Florida Birth Certificate Search

Florida birth certificates are preserved and issued by government departments known as the "vital records" or "vital statistics" offices. These include the State’s Department of Health, the Bureau of Vital Statistics, and the local health departments situated in all 67 of Florida's counties.

Along with other Florida birth records, birth certificates have various applications. It is usually required when enrolling in a school, obtaining a driver's or marriage license, getting a passport, establishing inheritance rights, joining the military, and accessing other benefits or services. Further, birth certificates contain essential details about birth events, including identifying information, demographic data, medical information (e.g., congenital disabilities), and more. In Florida, birth certificates are generated, filed, and distributed per Fla. Stat. § 382.001 et seq. (also referred to as the Florida Vital Statistics Act).

What is a Birth Certificate in Florida?

A birth certificate is the government's permanent documentation of a birth event. It reveals the who, when, and where of a birth that occurred within a particular region, including a child's name, gender, date of birth, names of the child's parents, and place of birth.

Are Birth Certificates Public Record in Florida?

No. Pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 382.025, birth certificates are not public records in Florida. More specifically, the law prohibits public access to birth certificates less than 100 years old and birth certificates over 100 years old under the court's seal. Only the following persons can obtain birth records in Florida:

A registrant (subject) of a birth certificate, if of legal age (18 years or older)
A parent named on a birth certificate
The legal guardian or representative of any of the above persons (with proper documentation)
A spouse, grandchild, child, or sibling of legal age if the registrant is deceased (with a photocopy of the death certificate)
A person bearing a court order

How to Get a Birth Certificate in Florida

Interested members of the public can get a Florida birth certificate by submitting a request to the official custodian of the record. This can be the local department of health or the tax collector's office based in the county where a birth occurred or the Florida Department of Health's Bureau of Vital Statistics.

Birth certificates available at these offices date back to 1917 (when statewide birth registration began). Only limited birth records between 1850 and 1916 are available.

How to Order a Birth Certificate Online in Florida

The Florida Department of Health's Bureau of Vital Statistics does not provide a web portal to order birth certificates online. Instead, the agency collaborates with a third-party vendor to provide the service to the public.

Individuals who order Florida birth records through the agency's vendor can get delivery to their doorsteps. However, a $7 processing fee applies to use the online vendor's service, in addition to the $19 birth certificate fee (a $9 search fee + $10 rush order fee) and a $4 fee for each additional copy charged by the state vital records office.

Some county health departments also work with the authorized vendor to provide birth certificates to requesters, but the fees charged by the county offices to obtain a birth record vary. Further guidelines on ordering birth certificates online in Florida can be reviewed on the state vital records office's website.

Where Can I Get My Birth Certificate in Person in Florida?

An individual who has a Florida birth certificate can obtain a certified copy of the record from the following government offices during regular business hours:

The Bureau of Vital Statistics Office at 1217 North Pearl Street, Jacksonville, FL 32202, or
The county health department (or sometimes, the tax collector's office) in the locality where their birth was registered.

To expedite the processing time at a vital records office, one can complete and download Form DH726 (Application for a Florida Birth Record) or Form DH726S (Application for a Florida Birth Record - Español) from the Bureau of Vital Statistics website. County health departments also provide a birth certificate application form on their websites.

Besides an application form, a registrant must submit proof of identity (a valid/current government-issued ID), such as a passport, state ID, military ID, or driver's license. Each birth certificate copy costs a fee that may be paid in cash, check, money order, or credit/debit card at a vital statistics office. The price varies by office. For example, the local department of health in Miami-Dade County charges $20 per certified copy and $16 for each additional copy requested at the same time. In contrast, the local department of health in Alachua County charges $15 for one certified copy and $7 per additional copy requested simultaneously. Ultimately, the process with depend on the local county health department concerned.

How Do I Get My Original Birth Certificate in Florida?

Original birth certificates maintained in vital records offices in Florida remain on file permanently. The vital records offices only release certified copies of the original records to requesters. Thus, a person who wants to obtain their original Florida birth certificate must purchase a certified copy from the local vital records office where the birth occurred, or they may query the Bureau of Vital Statistics for a copy.

However, adoptees who require copies of their sealed original Florida birth certificates must apply to the Bureau of Vital Statistics in Jacksonville. Below are the ordering guidelines:

Download and fill out the Application for Florida Birth Record (Form for adoptees 18 years or older or Form for adoptees under 18).
Complete and notarize the required affidavit(s) included in the respective forms.
Prepare a check or money order of $14 for a photocopy certification of the sealed birth certificate.
Enclose all of the above and a photocopy of a valid photo ID in an envelope and send all to the following address:

Department of Health
Office of Vital Statistics
Attn: Vital Records Section
P.O. Box 210
Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042

Individuals requiring further information can call (904) 359-6900, ext. 9001 or email the state vital records office at VitalStats@FLHealth.gov.

