Family Tree Circles Locations
- Volunteer as a location editor. You'll gain access to edit the location and can add information and resources.
- Volunteer for the Assist! program and provide local lookups for people who need local assistance.
Be sure to drill down to the specific state, region, county, city, or even cemetery that you can help in. The more specific your volunteer location, the better the requests will be.
Minnesota
Locations
Volunteers
Can you help other genealogy researchers looking for help in Minnesota? Yes, I'd like to volunteer to help in Minnesota
Requests
Request assistance from someone in or with knowledge of this location. I'd like to request assistance in Minnesota.
Wiki
State Offices
Minnesota Department of Health
Office of the State Registrar
Vital Records
85 E. 7th Place, 3rd Floor
P.O. Box 64882
St. Paul, MN 55164-0882
Mailing address:
Minnesota Department of Health
Central Cashiering - Vital Records
P.O. Box 64499
St. Paul, MN 55164-0499
Tel: (651) 201-5970
Fax: (651) 291-0101
Email: health.issuance@state.mn.us
Website
The Minnesota Department of Health, Center for Health Statistics (Minnesota Vital Records) issues certified copies of Minnesota birth certificates since 1900 and Minnesota death certificates since 1908 if the event occurred in Minnesota.
Marriage records are maintained by the county in which the marriage license was issued. Divorce records are maintained by the county in which the divorce was granted.
Remarks: A valid/current government, school
or employer issued photo identification document of the applicant
is required before a search of the records will be conducted.
Requests that do not contain proper identification will be returned
unprocessed.
If there is an incorrect or missing information on your vital record or on your child's record, you may make a request for an amendment.
Remarks: A request for an amendment to correct a vital record must be made by mail to MDH.
Apostilles or other authentication of birth or death certificates to be used for official purposes in other countries are obtained through the Minnesota Secretary of State.
Remarks: Check with each country's consulate or embassy to determine what that country requires for an authentication to be valid.
Options to obtain a certified copy:
In Person Orders - You can get a certified copy of your vital record in person - same day service - from any local issuance office in the state;
Mail & Fax - You can get certified copy of vital records, by mail or fax (651-201-5740), from the Office of the State Registrar. Please allow 2-4 weeks for processing your request.;
VitalCheck - Secured online applications to request for vital records, which accepts all major credit card payments, can be made through VitalCheck with an additional charge for their service.
Vital Records
Birth
Location:
Minnesota Department of Health
Office of the State Registrar
Vital Records
85 E. 7th Place, 3rd Floor
P.O. Box 64882
St. Paul, MN 55164-0882
Mailing address:
Minnesota Department of Health
Central Cashiering - Vital Records
P.O. Box 64499
St. Paul, MN 55164-0499
Tel: (651) 201-5970
Fax: (651) 291-0101
Email: health.issuance@state.mn.us
Website
A birth certificate cannot be mailed to you unless you demonstrate tangible interest.
You demonstrate tangible interest by checking the appropriate box on the application and by having your signature on the application notarized. Applications that are not notarized will not be processed.
Fee: $26.00 per copy
Time-frame: Since January 1900
Notes: Additional copies of the same birth
records ordered at the same time of certification are $19.00
each.
Remarks: Tangible interest helps protect people who are born in Minnesota and the families of people who die in Minnesota against fraud. Tangible interest helps by limiting who can have a certificate that is used for a legal purpose.
The first actions occur at the Family Court. If you do not have an attorney, you can access the guidelines and forms found at www.judicial.state.sc.us/forms. We do not issue any forms until the family court has completed their initial process.
Remarks: Please be advised that processing generally takes 3 -4 months. If you wish to expedite, you may submit an additional $5 and mark request as "expedite" with processing completed in about 2 weeks.
The Fathers' Adoption Registry is a record of putative fathers who voluntarily register any time before their child's birth or within 30 days of the birth. It applies to children born on January 1, 1998 or later, but not before then.
Remarks: If adoption proceedings begin for the child, and if the father has placed his name on the registry, the court can find the father so he can participate in the adoption proceedings. For information about this page, please contact the Father's Adoption Registry.
There are two ways that a father's name can be added to the child's birth record when the parents are not married at the time of the child's conception or birth:
-
Recognition of Parentage (ROP) - The ROP form can be completed at the hospital when the child is born.
-
Court Ordered Paternity Adjudication - To request a court ordered paternity adjudication, contact the court administrator's office in the county where you live.
Birth Records After Adoption
When you submit a request for a birth certificate after an adoption, your payment is deposited immediately and your request in the order received will be reviewed.
-
Child born and adopted in Minnesota - After the adoption is finalized in the county where the adoptive parents live, the district court completes a Certificate of Adoption form and mails the form to the Office of the State Registrar at the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).
