by Birth records are essential when you are looking to register for school admission, benefits under social welfare schemes, marriage registration, prove of age, driver’s license registration and passport registration. This article will cover on how to find birth records in Florida.
Once you know how to find birth records you will be able to do any of the above mentioned needs and more with the information.
Florida, found on the south eastern part of the US, is the flattest of all the states in the US. Well known for its long beaches that stretch for hundreds of miles, Florida has a population of about 21 million people. Intimidating as that number might be, it is possible to find birth records on all births that took place in the state.
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Florida’s Birth Records Laws
Every state has its own laws that relate to birth records and Florida is no different. The provisions from the statutes of Florida states that birth records are confidential documents. They are made available to people who meet certain requirements.
Birth records that are more than a hundred years are made public records and are available to the public.
Birth records in Florid have details of new births (stillbirths included), in the state of Florida. These records are put together by the Bureau of Vital Statistics. Florida began documenting birth records from 1899. Compliance with the registration of birth records started around 1920. Details that are contained in most birth certificates registered in Florida include, full name of the child, child’s gender, date of birth of the child, father and mother’s full names.
Find and Request Florida Birth Records
Since birth records that are within the last hundred years are confidential in Florida that makes it impossible for the public to access them on the web. Individuals who are looking to access birth records from Florida can do so by mailing their requests or by walk ins at the offices recommended by the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics and Health Department.
Even if so, there are authorized birth records providers online like VitalChek which are allowed to offer them and are government sponsored. Since birth records which are less than a hundred years are confidential, they can only be accessed by the owners of the records, close relatives or anyone with authorized legal permission to do so.
There are third party sites who also provide these records but people are advised to use recommended sources to avoid being scammed online.
How to Order a Florida Birth Certificate
Individuals who qualify to access birth records than are less than hundred years in Florida include the following:
- Registrant (name on the record) if they are of legal age (18) years.
- Parent(s) listed on the Birth Record.
- Legal guardian to the registrant (must provide guardianship papers).
- Legal representative of one of the above mentioned individuals (must provide documentation)
- People with a Court Order (must provide copy of court order).
- When receiving a registrant’s death record, a birth certificate written “Deceased” may be given to the spouse, child, grandchild, or sibling, if they are of legal age. Indicate “Registrant Deceased” on the application and include a copy of the death certificate.
For applicants who do not meet the above categories, then they will need to provide an Affidavit to Release Birth Records with their application plus a signature of one of the above mentioned people. This should be accompanied by a legal photo identification of both the applicant and the person who is authorizing the application.
In a situation whereby the one requesting the birth records is the registrant or a family member or a legal representative, the request should be accompanied by a copy of a legal photo identification document.
The Local County Health Departments and the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics are responsible for processing birth records requests in Florida. The requirements for accessing birth records from county health departments vary depending on the laws of that particular county.
There are advantages to obtaining the birth information through mail or walk ins as compared to ordering them online from the official companies. Application that are submitted in person get processed the same day and you can get the birth certificate the same day. The charges are also less since this cut the cost incurred from the online companies.
The state of Florida offers two types of birth certificates. There is the computer generated certificate, which has limited details and the manually produced certificate which has more details. Request that are made online will get the computer generated birth certificates.
Birth certificates are not available from Florida hospitals. This is because physicians and midwifes are required by Florida Statutes to send new births information to the local registrar in 24 hours. This only leaves the local County Health Offices as your source for such records.
These are some of the ideas on how to find birth records in Florida that you can use. Records that are more than a hundred years old can be accessed by any member of the public and records that are less than a hundred years are confidential in Florida.
