Death Certificates

The Alabama Center for Health Statistics began filing death certificates in 1908 for persons who died in Alabama.

Restrictions

By Alabama law, death certificates are confidential records with restricted access for 25 years from the date of death. Death certificates more than 25 years old may be obtained by anyone upon payment of the proper fee. Death certificates less than 25 years old may be obtained by the following persons, upon payment of the proper fee:

• Mother or father of person named on certificate
• Husband or wife of person named on certificate
• Son or daughter of person named on certificate
• Sister or brother of person named on certificate
• Grandchild of person named on certificate when demonstrating entitlement
• Legal representative of family or estate
• Informant listed on death certificate as providing information

Identification Requirements

Identification will be required to obtain a restricted death certificate. View ID Requirements for more information.

Cost

The fee to search for a death certificate is $15.00, which includes one certified copy of the death certificate or a "Certificate of Failure to Find." For each additional copy of the certificate ordered at the same time, the fee is $6.00. Checks or Money Orders should be made payable to the State Board of Health. Please do not send cash. Fees are not refundable. Additional fees are required for expedited service.

Information Required

Please provide as much of the following information as possible for us to locate the death certificate:

• Full legal name of deceased
• Date of death
• County (or city) of death
• Sex
• Social security number
• Date of birth or age at death
• Race
• Name of spouse
• Names of parents
• Your name
• Your signature
• Your relationship to the person whose certificate you are requesting
• Address where the certificate is to be mailed
• Your daytime phone number

How to Obtain a Death Certificate

• Download Mail-In Application (also available in Spanish)
• By Mail: Send the above information and the appropriate fee to:
  Alabama Vital Records
  P.O. Box 5625
  Montgomery, Alabama 36103-5625
• In Person in Alabama: You may go to any county health department in the State of Alabama to obtain a certified copy of an Alabama death certificate. Most death certificates can be issued while you wait. A map showing locations of county health departments where vital records may be obtained is available. View Reference Map or visit Locations.
• To Order a Certificate Online: You may order certificates through the service provider VitalChek using a major credit or debit card. Note that there are additional fees for using this service and for upgrading to UPS shipping. Order a Certificate Online.

Corrections/Changes to Death Certificates

Errors on death certificates may be corrected through an amendment process and changes may be made by the certifier to the medical certification. For more information, view the Death Certificate Corrections/Changes page.

Apostille and Exemplified Copies

Apostille and Exemplified copies of vital records are routinely required for foreign use. The Apostille and Exemplified copies consist of an Alabama birth, death, marriage, or divorce certificate signed by the State Registrar and an additional certification signed by the Alabama Secretary of State. Certain restrictions apply to Apostille and Exemplified copies of birth and death certificates. For more information on Apostille and Exemplified copies, view the Apostille and Exemplified page.

Death Not in Alabama

The National Center for Health Statistics has information on vital records for all states. For more information, view the Link to Other State Information page.

Questions

If you have questions or would like information on expediting a certified copy of a death certificate, please call (334) 206-5418.

Page last updated: August 30, 2024