How to Get a Birth Certificate in Kentucky: Costs and Options

To get a birth certificate in Kentucky, submit application form VS-37 with a copy of your photo ID and $10 to the Office of Vital Statistics in Frankfort. You can order by mail, walk in during business hours, or use VitalChek online or by phone. Mail requests are typically filled within five business days of payment posting, and in-person orders can often be filled the same day.¹

Who Can Order a Copy

Kentucky limits birth certificates to people with a direct connection to the person named on the record. That means the person themselves, a spouse, a parent, or an adult child.²

A guardian, conservator, or someone with power of attorney can also request one, as can an elected official acting for a constituent or anyone the person named on the record has authorized in writing. For a deceased person, the surviving spouse, an adult child, or a parent can order the certificate, and an estate fiduciary can do so before final settlement.²

Expect to prove the relationship. A marriage certificate covers a spouse, guardianship papers cover a legal guardian, and a signed authorization letter covers a designated representative.

What You Need Before You Apply

Form VS-37 asks for enough detail to locate the record. Have this ready:³

Full name at birth (first, middle, last as originally recorded)
Date of birth
Place of birth: city or town, Kentucky county, and hospital if known
Mother’s full maiden name
Father’s full name, if applicable
Your name, mailing address, daytime phone, and relationship to the person on the certificate

You also need a valid government-issued photo ID: a driver’s license, state ID card, U.S. passport, foreign passport, or U.S. military ID. Include a legible photocopy with a mailed application; bring the original if you go in person.³

The VS-37 form is available from the Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics website or from a local health department office.⁴

Ordering by Mail

Send the completed application, a photocopy of your ID, and payment to:⁴

Office of Vital Statistics
275 East Main Street, 1E-A
Frankfort, KY 40621

Payment must be a check or money order in U.S. dollars, payable to “Kentucky State Treasurer.” Cash isn’t accepted. Most mail orders are filled within five business days after the payment posts, but the office asks that you allow up to 30 working days in case of delays.¹

Ordering in Person

Walk-ins are accepted at 275 East Main Street in Frankfort, Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM Eastern time, except state holidays. Bring the completed VS-37, your original photo ID, and a check or money order.⁵

Same-day service is possible but not guaranteed after 3:45 PM. If you need the certificate that day, get there with time to spare.⁵

Ordering Online or by Phone

The Office of Vital Statistics uses VitalChek Network, Inc. as its only authorized online and telephone ordering service.¹

Online at vitalchek.com, following the prompts for Kentucky
By phone at (800) 241-8322
By fax; call (866) 283-7477 for instructions

VitalChek accepts Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express, and charges a processing fee on top of the $10 state fee. Expedited and overnight shipping cost extra. These orders reach you faster than standard mail but cost more overall.¹

What It Costs

A certified copy is $10, and each additional copy of the same certificate is also $10. The fee is non-refundable and covers the record search even if no certificate is found.³ VitalChek orders add the vendor’s processing and shipping charges to that $10.

If There’s an Error on the Certificate

All amendments go through the Office of Vital Statistics in Frankfort, not through local health departments. For obvious errors like misspellings or transposed letters, the State Registrar can correct the record within one year of the date of birth at the request of a parent, legal guardian, or the person who originally filed the certificate.⁶

Changing a name or a date of birth generally requires a court order. The exception is when the information was incorrectly recorded at the original filing and you can document what the correct entry should have been.⁶

Amendments use form VS-2J (Affidavit for Amendment to Certificate). If a certified copy was issued within the past year and you return it, a corrected copy may be issued at no additional fee. Otherwise, each new certified copy is $10.⁷

If You Need It for Use Abroad

For countries in the Hague Convention, you’ll need an apostille from the Kentucky Secretary of State. The fee is $5 per document, and requests can be submitted by mail or in person; electronic submission isn’t available for vital records.⁸

One detail catches people out: the birth certificate must carry the signature of the current State Registrar of Vital Statistics. An older certified copy may need to be replaced with a fresh one from the Office of Vital Statistics before the Secretary of State will process it.⁸

For countries not in the Hague Convention, authentication runs through the U.S. Department of State, and the exact requirements depend on the destination country.⁹

1
Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Certificate Purchase Options
2
Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. AN ACT Relating to Vital Records – SB 131
3
Commonwealth of Kentucky. Application for a Certified Copy of Birth Certificate
4
Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Birth Certificates
5
Cabinet for Health and Family Services. The Office of Vital Statistics
6
Legal Information Institute. 901 KAR 5:070 – Certificate of Birth Amended
7
Cabinet for Health and Family Services. VS-2J Affidavit for Amendment to Certificate
8
Kentucky Secretary of State. Apostilles and Authentications
9
USAGov. Authenticate an Official Document for Use Outside the U.S.