How to Order a Replacement Birth Certificate in Florida

The vital statistics offices in Florida do not have or recommend a separate process to request the replacement of a missing or illegible birth certificate. Since the original birth certificates remain at the vital records offices, a person who requires their birth certificate may request another copy from the appropriate office. Birth records are typically released after one submits an application, proper documentation, and payment.

Those who want to alter information on the original birth record before ordering a replacement should review the Florida Department of Health's Amendments and Corrections page.

What are the Documents Required to Get a Birth Certificate in Florida?

Birth certificates in Florida are protected documents. As a result, although a person may legally be authorized to obtain a Florida birth certificate, they will often be asked to provide supporting documentation to verify their eligibility. The documents required to get a birth certificate in Florida differ based on the applicant but often include the following:

A completed birth certificate application form
A government-issued photo ID
A copy of appointment orders (when the requester is the legal guardian of the registrant)
A death certificate (if the registrant is deceased)
A court order (if the release of the birth certificate is permitted by the court)
An Affidavit to Release a Birth Certificate or Form DH1958 (if the requester is not an eligible applicant, as determined under Fla. Stat. § 382.025)

What Do I Need to Get My Child's Birth Certificate in Florida?

A parent who needs their child's Florida birth certificate must apply to a vital records office (a county health department or the Bureau of Vital Statistics) in person, via mail, or online through an authorized vendor. The application process is the same one used to purchase any other certified copy of a birth certificate in Florida.

It is worth noting that while a hospital or birthing institution may provide a parent with a record of their child's birth, this document is not the official record of birth.

How Do I Find My Birth Certificate Number in Florida?

A birth certificate number is an identifier assigned to a birth certificate. In many cases, it is an 11-digit number that carries the state's area code where a birth occurred (e.g., 109 for Florida), the year of registration, and a 6-digit sequential number.

Individuals looking for their birth certificate numbers in Florida can find the digits on their Florida birth certificates, usually at the top section.

How Much Does It Cost to Apply for a Birth Certificate

There is no uniform birth certificate application fee in Florida. The cost to obtain a Florida birth certificate depends on the office or agency to which one applies. Nonetheless, a person can expect to pay between $9 to $24 to search for and obtain a certified copy of a birth record, excluding convenience charges for credit/debit card transactions, fees for expedited requests, and fees to search for additional birth years. Additional certified copies ordered at the time of request cost less and range from $4 to $16, depending on the office.

Given the varying costs of obtaining a Florida birth certificate, each requester should contact a vital records office or check its website for fee information.

What is the Fastest Way to Get a Birth Certificate in Florida?

Individuals using a vital records office's walk-in service to obtain a birth certificate in Florida can often get the documents on the same day, although a rush fee must be paid to expedite the processing time. One may also order records online through an office's authorized vendor for a faster turnaround time or mail in an order with "RUSH" marked on the envelope and a $10 rush fee enclosed to reduce the processing time at the vital records office.

What is a Long-Form Birth Certificate in Florida?

A long form birth certificate (otherwise called a full-size birth certificate) is a copy of an original birth certificate. It carries all information that can be legally included on a birth certificate within a particular jurisdiction, such as a registrant's name, the birth institution's name, and the name and signature of the attending physician or midwife. This document can be used to verify identity in all applications or transactions.

Long Form vs. Short Form Birth Certificate in Florida

The primary difference between a long-form and a short-form birth certificate is that the former is the actual full-length certificate - albeit a photocopy, while the other is an abstract (a condensed version) of the original document. Short-form birth certificates only contain the essential facts of birth in an original record, such as the child's name, a parent's name, date of birth, and place of birth. These documents can serve many verification requirements but are not always accepted.

Not all U.S. states issue long-form and short-form birth certificates. The State of Florida, for one, does not dispense these versions of birth certificates to requesters. Florida applicants can access a computer- or photocopy-generated birth certificate (the latter is available through the state registrar's office). Both Florida birth certificate types are printed on security paper and bear the Florida embossed seal; this is true for both birth and death certificates in Florida.

One distinction between the two certificate types is that a photocopy-generated birth certificate is manually produced from the original birth record, and it requires an additional fee and time to process. Moreover, there are two formats of computer-generated birth certificates based on the birth year:

2003 and earlier: These birth certificates show a child's name, date of birth, sex, parent(s) names, and county of birth.
Records Later than 2004: They bear all the information above in addition to the time of birth, and the baby’s weight.