-
Child born in a foreign land and adopted by a resident of Minnesota - When an adoption occurs in a foreign country, the adoptive parents file their adoption papers from the country of birth with the district court in the county where the adoptive parents live.
Court Clerks: How to request a replacement birth record after an adoption?
- How do adoptive parents request a birth certificate? - An application for a birth certificate is available from the district court in the county where the adoption took place and is usually completed and mailed to MDH at the same time as the Certificate of Adoption.
Access to Original Birth Certificate after Adoption
-
Adoptee - Access to Original Birth Record - A child, age 19 or older who was adopted, may request a non-certified copy of the original birth record. Mail the completed form with a fee of $13 to the Minnesota Department of Health, Central Cashiering - Vital Records, P.O. Box 64499, St. Paul, Minnesota 55164-0499.
-
Birth Parent - Access to Original Birth Record - According to Minnesota Statutes, section 144.218, the original birth record is confidential and released only to a parent who is named on the original birth record. Copies of original birth records are available only through MDH.
-
Birth Parent - Permission to Release Original Birth Record - A birth parent may give or deny permission to release the original birth information to the child when the child has reached age 19. Permission may be given or denied at any time.
Remarks: To be acceptable, records that are submitted MUST have been on file at least the required length of time, they must verify the facts claimed, they cannot contain alterations, and must be the original not a Xerox of the original and they must be submitted.
Paternity Acknowledgement
A paternity acknowledgment can not be completed if the mother was married anytime during the pregnancy or at birth or if a father is recorded on the birth record.
Remarks: The amendment fee is $15 in addition to the fees for certified copies of the birth certificate.
Non-certified copy of a birth record
A non-certified copy of a birth record is a plain paper copy of the birth record. Changes made to the birth record after 2000 may not be reflected on the non-certified copy if the birth took place before 2001.
Remarks: A non-certified copy is for information only and will not be accepted for any legal purpose such as school enrollment or obtaining a driver's license or a passport.
Death
Location:
Minnesota Department of Health
Office of the State Registrar
Vital Records
85 E. 7th Place, 3rd Floor
P.O. Box 64882
St. Paul, MN 55164-0882
Mailing address:
Minnesota Department of Health
Central Cashiering - Vital Records
P.O. Box 64499
St. Paul, MN 55164-0499
Tel: (651) 201-5970
Fax: (651) 291-0101
Email: health.issuance@state.mn.us
Website
You can get a death certificate in person from any local issuance office in the state for a death record 1997-present.
Long/Short: $13.00 per copy
Time-frame: Since January 1908
Notes: Additional copies of the death record
when ordered at the same time are $6.00 each.
Remarks: To get a certificate for a death before 1997, you must go to the county where the death occurred or send your request by mail or fax to the Office of the State Registrar.
Birth Resulting in Still Birth
Minnesota Statutes 2005, section 144.2151, allow for the filing of a record of birth, resulting in stillbirth if a fetal death report has been filed according to Minnesota Statutes, section 144.222.
Remarks: If you have any questions, please e-mail health.stillbirth@state.mn.us.
Non-certified Copy of a Death Record
A non-certified copy of a death record is a plain paper copy of the death record. Changes made to the death record after 2000 may not be reflected on the non-certified copy if the death took place before 1997.
Remarks: A non-certified copy is for information only and will not be accepted for any legal purpose, such as settling an estate or applying for life insurance benefits.
Marriage
Location:
Minnesota Department of Health
Office of the State Registrar
Vital Records
85 E. 7th Place, 3rd Floor
P.O. Box 64882
St. Paul, MN 55164-0882
Mailing address:
Minnesota Department of Health
Central Cashiering - Vital Records
P.O. Box 64499
St. Paul, MN 55164-0499
Tel: (651) 201-5970
Fax: (651) 291-0101
Email: health.issuance@state.mn.us
Website
Copies of certificates of marriage are available from the county that issued the marriage license. Marriage records are not recorded at the state level. To search, find, and request marriage certificates from anywhere in Minnesota, please visit our website.
(County) Fee: $9.00 per copy
Notes: For ordering and fee information,
please contact the local
registrar in the county where the marriage license was
issued.
Divorce
Location:
Minnesota Department of Health
Office of the State Registrar
Vital Records
85 E. 7th Place, 3rd Floor
P.O. Box 64882
St. Paul, MN 55164-0882
Mailing address:
Minnesota Department of Health
Central Cashiering - Vital Records
P.O. Box 64499
St. Paul, MN 55164-0499
Tel: (651) 201-5970
Fax: (651) 291-0101
Email: health.issuance@state.mn.us
Website
Copies of divorce decrees are available from the county that granted the divorce. If you need a "Statement of No Marriage", contact the local registrar in the county where you live.
(County) Fee: $10.00 per copy
Notes: For ordering and fee information,
please contact the Court Administrator in county where divorce was
granted.
