How to Get a Copy of Your Texas Birth Certificate

To get a copy of your Texas birth certificate, order a certified copy from the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Vital Statistics Section online, by mail, or in person at a local registrar. Each certified copy costs $22, and online orders generally arrive in 20 to 25 business days.¹ Before the state will release the record, you’ll need to prove your identity and your qualifying relationship to the person named on the certificate, because Texas keeps birth records restricted for 75 years after the date of birth.²

Who Is Allowed to Order the Record

Texas limits birth certificate orders to “qualified applicants.”³ The person named on the certificate can always order their own. Beyond that, the state will issue a certified copy to:

Immediate family: spouse, parent, child, sibling, or grandparent of the person named.
A court-appointed guardian or managing conservator with proof of authority.
A legal representative, such as an attorney, an agent with power of attorney, or someone designated by affidavit, contract, or court order to act on behalf of the person or family.³

If you’re ordering as a legal representative rather than a family member, DSHS wants documentation of your authority: a power of attorney, an attorney-client retention contract with a State Bar ID, a verified agent designation, or a court order.

Records that are more than 75 years old are public under Texas Government Code Section 552.115, and anyone can request one regardless of relationship.²

What to Have Ready Before You Apply

Details About the Birth

Every route asks for the same core information so staff can locate the right record:

Full name as it appears on the certificate
Date of birth
Sex
City or town and county of birth (Texas births only)
Full names of both parents, including each parent’s maiden last name before their first marriage⁴

The parent-name fields cause more problems than anything else. If a parent remarried and you know only the married name, that won’t match the original record, and the order can come back delayed or “not found.” Track down the maiden name first.

Acceptable Identification

DSHS sorts acceptable ID into three groups, and you need at least one qualifying document to prove who you are:⁵

Group A (one is enough): a current U.S. driver’s license, federal or state ID, military ID, U.S. passport, license to carry a handgun, or certain immigration documents such as a permanent resident card or employment authorization document.
Group B (two required if you have no Group A document): an expired Group A ID, a signed Social Security card, a current student ID, a DD-214, a Medicaid or Medicare card, a Veterans Affairs card, a medical insurance card, or a foreign passport with a U.S. visa.
Group C: used as a supplemental tier if you can produce only one Group B document, in which case you need two Group C items plus that one Group B.

The online portal verifies you electronically from your driver’s license or state ID information.⁶ Mail and in-person orders require a physical copy of your ID with the application.

The Three Ways to Order

Online

The fastest route is the Online Vital Records Application (OVRA) on Texas.gov.¹ The system walks you through four steps: verifying your identity with a driver’s license or state ID, selecting your relationship to the person on the certificate, entering the birth record details, and paying by credit or debit card. The birth must have occurred in Texas.⁶

Online works well when you have a current U.S. driver’s license or state ID. If your only ID is a passport, military ID, or foreign document, use the mail or in-person route instead.

By Mail

Download Form VS-140, the Mail Application for Birth Record, from the DSHS website.⁴ Fill it out, then sign it in front of a notary public and have the notary affix a seal. All mail orders must be notarized, not just long-form requests, and DSHS requires an original application with an original signature — photocopies are rejected.⁷

Include a copy of your valid ID and a check or money order payable to DSHS Vital Statistics, then send the packet to:

Department of State Health Services
Vital Statistics Section
P.O. Box 12040
Austin, TX 78711-2040⁸

If you’re paying for expedited processing, use an overnight carrier to the physical street address listed on the form rather than the P.O. Box.

In Person

County clerks and local registrars across Texas can issue birth certificates for births that happened in their county, and they’re connected to the state’s vital records system, so same-day service is often possible for local records. For a birth recorded in a different county, the local office may have to pull the record from the state, which takes longer. Some older records are only available through the central DSHS office in Austin.

Short Form or Long Form

Texas issues two certified versions of the birth record, and both cost the same $22:⁹

Long form (vault copy): a full reproduction of the original record, including all details captured at the time of birth. This is the version required for a U.S. passport application and most federal purposes.
Short form (abstract): a condensed record with basic information such as name, date and place of birth, and parent names. It’s commonly accepted for school enrollment and similar uses.

Texas also sells a decorative “heirloom” certificate, an 11-by-14-inch print on specialty paper with a gold embossed seal, which is the legal equivalent of a short form. The state won’t issue heirloom certificates for births that were established by court order or through delayed registration.¹⁰

Costs, Add-Ons, and How Long It Takes

A certified copy is $22, and each additional copy ordered at the same time is another $22. The fee covers the state’s search and is nonrefundable, so you pay it even if no matching record is found.¹¹

Expedited processing adds $25 per application and moves your file to the front of the internal queue, though it doesn’t guarantee the record will be issued if the application has problems. Expedited orders must be sent through an overnight mail carrier.¹² You can also pay separately for overnight return shipping.

Online orders generally arrive within 20 to 25 business days.¹ Mail-in applications take longer because staff have to verify your notarized signature and ID copy before processing begins; plan for several extra weeks. Certificates ship through the U.S. Postal Service unless you paid for overnight return.

You can check where your order stands using the DSHS online tracking tool with your order number and order date. Only orders placed on or after September 1, 2019 are searchable, and amendment orders can’t be tracked through the tool.¹³

If Your Birth Isn’t on File

If DSHS searches and finds no matching record, you’ll receive a “Not Found” letter with forms and instructions for a Delayed Certificate of Birth.¹⁴ This happens most often with home births that were never registered, very old records, and cases where the original filing was lost.

Delayed registration requires a notarized application from the registrant (or from a parent or legal guardian if the person is a minor), along with supporting documents that prove the birth happened in Texas. DSHS independently verifies those documents, sometimes by contacting outside entities, so the process takes longer than a standard order. Any document found to be fraudulent is grounds for immediate denial, and the state keeps the document.

1
Texas.gov. Order Vital Records
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Texas DSHS. Request Procedures for Vital Statistics Data
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Texas Administrative Code. 25 Texas Administrative Code 181.1 – Definitions
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Texas Department of State Health Services. Mail Application for Birth Record VS-140
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Texas Department of State Health Services. Obtaining a Birth Certificate in Texas
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Texas.gov. Order a Birth Certificate
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Texas DSHS. Requirements for Mail and In-Person Orders
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Where to Write for Vital Records – Texas
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Texas DSHS. Costs and Fees
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Texas DSHS. Heirloom Birth Certificates
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Cornell Law Institute. 25 Texas Administrative Code 181.22 – Fees Charged for Vital Records Services
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Texas DSHS. Vital Applications and Forms
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Texas.gov. Vital Record Order Status
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Texas DSHS. Delayed Birth Registration