How to Get a New Birth Certificate in Oregon: Steps, Fees, and Timing

To get a birth certificate in Oregon, order a certified copy from the Oregon Health Authority’s Center for Health Statistics. The base fee is $25. You can apply by mail, drop the application in the Portland office’s drop box, book an in-person appointment, or place a faster order online or by phone through VitalChek for an added service charge.

Who Can Order an Oregon Birth Certificate

Oregon birth records are sealed from public disclosure for 100 years after the date of birth.¹ Only people with a qualifying relationship to the person named on the certificate can order a certified copy.² Eligible applicants include:

The person named on the certificate, who must be at least 15
A parent listed on the certificate
A stepparent, if the child is under 18 and the stepparent is still married to a listed parent
A spouse or registered domestic partner
A child, grandchild, grandparent, or sibling
A legal guardian
A legal or authorized representative

Except for the 15-year-old minimum when ordering your own record, applicants must be 18 or an emancipated minor.²

Some relationships require proof. A spouse or domestic partner needs a state-issued marriage or partnership certificate. A stepparent needs that certificate plus another document, dated within 30 days of the application, that names both spouses. A sibling, child, grandchild, or grandparent needs their own birth certificate showing the family link. A guardian needs a valid copy of the court guardianship papers. If your current name doesn’t match the record you’re requesting, include documentation connecting the two names, like a marriage certificate or court name-change order.³

What to Gather Before You Apply

The application asks for the person’s full name at birth, exact date of birth, and the city or county where the birth occurred, plus both parents’ full legal names including the mother’s maiden name.³

You also need valid, unexpired photo identification. Oregon Vital Records accepts any one of these:⁴

A current driver’s license, permit, or state ID card
A current passport or passport card with a photo
A U.S. Armed Services ID card with a photo

For mail and drop box orders, include a photocopy of your ID. VitalChek runs an identity verification quiz based on your name and date of birth instead; if you fail the quiz, you’ll be asked for an ID copy.³

The application form is available in English and Spanish on the Oregon Health Authority’s ordering page. Fill in every field with full legal names and exact dates. Incomplete or hard-to-read applications get delayed.³

Four Ways to Order

By Mail

Mail is the cheapest option at $25 for the first certificate. Send the completed application, a photocopy of your ID, and a check or money order made out to “OHA/Vital Records” (no cash) to:

Oregon Vital Records
P.O. Box 14050
Portland, OR 97293-0050⁵

The $25 record search fee is nonrefundable whether or not a matching record is found, so verify every detail before you send it.⁶

By Drop Box in Portland

If you’re near Portland, the Center for Health Statistics at 800 NE Oregon Street, Suite 205, has a drop box that skips postage delay. Cost is the same $25, and it takes checks or money orders.⁶

In Person by Appointment

The same Portland office takes in-person requests by appointment Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., for $25.⁵ Appointments accept credit cards, debit cards, cash, and money orders. Personal or business checks go through only if they clear the office’s electronic funds transfer system.⁶

Many counties also run their own vital records offices that charge the same $25 and may move faster than the Portland queue. One caution: if a county office lacks an appointed County Registrar, records issued during that gap are legally invalid, so the state office is the safer fallback if you’re not sure of your local office’s status.⁷

Online or by Phone Through VitalChek

Oregon uses VitalChek for online and phone orders. Order online at vitalchek.com or by phone at 1-888-896-4988, available 24/7.⁵ These are the fastest options and the only ones that work entirely from out of state without mailing anything, but they cost more.

An online order runs $47.50 for the first certificate: the $25 state fee, a $7 expedite fee, and a $15.50 VitalChek vendor fee. A phone order is $49.20: the $25 state fee, the $7 expedite fee, and a $17.20 vendor fee. Additional copies are $25 each. Payment is by credit or debit card. Most prepaid debit cards work, but government-issued benefit cards are not accepted.⁶ UPS Next Day Air shipping is available for VitalChek orders at $20 within the continental U.S., excluding Alaska and Hawaii.³

Fees at a Glance

Mail, drop box, or in-person appointment: $25 for the first certificate; $25 for each additional copy ordered at the same time.
Online through VitalChek: $47.50 total for the first certificate.
Phone through VitalChek: $49.20 total for the first certificate.
Full image certificate (a photocopy of the original paper record, available only for births registered from 1903 through 2007): add $5 per copy.³
UPS Next Day Air on VitalChek orders: $20.

How Long It Takes

Mail and drop box orders take roughly 8 to 10 weeks from the date the office receives your request.³ That wait is the main reason many people accept the higher VitalChek fees. VitalChek orders include the expedite fee and process faster than standard mail, though the Oregon Health Authority doesn’t publish a specific timeframe.

If a passport application, school enrollment, or another deadline is driving your request, VitalChek with UPS Next Day Air is the fastest path. Visiting a county vital records office in person can also beat the state office’s mail queue by a wide margin.

If Your Certificate Has an Error or Needs a Legal Change

Ordering a copy and changing a record are two different processes. If the certificate has a misspelled name, wrong date, or another factual error, you need an amendment. The amendment fee is $35, on top of the $25 for the new certificate itself. An amendment application requires a notarized affidavit and an original evidence document; photocopies, scans, faxes, and emails aren’t accepted. Corrections to date of birth, time of birth, or sex caused by a hospital typographical error carry no amendment fee if the person is under 21; contact CHS.Amendments@oha.oregon.gov for those. Amendments take about 13 weeks, or you can pay $30 for expedited service.⁸

Separate administrative processes exist for changing the name or sex on a birth record to affirm gender identity, and for issuing a new birth record after an adoption approved by a U.S. court. Both use the $35 amendment fee and have their own document requirements outlined on the Oregon Health Authority’s Change a Birth Record and adoption pages.⁹¹⁰

If You Need to Use the Certificate Abroad

A certified copy alone often isn’t enough for use with a foreign government. You’ll likely need an apostille or authentication from the Oregon Secretary of State’s Corporation Division at 255 Capitol Street NE, Suite 151, Salem, OR 97310. Because each country has its own requirements, contact the destination country’s embassy first to confirm what they’ll accept. The Secretary of State returns authenticated documents by first-class mail, or by FedEx or UPS if you supply a prepaid shipping label.¹¹

1
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 432.350 – Vital Records Exempt From Public Disclosure
2
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 432.380 – Issuance of Certified Copies of Records
3
Oregon Health Authority. Order a Birth Certificate
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Oregon Health Authority. Eligibility to Order Vital Records
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Oregon Health Authority. Find the Oregon Vital Records Office
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Oregon Health Authority. Vital Records Fees
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Oregon Health Authority. County Vital Records Offices
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Oregon Health Authority. Change a Birth Record
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Oregon Health Authority. Change Birth Record to Support Gender Identity
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Oregon Health Authority. Adoption Process in Oregon
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Oregon Secretary of State. Authenticating Documents (Apostille) FAQ