How to Get a Birth Certificate in Massachusetts: Requests and Fixes

To get a birth certificate in Massachusetts, you request a certified copy from the state Registry of Vital Records and Statistics (RVRS) in Dorchester or from the city or town clerk where the birth took place. You can apply in person, by mail, or online through VitalChek. Fees range from about $10 at some local clerks to $54 or more for an online order, and in-person requests are usually processed the same day.

Who Can Request a Copy

Massachusetts restricts who is allowed to order a certified birth certificate. You qualify if you are the person named on the record, a parent listed on it, a legal guardian with supporting paperwork, or a legal representative with proof of authorization.¹

Everyone applying must show valid photo identification. A driver’s license (even expired), a state ID card, or a passport all work.² If you don’t have one of these, call the RVRS at (617) 740-2600 before you apply to confirm what alternative documents they will accept.

If you are ordering on behalf of someone else, bring proof of the relationship: a court order for guardians, or a letter of representation for attorneys. When the birth involved unmarried parents, access narrows further. Only the child, a parent, a father not listed on the record (with paternity documentation), a legal guardian, or a legal representative can request the certificate.¹

Which Office to Contact

Where you send your request depends mostly on the year of birth. Three offices hold Massachusetts birth records, and each covers a different period.

Registry of Vital Records and Statistics (RVRS). Holds birth records from 1936 to the present. The office is at 150 Mount Vernon St., 1st Floor, Dorchester, MA 02125, open Monday through Friday, 8:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.³
City or town clerk. Keeps records of births that occurred in that municipality or where the parents lived at the time. Many clerks hold records going back well before 1936.⁴
Massachusetts State Archives. Holds vital records for all cities and towns from 1841 through 1935. For births before 1841, contact the city or town clerk directly.⁵

For most people born after 1935, the choice is between the RVRS and the local clerk. The RVRS accepts online, mail, and in-person requests, which helps if you no longer live near the town where you were born. Local clerks are usually cheaper, often $10 to $15 per copy compared to $20 or more at the RVRS, and many process requests while you wait. If speed and low cost both matter, start with the local clerk.

What to Gather Before Applying

Have the following ready before you submit any request:

Full name at birth of the person on the certificate
Date of birth
City or town in Massachusetts where the birth occurred
Parents’ full names, including the mother’s maiden name
A copy of your photo ID

Errors in these details, especially misspelled names or the wrong town, can delay the request or produce a “negative statement” saying no matching record was found. The RVRS runs a 10-year search around the date you give, so the exact year has some margin, but the location does not.⁶

For mail and in-person requests to the RVRS, complete the Application for Vital Record form, available as a PDF or Word document on Mass.gov. One form covers up to five record searches.¹

How to Submit Your Request

The RVRS accepts requests three ways. Local city and town clerks have their own procedures, usually in person or by mail, with their own fees.

Online Through VitalChek

The RVRS partners with VitalChek for online and phone orders. This is the most expensive option because VitalChek adds a $12 service fee on top of the state’s base price, but it works when you cannot visit an office or mail a check.

Standard request: $54 for the first copy, $42 for each additional copy. Processed and shipped within 10 business days.
Expedited request: $62.50 for the first copy, $50.50 for each additional copy. Processed and shipped the next business day.

Shipping is separate. Standard USPS First Class mail is free, UPS Second Day is $12.50, and UPS Next Day is $19.50.⁶ Payment is by Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Discover. Some city clerks also offer their own online portals with lower fees, so check your town’s website first.

By Mail

Mail your completed application, a photocopy of your ID, and a check or money order to the RVRS at 150 Mount Vernon St., 1st Floor, Dorchester, MA 02125. Make checks payable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.¹

Standard mail: $32 per copy. Processed and shipped within 15 to 20 business days.
Expedited mail: $42 per copy. Processed and shipped within 10 business days.

