How to Get a Florida Death Certificate (2026)

You can get a Florida death certificate from the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, or from a county health department. The state issues a certified copy without the cause of death to any person requesting it; only family members and certain representatives may obtain the cause of death. The state fee is $5 for the first certified copy, which includes a one-year search, and $4 for each additional copy of the same record.

How Do You Get a Death Certificate in Florida?

You get a Florida death certificate from the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, or from a local county health department. The state office in Jacksonville keeps death records for every county.

There are four main ways to request a copy.

Order Online or by Phone

The state contracts with VitalChek as its only authorized online vendor. You can start an order at VitalChek.com or call 877-550-7330 to order by phone with a credit card. A separate vendor processing fee applies to online and phone orders.

Request by Mail

Mail a completed application, a copy of your photo ID (when requesting the cause of death), and payment to the Bureau of Vital Statistics, P.O. Box 210, Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042. Send a check or money order payable to the Department of Health.

Apply in Person

You can apply in person at the state office at 1217 N. Pearl Street in Jacksonville, or at most county health departments. County offices often issue records faster but may charge their own local fees on top of the state base fee.

Who Is Eligible to Request a Florida Death Certificate?

Eligibility in Florida depends on whether you want the cause of death listed on the certificate.

A certificate without the cause of death is a public record. Fla. Stat. 382.025(2)(a) directs the state to issue that portion to any person requesting it, and the Department of Health's application practice requires the applicant to be of legal age (18 or over).

A certificate with the cause of death is confidential for 50 years from the date of death. During that window, only certain people may obtain it:

• The decedent's spouse or parent
• The decedent's child, grandchild, or sibling, if 18 or older
• Any person who provides a will, insurance policy, or other document showing a legal or financial interest in the estate
• A licensed attorney or other authorized representative acting on behalf of an eligible person
• Anyone acting under a court order

If you are requesting on someone's behalf, you generally need a notarized affidavit (DH Form 1959) and a copy of the eligible person's ID.

Florida Death Certificate Cost and Processing Time

A Florida death certificate costs $5 for the first certified copy and $4 for each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time. The fee includes a search of one calendar year.

If you do not know the exact year of death, an extra search fee applies for each additional year searched, up to a set maximum. Online and phone orders through VitalChek carry a separate vendor processing fee, and VitalChek's $15 charge for the first certificate is the $5 search fee plus a $10 rush fee rather than a higher base rate.

Normal processing time for records from 2009 to the present is about 3 to 5 business days, not including shipping. Older records can take longer because they may require a manual search. A rush option is available for an additional fee.

Certified vs Informational Copy in Florida

Florida issues certified copies of death certificates. A certified copy bears the State Registrar's seal and is the version accepted for settling estates, claiming life insurance, closing financial accounts, and transferring property.

Unlike some states, Florida does not sell a separate "informational" or non-certified copy stamped as not valid for legal use. The practical distinction in Florida is whether the certified copy includes the cause of death. A copy without the cause of death is available to any adult, while a copy with the cause of death is restricted as described above.

How to Get Additional or Replacement Copies

You can get additional copies of a Florida death certificate the same way you ordered the first one. When you order extra copies of the same record at the same time, each one costs $4 instead of the full first-copy fee.

If you need a replacement later, submit a new request to the Bureau of Vital Statistics or a county health department. A replacement is treated as a new certified copy, so the first-copy search fee applies again unless you order it alongside other copies of the same record.

Disclaimer: This page provides general information about obtaining Florida death certificates and is not legal advice. Fees, processing times, and eligibility rules can change, and county offices may charge additional local fees. Always confirm current requirements with the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, or your county health department before submitting a request.

Related Florida Death Record Pages

For the full overview of open and closed death records in the state, see Florida Death Records. To compare how other states handle these documents, visit the Death Records by State hub.

Sources

This page draws on the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics and county health department death-certificate pages.