Frequently Asked Questions

To obtain a copy of your birth certificate, you can come in person or apply by mail. We should have your record if you were born in Lucas County, your parents were married at the time of your birth and you were not adopted. We also have single-parent birth's after July of 1995 through the present day.

We may not have your birth certificate if you were born in the years 1921 through 1941. If you apply in person, you will need to fill out an application, bring your photo I.D., and $15.00 cash/check. If you apply by mail, complete and sign* the Vital Records Application Form . Please enclose the $15.00 fee in the form of cash, check, or money order. Once we receive your request, we’ll mail it out the following business day.

*All signatures must be notarized. If the request is by mail, the applicant must sign in front of a Notary Public and include a clear photocopy of the applicant's current government-issued photo identification.

The Iowa Department of Public Health has birth certificates for all Iowa births. Their phone number is 515-281-4944. For births outside of Iowa, you will need to contact the vital records department in the state of your birth or visit the National Center for Health Statistics website.

A certified copy has what most refer to as a “raised seal” and states that the copy is a true and correct reproduction of the original record. An uncertified copy or a “plain” copy has no seal or verbiage indicating authenticity. An uncertified copy also has a stamp noting “not for legal purposes.”