The Kentucky VS-300 form, officially the Certificate of Divorce or Annulment, is completed on the Office of Vital Statistics online portal, printed, signed by the petitioner or their attorney, and filed with the Circuit Court Clerk at the same time as the divorce petition. KRS 213.116 requires it for every dissolution of marriage in the Commonwealth, and the court cannot finalize a divorce without it.1Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Divorce Web Form Application VS300
Where to Find the Online Form
Kentucky no longer accepts a paper VS-300. Go to the Office of Vital Statistics website and follow the VS-300 Divorce link, or go straight to the portal at ovs.chfs.ky.gov/divorce/.2Cabinet for Health and Family Services. VS-300 Kentucky Divorce Certificate Instructions You do not need an account. The form marks required fields with an asterisk and walks you through each section in order.
One warning before you open it: the form cannot be saved partway through. If you close the window or lose your connection, you start over. Gather every piece of information first, then sit down and complete it in a single session.
What to Gather Before You Start
You will be entering details about both spouses, the marriage, and the case itself.
- The county where the divorce petition will be filed, selected from the drop-down list.
- Divorce type. Choose “Absolute” for a standard divorce.3ardfky.org. AOC Form VS-300 Certificate of Divorce or Annulment Instructions
- Full legal names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, birthplaces, current addresses, and occupations for both parties. If a party is unemployed or disabled, that can be entered as the occupation.
- Your post-divorce legal name. If you are reverting to a prior name, write it out in full.
- The date and place of the marriage, including county and state, or the country if you married abroad.
- The number of children born to or adopted by both spouses during the marriage.
- Grounds for divorce. In Kentucky this is almost always irretrievable breakdown of the marriage.
- Attorney name and address. If you are filing pro se, put your own name in the attorney field.3ardfky.org. AOC Form VS-300 Certificate of Divorce or Annulment Instructions
The form asks for each spouse’s full Social Security number because the data feeds the state vital statistics registry. If you have questions about how the printed copy is handled in your case file, ask the Circuit Court Clerk in your county.
Leave Item 21 Blank
Do not fill in Item 21, the date of the divorce or annulment. That field belongs to the Circuit Court Clerk, who completes it after the judge signs the final decree.2Cabinet for Health and Family Services. VS-300 Kentucky Divorce Certificate Instructions Entering a date yourself will conflict with the court’s records.
Generating and Printing the Form
When every required field is filled in, click “Generate Divorce Record” at the bottom of the page. Two things happen at once. The data is transmitted electronically to the Office of Vital Statistics in Frankfort, and a PDF of the completed certificate is produced for you to download.2Cabinet for Health and Family Services. VS-300 Kentucky Divorce Certificate Instructions Use the link on the confirmation page to download it, print it, and keep a saved copy on your computer as a backup.
Filing with the Circuit Court Clerk
The petitioner or the petitioner’s attorney signs the printed form. Then it goes to the Circuit Court Clerk in the county where the divorce is being heard. Under KRS 213.116, the VS-300 must be filed concurrently with the petition for dissolution of marriage, not after the case is resolved.1Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Divorce Web Form Application VS300 Showing up without it can prevent you from filing the petition at all.
The divorce record is not final until the court signs the decree and the Office of Vital Statistics receives and registers the certificate.2Cabinet for Health and Family Services. VS-300 Kentucky Divorce Certificate Instructions
What Happens After the Judge Signs
Once the court grants the divorce, the Circuit Court Clerk fills in Item 21 with the official date and certifies the form against the court’s records. The Office of Vital Statistics already has the preliminary data you submitted when you clicked “Generate Divorce Record”; the clerk’s certified printed copy follows through an administrative reporting schedule. When the state receives and registers that certified copy, your divorce becomes a permanent entry in Kentucky’s vital statistics database. You do not need to do anything to make this happen.
Fixing Errors on the Form
Small mistakes on the VS-300 can cause real problems later with name changes, benefit claims, and other records that rely on a clean certificate. A misspelled name, a wrong birth date, or an incorrect county is worth catching early.
If you spot an error before the divorce is finalized, tell the Circuit Court Clerk’s office right away so the record can be corrected before it is registered with the state. If the record has already been registered, contact the Office of Vital Statistics directly to request an amendment. Kentucky’s vital statistics laws allow additions and minor corrections under conditions set by regulation, and the correction is added to the original record rather than replacing it.
Getting a Certified Copy of the Divorce Certificate
The VS-300 you file is not the document you will later request as a certified divorce certificate. The decree your court issues contains the judge’s orders on property, custody, and support. The certificate from the Office of Vital Statistics is a one-page standardized record confirming that the divorce happened, when, and between whom. Federal agencies, including the Social Security Administration and the State Department, accept it as proof of marital status for name changes and benefit updates.
Certified copies can be requested online through VitalChek, by phone at 1-800-241-8322, by mail, or in person at the Office of Vital Statistics at 275 East Main Street in Frankfort. Kentucky charges a $6 non-refundable search fee per certificate, which is paid whether or not the record is located, so verify the names, approximate date of the decree, and county of filing before you submit. Mail checks or money orders payable to the Kentucky State Treasurer to: Office of Vital Statistics, 275 E. Main St., 1E-A, Frankfort, KY 40621.4Floyd County Health Dept. Vital Statistics
In-person requests are handled the same day when possible. Mail requests are processed in the order received and can run into unexpected delays. VitalChek orders carry an added processing fee set by the vendor but typically arrive faster than mailing the application yourself.