Canada
Yukon, NWT & Nunavut Vital Records: Birth, Death & Marriage Certificates
Independently fact-checked against primary sources (last audited August 14, 2026). · 9 primary sources cited on this page. How we verify our legal content
To get a birth, death, or marriage certificate in Canada’s territories, you order from each territory’s single central vital statistics office, by mail or the routes below, for roughly $10 to $39 per certificate depending on the territory and document, and two of those offices are not where you would expect: the Northwest Territories’ registrar sits in Inuvik, not Yellowknife, and Nunavut’s in Rankin Inlet, not Iqaluit.
Three Territories, Three Different Systems
These three jurisdictions are grouped on one page because of population size, not because their vital records laws resemble each other. Yukon and the Northwest Territories both run their process through a vital statistics registrar under their own Vital Statistics Act. Nunavut administers its own Vital Statistics Act too, but its current consolidation carries a documented currency gap described below. Each section stands on its own; do not assume a rule confirmed for one territory applies to either of the other two.
Yukon
Who Issues Records and Under What Law
Yukon Vital Statistics operates within the Department of Health and Social Services, with service pages hosted on both hss.yukon.ca and the general yukon.ca portal. The governing law is the Vital Statistics Act, RSY 2002, c. 225, amended in 2017 to remove the surgery requirement for changing a sex designation on a birth registration.
Who Can Order What
Yukon's own application form does not print a restrictive eligibility list; it asks the applicant only to state their relationship to the person named. What is confirmed directly: parents or legal guardians can apply for a child's first birth certificate. A secondary, non-primary source corroborates that Yukon birth certificates generally go to the person named, a parent, or someone with the subject's or a parent's written permission, but the underlying Act sections themselves could not be independently read this article; their body text was lost in every extraction attempt.
For death certificates, a source not independently re-confirmed this article describes a discretionary, registrar-approval model: a death certificate can be issued to any person who requires it, and the registrar decides whether the stated reason is valid. Marriage certificate eligibility beyond the ordering channels below was not independently confirmed.
Fees and Processing
Confirmed directly on the official application form and yukon.ca:
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Certificate (birth, death, or marriage) | $10 |
| Search fee, if register details are unknown | $1 per year searched, maximum $20 |
| Special or express delivery | $15 additional |
No processing time is stated on any page reviewed for Yukon; that figure is not published here.
How to Order
Yukon runs a single central office in Whitehorse: 204 Lambert Street, 4th Floor, Financial Plaza, open Monday to Friday, roughly 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (one government page states 9 a.m., a minor discrepancy not material to planning a visit). By mail: Government of Yukon, Vital Statistics (H-2), Box 2703, Whitehorse, YT Y1A 2C6. By phone with card payment: 867-667-5207 or 1-800-661-0408 extension 5207. Email: Vital.Statistics@gov.yk.ca. Fax: 867-393-6486.
Yukon offers a practical relief valve unmatched by its two neighbors: applicants can also submit in person at any Territorial Agent location outside Whitehorse, even though the registrar function itself remains centralized in the capital. No ID requirement is stated on any page reviewed.
Older Records and Genealogy
Yukon Archives holds government vital-records material from 1898 onward and publishes an 86-page guide, Genealogical Research at the Yukon Archives. No explicit records become public after this many years threshold was found on any page reviewed. A non-primary source states substantially complete registration was achieved by 1930, with earlier records back to 1896-1899 while Yukon was still administratively linked to the Northwest Territories.
Correcting an Error
Contact Vital Statistics by email or phone to describe what needs updating; staff will advise on the supporting documents required. A statutory declaration, if needed, must be witnessed by someone authorized to take oaths, available at no cost at Vital Statistics or a territorial agent office. Submit in person or by mail to the Whitehorse office. No fee is stated for corrections generally; contact the office for current fee information.
Northwest Territories
Who Issues Records and Under What Law
Northwest Territories Vital Statistics is administered by the Health Services Administration Office under the Department of Health and Social Services, physically based in Inuvik, not the capital, Yellowknife: 107 Mackenzie Road, IDC Building, 2nd Floor, mailing address Bag #9, Inuvik, NT X0E 0T0. The governing law is the Vital Statistics Act, SNWT 2011, c.34, in force since January 1, 2013, confirmed by a direct, successful read of the official PDF.
A further amendment, Bill 40, An Act to Amend the Vital Statistics Act, touching gender designation for mature minors, up to four-parent birth registrations, home-birth documentation, and single names, had passed second reading and was in the legislature's process as of this research. Whether it has since received assent and come into force was not confirmed; verify its current status with the NWT Legislative Assembly before relying on any provision described as pending.
Who Can Order What
The Act's eligibility provisions exist at sections 76 through 78, covering applications, eligibility, and register searches, but the substantive subsection text of section 77 could not be extracted this article; only section headings came through in both English and French versions of the source PDF. Falling back to the department's own live service pages, which were independently fetched and are consistent across birth and marriage:
- The person named on the registration.
- Parents listed on the registration, or parents or guardians of minors at the time of a marriage.
