Vital Records
Birth Certificates, Death Certificates, Marriage License, Divorce Decree
What:
You can apply for copies of birth certificates, marriage licenses and divorce decrees from the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) Office of Vital Records. There is a fee for each copy requested. Please refer to the link to the State Department of Vital Records (below) for current fees and application process.
On November 1, 2014, VDH started using an Electronic Death Registration System. Death certificates for deaths that occurred before November 1, 2014 were filed in the city or county health department where the death occurred. Our health departments keep those records up to 5 years and can provide copies of certificates on file. You can obtain a death certificate for any death that occurred on or after November 1, 2014 from any health department once the death certificate has been entered into the Electronic Death Registration System regardless of where the death occurred. Please be prepared to show your photo I.D. when requesting a death certificate.
For all other death certificates, apply to the VDH Office of Vital Records.
Death certificates will only be given to the following:
- immediate family (mother/father, adult sister/brother,
- husband/wife, adult child)
- court appointed guardian
- funeral director
- legal representative of the deceased
All others need to prove a direct and tangible interest in order to obtain a death certificate.
For genealogy information, contact the Library of Virginia.
Call:
Amelia: (804) 561-2711
Buckingham: (434) 969-4244
Charlotte : (434) 542-5251
Cumberland : (804) 492-4661
Lunenburg: (434) 696-2346
Nottoway : (434) 645-7595
Prince Edward: (434) 392-8187