a clear photocopy of both sides of one of the forms of photo ID listed below along with a completed application form:
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How To Get Birth Records In New York
Apart from online services provided through third-party vendors, relevant authorities maintaining birth records in New York allow requesters to obtain such records by:
- Walk-Ins/In-Person or third-party pickup requests
Walk-in requests generally take far less time to complete than online and mail requests for birth records, with most walk-in requesters obtaining their records on the same day of request.
Note that New York State requires a requester to submit an application for birth record with either one of the documents listed in Category A or two of the documents listed in Category B below:
Category A
- Utility or telephone bill
- Letter from a government agency dated within the last six months
Persons applying from foreign countries that require a passport for travel must submit a copy of their U.S. passports in addition to any of the listed forms of identification. Failure to adhere to these instructions is the most common reason for birth record application denial.
Walk-In Orders and Third-Party Pick-Ups
To make a New York birth certificate request in person, visit the Office of Vital Records. The address is:
New York State Department of HealthVital Records Certification UnitP.O. Box 2602Albany, NY 12220-2602
Failure to adhere strictly to these guidelines will cause the Vital Records Office to refrain from issuing the requested record.
To make a request for a New York City birth certificate, visit the Office of Vital Records in the city. The Office is located at: