How to Get a Mississippi Death Certificate (2026)

You get a Mississippi death certificate from the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) Vital Records office. The first certified copy costs $17, and each additional copy ordered at the same time costs $6. Close family members and legal representatives may request a certified copy.

How Do You Get a Death Certificate in Mississippi?

You get a Mississippi death certificate from the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) Vital Records office. MSDH holds death records for deaths that occurred in Mississippi from November 1912 to the present.

There are three main ways to request a certified copy. Each method requires a completed application, a copy of your valid photo ID, and the correct fee.

Order by mail. Download and complete the MSDH death certificate application, then mail it with a copy of your photo ID and a cashier's check or money order to the Vital Records office.

Order in person. Visit the MSDH office at 222 Marketridge Drive in Ridgeland, open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. In-person requests are typically mailed to you within 7 to 10 business days of ordering.

Order online or by phone. Use VitalChek, the private company authorized by Mississippi to process online and telephone orders. VitalChek adds a service fee on top of the standard $17 state charge. You can also call the Vital Records office at 601-206-8200.

Unlike some states, Mississippi does not maintain a county-level death record search. All certified copies come from the state MSDH Vital Records office.

Who Is Eligible to Request a Mississippi Death Certificate?

Eligible requesters include close family members and legal representatives of the person named on the record. You qualify if you are the decedent's spouse, parent, grandparent, sibling, child, grandchild, guardian, or legal representative. That list is not in the statute. Miss. Code Ann. § 41-57-2 sets the standard generally, exempting vital records from the Public Records Act as to anyone without a legitimate and tangible interest in them, and the MSDH vital records rules are what name the immediate family members who are treated as meeting it.

To request a certified copy, you must submit a completed application and a copy of your valid photo identification. The ID confirms your identity and your relationship-based eligibility.

If you do not fall into one of those categories, you must show a legitimate and tangible interest in the record. That is the exact phrase Mississippi uses, so use it when you write to MSDH; the "direct and tangible interest" wording common in other states appears nowhere in the Mississippi rules. Documents that can establish this interest include a joint property deed, an insurance policy naming both the decedent and the applicant, or relevant court documents.

Because Mississippi protects death records, requests from people without a qualifying relationship or documented interest may be denied.

Mississippi Death Certificate Cost and Processing Time

A certified Mississippi death certificate costs $17 for the first copy. Each additional certified copy of the same record ordered at the same time costs $6.

Ordering multiple copies together is cheaper per copy than placing separate orders later. Each separate order pays the full $17 first-copy fee again.

Standard mail orders are processed in 7 to 10 business days after MSDH receives the request. Online and telephone orders through VitalChek offer expedited UPS delivery and are processed in 3 to 5 business days.

VitalChek charges its own service fee in addition to the state fee, so ordering by mail directly from MSDH is the lowest-cost option.

Veterans are an exception to the fee. Miss. Code Ann. § 41-57-26 requires the Office of Vital Records Registration to furnish up to five certified copies of the death certificate of a person who was an honorably discharged veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces, or who was killed or died while serving on active duty, without charge. The MSDH rule that implements it adds two practical conditions the statute does not state: it applies to a person who died in Mississippi, and it runs on written application by a recognized Veterans Service Officer, so this route goes through a VSO rather than an ordinary walk-in or mail request.

A separate free-copy rule covers benefit claims. Under Miss. Code Ann. § 35-3-9, birth and death certificates needed to establish a dependency, disability, or survivors' benefit claim are furnished free for Mississippi veterans or their claimants, again on written application by a recognized Veterans Service Officer or the veterans administration. Copies issued under § 41-57-26 are in addition to these.

Certified vs Informational Copy in Mississippi

Mississippi issues certified copies of death certificates. A certified copy is an official document with the state seal that you can use to settle an estate, claim life insurance, close financial accounts, transfer property, or handle other legal and government matters.

Many states offer a separate, lower-cost informational copy that is not valid for legal use. Mississippi does not run a separate informational-copy program for the general public, so plan to request a certified copy for nearly every purpose. Genealogy researchers are the narrow exception: for deaths filed more than 50 calendar years before the request, MSDH releases plain paper copies rather than certified ones. Those plain paper copies are priced the same as certified copies, so they are not a cheaper tier.

Because the certified copy carries legal weight, MSDH limits who may order one and requires proof of identity and eligibility. Keep your originals secure and order extra copies if several institutions will each need one.

How to Get Additional or Replacement Copies

To get additional or replacement copies, submit a new application to MSDH Vital Records the same way you ordered the first copy. You can request more copies at any time, not only at the moment of the original order.

If you order additional copies of the same record during the same transaction, you pay $17 for the first and $6 for each additional copy. If you come back later for a replacement, that new order starts again at the $17 first-copy fee.

Replacement copies follow the same eligibility and ID rules. You must still be a qualifying family member, legal representative, or person with a legitimate and tangible interest, and you must include a copy of your valid photo ID.

For questions about an order or to confirm current requirements, contact the MSDH Vital Records office at 601-206-8200 or by email at VRInfo@msdh.ms.gov.

Mississippi Death Certificate Facts

Disclaimer: This page provides general information about obtaining a Mississippi death certificate and is not legal advice. Fees, processing times, and eligibility rules can change. Always verify current requirements with the Mississippi State Department of Health Vital Records office before ordering.

Sources

This page is based on the Mississippi State Department of Health Vital Records office, the state agency that issues death certificates.

For the broader open-record and access rules, see Mississippi Death Records, and to compare other states see Death Records by State.