- Legal representatives, meaning guardians, solicitors, or legal agents.
- Children or grandchildren of the registered person.
- Authorized agents with written permission.
- Persons who need the record for court proceedings, adoption, or estate settlement.
- Crown officers and approved government departments.
Fees and Processing
The Northwest Territories' live service pages, fetched directly for birth and marriage certificates, both state consistently: a standard certificate costs $26.00, and a Restricted Photocopy costs $39.00, which requires a stated reason and discretionary registrar approval. A death-certificate page, described only through a search summary rather than independently re-opened, shows the same $26/$39 structure. No processing time is stated on any page reviewed.
How to Order
The Northwest Territories runs a single central office in Inuvik, not the capital. Online, through the eServices Portal. By mail: Registrar General of Vital Statistics, Health Services Administration Office, Bag #9, Inuvik, NT X0E 0T0. By fax, credit card payment only: 1-867-777-3197. In person: 107 Mackenzie Road, IDC Building, 2nd Floor, Inuvik. Email: hsa@gov.nt.ca. Toll-free: 1-800-661-0830; local: 867-678-8050; hours 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday.
There is no Yellowknife walk-in vital-statistics counter. Because the registrar function sits in Inuvik, residents of Yellowknife, the territorial capital and largest population center, and every other NWT community, are themselves routing an application by mail, fax, or online rather than visiting a local office in person.
Older Records and Genealogy
The NWT Archives, housed at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre in Yellowknife, holds government records including some vital-statistics-related material, contactable at nwtarchives@gov.nt.ca or 867-767-9347 extension 71211. A non-primary source states most NWT civil vital records do not predate the 1940s, with registration described as beginning in 1925. No explicit records open to the public after this many years threshold was found, a documented gap in the sources reviewed rather than a confirmed absence of such a rule.
Correcting an Error
No dedicated official how to correct a birth registration page distinct from the sex-designation-change process was located. A general, non-gender-designation correction mechanism likely exists under similarly numbered Act sections, but that section's body text could not be extracted this article either. Treat this as unconfirmed: contact the Inuvik office directly to begin any correction rather than relying on an assumed statutory mechanism.
Nunavut
Who Issues Records and Under What Law
Nunavut Vital Statistics operates within the Department of Health, physically based in Rankin Inlet, not the capital, Iqaluit: Box 889, Rankin Inlet, NU X0C 0G0, phone 867-645-8001, toll-free 1-800-661-0833, fax 867-645-8092, email nuvitalstatistics@gov.nu.ca.
Nunavut's own consolidated-law site states directly, on the landing page for its Vital Statistics Act official consolidation, that this consolidation is not up to date. The text is current only to December 5, 2023, and does not yet incorporate two later amendments, S.Nu. 2025, c.10, s.5, and S.Nu. 2025, c.23. Because of that stated gap, this article does not cite precise section numbers for Nunavut's Act beyond what is described here, and any statutory detail for Nunavut should be treated as subject to that same currency caveat. A separate 2025 amendment reportedly added a non-binary sex-designation option to birth registrations; its exact provisions were not independently confirmed this article.
Who Can Order What
Confirmed directly on the live birth-certificate and marriage-certificate pages:
Birth. The person named on the registration, or a parent; a legal representative such as a guardian, solicitor, or legal agent; the spouse of the registered person; an authorized agent with written permission; someone who needs it for court, adoption, or estate purposes; or a government official or department with Registrar approval.
Marriage. Either party recorded on the registration; a legal representative of either party; a parent or guardian; a child, for legal-documentation purposes; an authorized agent; a court, adoption, or estate need; or a government official with Registrar approval.
Death. A source not independently re-opened this article states that only an immediate family member or next of kin may order a death certificate, a narrower framing than Nunavut's birth or marriage rules. Confirm this restriction directly with the office before relying on it.
Fees and Processing
Confirmed directly on the live gov.nu.ca pages for birth, marriage, and death certificates: $10.00 per certificate, flat, across all three record types; a marriage certificate covers both large and wallet sizes at the same $10. Payment is by cheque or money order payable to the Government of Nunavut, or by credit card if the application is submitted by email. The official Fees Regulations consolidation page itself states it is not up to date, covering only 1999 to 2012, but the live gov.nu.ca service pages, treated as the current operative source, all agree on the $10 flat fee. No processing time is stated on any page reviewed.
How to Order
Nunavut runs a single central office in Rankin Inlet, not the capital. By mail: Nunavut Vital Statistics, Department of Health, Box 889, Rankin Inlet, NU X0C 0G0. By email, for credit-card payment: nuvitalstatistics@gov.nu.ca. No online portal and no in-person walk-in office is described on any page reviewed, a materially more limited setup than either Yukon (an in-person Whitehorse counter plus territorial agents) or the Northwest Territories (an eServices portal plus an Inuvik walk-in). Every Nunavut applicant, regardless of home community, is mailing or emailing a request to Rankin Inlet, with no confirmed online self-serve alternative.