Both options include a 10-year search and either one certified copy or a negative statement.⁶ For a local clerk, make the check payable to the municipality and include a self-addressed stamped envelope. Town clerk fees typically run $10 to $15 per copy.⁴

In Person

Walking into the RVRS is the fastest route. In-person requests cost $20 per copy and are usually processed on the spot.⁶ You can pay by cash, check, or money order. Bring your completed form and photo ID.

Many local clerks also issue certificates while you wait, often for $10 to $15. Call ahead to confirm hours, especially in smaller towns where the counter may not be staffed full time.

Fixing an Error on the Certificate

If your birth certificate has a misspelled name, wrong date, or incorrect parent information, you can request an amendment through the RVRS. Corrections filed within one year of the birth are handled more simply. After that first year, Massachusetts law requires an affidavit from someone with direct knowledge of the correct facts, plus documentary evidence supporting the correction “beyond a reasonable doubt.”⁷ Hospital records, baptismal certificates, or other contemporaneous documents usually meet that standard.

Amendments cost $50 per change at the RVRS.⁸ In-person amendments require an appointment, scheduled by emailing RVRSAmendments@mass.gov or calling (617) 740-2600. A few situations follow their own rules:

To change the name on your certificate, you first need a court-ordered legal name change and must include a court-certified copy of the decree.
To amend the sex listed on the record, submit an affidavit indicating your sex; a parent or guardian signs for a minor. A companion name change still requires a court order.⁹
If parents marry after the birth and paternity is acknowledged or adjudicated, the record is amended to show the parents as if the child had been born to them in wedlock.⁷

Once a record is amended, the original is sealed. The RVRS generally will not release information from the sealed original except by court order or to the person whose record it is.⁷

Adoptees Requesting an Original Birth Record

If you were adopted and born in Massachusetts, you can request a copy of the birth certificate created before the adoption without going to court. Any adult adoptee age 18 or older qualifies, regardless of birth year; the earlier restrictions tied to birth year were eliminated in November 2022.¹⁰

Complete the Application for a Non-Certified Record of Birth Prior to Adoption and bring valid photo ID. The RVRS holds pre-adoption birth records from 1936 to the present. If a matching record is found, you receive a copy by certified mail along with the names of the legal parents at the time of birth. The copy is non-certified, so it confirms the information but does not function as a certified birth certificate for legal purposes.¹⁰

Others who may request a pre-adoption birth record include an adult child (18 or older) of a deceased Massachusetts-born adoptee, the parent or guardian of a minor whose deceased parent was a Massachusetts-born adoptee, and the adoptive parent of a minor born in Massachusetts.¹

Using the Certificate Abroad

If you need the certificate recognized in another country, you will likely need an apostille, which authenticates the document for international use. Countries in the Hague Convention accept apostilles; others may require a different authentication process.¹¹

The Secretary of the Commonwealth issues apostilles. You need a certified birth certificate bearing an original signature from a city or town clerk, the Registrar of Vital Records, or another qualifying official. Photocopied signatures are rejected. The apostille costs $6 per document. You can apply in person at One Ashburton Place, Room 1719, in Boston, or mail your document with a check payable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the name of the destination country, and a prepaid return envelope. Mailed requests take two to three weeks.¹¹

1
Mass.gov. Order a Birth, Marriage, or Death Certificate
2
Mass.gov. Check Which Forms of ID Are Accepted for Pre-Adoption Birth Record Applications
3
Mass.gov. Registry of Vital Records and Statistics
4
Town of Sharon MA. Services: Birth, Death and Marriage Certificates
5
Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Vital Records, 1841 – 1935
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Mass.gov. Vital Records Service Fees
7
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 46, Section 13 – Correction of Records
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Mass.gov. 2026 RVRS Service Fees
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Mass.gov. Amend a Birth Certificate for Sex of the Subject
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Mass.gov. Apply for a Pre-Adoption Birth Record
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Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Apostilles and Certifications of Documents