How to Fill Out and Submit State Form 49607: Indiana Birth Certificate

Indiana State Form 49607 is the Application for Search and Certified Copy of Birth Record issued by the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH). You download it, fill in the birth details and your own information, attach proof of identity, include a $10 payment, and send it to state vital records in Indianapolis. You can also submit it online through VitalChek or in person at a county health department.¹

Who Can Use This Form

Indiana birth records are confidential. The registrar will only issue a certified copy to someone with a direct interest in the record who needs it to establish a personal or property right or to comply with a law.² In practice that means:

The person named on the record
A parent listed on the record
A spouse, with a marriage license or a shared child’s birth certificate as proof
An adult child, grandchild, or great-grandchild aged 21 or older, with their own birth certificate showing the family connection
A grandparent or great-grandparent, with birth certificates tracing the lineage
A sibling aged 21 or older, with their own birth certificate proving the shared parent
A legal guardian, with the original guardianship order bearing the court’s raised seal

If you don’t fit one of these categories, you’ll need to show the registrar a direct legal interest in the record. Applications that don’t establish eligibility are returned without processing.

Pick the Standard or Long Form Before You Start

Form 49607 asks you to check which version of the certificate you want, and the choice changes how long you wait.³

The standard form (8.5″ × 5.5″) shows name, sex, birthplace, date of birth, parents’ names and birthplaces, file date, and certificate number. It’s accepted for a REAL ID license, a U.S. passport, a Social Security card, school enrollment, and most government benefits.

The long form (8.5″ × 11″) adds time of birth, hospital name, attending physician, certifier’s name, and parents’ dates of birth. It’s typically required for apostilles, international marriage, dual citizenship, immigration or visa matters, and genealogical research.

Order the right one the first time. Standard copies take two to three weeks; long form takes six to eight.¹

Filling Out Form 49607

Download the form from the IDOH vital records page or pick one up at a local health department.¹ It asks for the following about the person whose certificate you need:

Full name at birth, plus any other name the birth could have been recorded under
Adoption status, and the name after adoption if applicable
Place of birth: city, county, and hospital
Date of birth
Whether the person is deceased, and the state of death if known
Full name of Parent 1 (adoptive parent’s name if adopted)
Full name of Parent 2, including maiden name (adoptive parent’s name if adopted)
The purpose for which you need the record
Your relationship to the person named on the certificate

You also check the size you want (standard or long form), the number of copies, and whether the certificate is for an apostille. There’s a delivery preference box for regular mail or express courier with signature required.

Then sign the application, print your name, add a daytime phone number and the date, and write in your mailing address. One trap catches a lot of applications: the mailing address on the form has to match the address on the ID you send with it. If they don’t match, IDOH returns the request unprocessed.⁴

Identification You Have to Include

Every request needs proof of identity. Indiana uses a two-tier system: one primary document, or two secondary documents if you don’t have a primary.⁵ Send a photocopy, not the original. Requests without acceptable ID are returned.

Primary (one is enough)

A photocopy of the front and back of any one of these:

Government-issued driver’s license or state ID
U.S. military ID
U.S. passport
Veterans ID
Mexico Consular ID (green card format)

Secondary (two required)

If you don’t have a primary ID, send two of the following. Each has conditions, so read them before copying:

Social Security card (must be signed)
Department of Correction ID card or printout (must include a photo)
College or school ID with proof of current enrollment, such as a transcript or letter from administration
Work ID badge with proof of current employment, such as a recent pay stub or employer letter
Voter registration card showing name and current address
Current vehicle registration showing name and current address (a title of ownership does not count)
Previous year’s tax return (1040) with signature and Social Security number
Military discharge (DD-214)
Home lease, rental agreement, or warranty deed showing name, current address, and signature
Public assistance card

Utility bills and bank statements are not on Indiana’s list, which trips people up often. Every document needs to be current, legible, and show the same address you wrote on the form.

Payment and the Search-Fee Rule

The first certified copy costs $10. Each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time is $4. If you’re requesting a correction to the record at the same time, add $8.¹ Pay by check or money order made out to the Indiana State Department of Health. Send the exact amount, because an incorrect payment gets the whole packet mailed back.

The $10 is a search fee, not a certificate fee. It covers a five-year window — the reported birth year plus two years before and after — which helps when the birth year on record might be off. If no record turns up, you still don’t get the money back.³

Where to Send It

For mail submissions, send the completed form, your ID photocopies, and payment to:

Indiana State Department of Health
Vital Records
2 North Meridian Street
Indianapolis, IN 46204⁴

To order online, use VitalChek, Indiana’s approved vendor, linked from the IDOH vital records page. You can also call VitalChek at (866) 601-0891, open 24 hours a day, every day. Payment is by credit or debit card. VitalChek adds a $12.95 processing fee on top of the state’s fee. USPS shipping is free; UPS Air within the continental U.S. is $21, with higher rates for Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and international destinations. If VitalChek needs follow-up documents from you, like a copy of your ID, you can upload them securely or fax them.⁶

Local county health departments can also issue certified copies of records within their own jurisdiction. Fees and turnaround times vary, so call the county office first.

How Long It Takes

Processing time depends on the certificate type, not the submission method:

Standard form: two to three weeks
Long form: six to eight weeks

Both mail and online orders processed by IDOH follow these timelines.¹ Expedited shipping through VitalChek can trim delivery time but doesn’t speed up the state’s internal search. County health departments sometimes turn around records from their own county faster than the state office.

If no record is found, IDOH sends a notification. The fee isn’t refunded. Finished certificates ship by regular USPS mail unless you selected and paid for express courier on the application.

If the Certificate Comes Back Wrong

If the copy you receive has a misspelled name, incorrect date, or other factual error, Indiana corrects records through the same vital records office. The supporting evidence needed depends on the error; acceptable documents include records created around the time of birth, such as hospital records, a DD-214, or a marriage license application showing the correct information. A court order also works. Amendments ordered together with a new certified copy are $8 per the Form 49607 fee schedule.⁷

1
Indiana Department of Health. Order Certificates
2
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 16-37-1-10 – Confidentiality; Disclosure of Data in Records; Conditions for Availability; Grounds for Denial
3
Indiana State Government. Births
4
Indiana Department of Health. Form 49607 – Application for Search and Certified Copy of Birth Record
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Indiana Department of Health. Indiana Department of Health Vital Records
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Indiana Department of Health. Vital Records Online – VitalChek Network
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Indiana Department of Health. Amendments/Corrections FAQs