Nunavut Vital Statistics holds complete records only from April 1, 1999 onward, the date Nunavut split from the Northwest Territories. A birth, marriage, or death registered in what is now Nunavut before that date is held by the Northwest Territories' Vital Statistics office in Inuvik, not by Nunavut. If you were born in a Nunavut community before 1999, contact the Northwest Territories, not Nunavut, for your record.
Older Records and Genealogy
No dedicated Nunavut Archives vital-records genealogy access page was found. A source not independently confirmed this article describes genealogical information regarding vital statistics as not yet available online. The Nunavut Archives, part of the Department of Culture and Heritage in Iqaluit, has confirmed contact information, but its holdings were not independently reviewed. No age threshold for open records was found; this is a documented gap, not a confirmed absence of such a rule.
Correcting an Error
A source not independently re-opened this article describes the process: contact Nunavut Vital Statistics by phone or email; an agent evaluates whether the correction can proceed through the Act's amendment process or requires a formal legal Change of Name; after an amendment, previously issued certificates must be returned to the Registrar General for cancellation. Re-verify this process directly with the office before relying on it.
Comparing the Three Territories
| Yukon | Northwest Territories | Nunavut | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central office location | Whitehorse (the capital) | Inuvik (not Yellowknife, the capital) | Rankin Inlet (not Iqaluit, the capital) |
| Standard certificate fee | $10 flat | $26 standard / $39 Restricted Photocopy | $10 flat |
| Online ordering | Not confirmed | eServices Portal | Not offered |
| In-person option | Whitehorse counter, plus any Territorial Agent location | Inuvik counter only | None found |
| Pre-territory-split records | N/A | N/A | Pre-April 1999 records held by NWT, Inuvik |
A fee comparison across the three, all confirmed directly on each territory's current live pages, shows the Northwest Territories as a clear outlier at roughly two and a half times Yukon's and Nunavut's flat $10 rate. No territory's Act, read in full where the text could be extracted, or its live service pages, yielded a confirmed genealogical or public-access age threshold from a primary source. Rather than guess at one, treat that as an open gap across all three territories.
For the national overview and every other province’s guide, see the Canada vital records hub.
Disclaimer: This article explains the general process for ordering vital records in Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice and cannot guarantee a specific fee, processing time, or outcome. Nunavut's governing Act is confirmed by its own government source to be missing recent amendments as of this writing, and the Northwest Territories' Act is currently subject to a pending legislative amendment; some figures could not be independently confirmed and are flagged as such. Fees and procedures are set by each territory and can change. Confirm current details with the relevant territorial Vital Statistics office before applying.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Northwest Territories vital statistics office in Yellowknife?
No. The Northwest Territories' Registrar General of Vital Statistics is based in Inuvik, not Yellowknife, the territorial capital and largest community. There is no Yellowknife walk-in vital-statistics counter.
Is the Nunavut vital statistics office in Iqaluit?
No. Nunavut Vital Statistics is based in Rankin Inlet, not Iqaluit, the territorial capital. Nunavut also has no confirmed online ordering option or in-person walk-in office anywhere; every applicant mails or emails their request to Rankin Inlet.
How much does a certificate cost in each territory?
Yukon charges $10 per certificate flat. The Northwest Territories charges $26 for a standard certificate and $39 for a Restricted Photocopy. Nunavut charges $10 per certificate flat across birth, marriage, and death records.
Is Nunavut's Vital Statistics Act fully up to date?
No. Nunavut's own consolidated-law site states directly that its Vital Statistics Act consolidation is not up to date. The published text is current only to December 5, 2023, and does not yet incorporate two later 2025 amendments.
Where do I get a vital record for someone born in Nunavut before 1999?
Contact the Northwest Territories' Vital Statistics office in Inuvik, not Nunavut. Nunavut Vital Statistics holds complete records only from April 1, 1999 forward, the date Nunavut split from the Northwest Territories; earlier records for that area stayed with the Northwest Territories.
Can I order a territorial vital record online?
It depends on the territory. The Northwest Territories offers an eServices Portal. Yukon's online ordering was not independently confirmed this article. Nunavut has no online portal described on any page reviewed; applications go by mail or email only.
Updates
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources
Sources and References
- Vital Statistics Act, RSY 2002, c. 225(laws.yukon.ca).gov
- Yukon, Apply for Your Child's 1st Birth Certificate(yukon.ca).gov
- Yukon, Genealogical Research at the Yukon Archives(yukon.ca).gov
- Yukon, Change a Personal Vital Statistics Record(yukon.ca).gov
- Yukon Vital Statistics, Application for Certificate/Search (Form YG(3385EQ)F2)(yukon.ca).gov
- Vital Statistics Act, SNWT 2011, c.34(justice.gov.nt.ca).gov
- NWT Legislative Assembly, Bill 40, An Act to Amend the Vital Statistics Act(ntlegislativeassembly.ca).gov
- Northwest Territories, Changing Your Sex Designation(hss.gov.nt.ca).gov
- Nunavut, Vital Statistics Act, Official Consolidation(nunavutlegislation.ca).gov