Hawaii Birth Certificate: How to Order, Fees and Who Can Get One

The Hawaii State Department of Health issues certified copies of Hawaii birth certificates through its Vital Records office in Honolulu. A certified copy costs $10 for the first copy and $4 for each additional copy on the same application, plus a $2.50 general administration fee, so a single copy comes to $12.50.

You can order online through the state's own ordering portal or by mail. For in-person service at the Honolulu office, the department's appointment scheduler says to place the order online first and then pick it up. For other states, see our guide to birth certificates by state.

Information last verified on October 8, 2026. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

This page covers ordering, fees, eligibility, amendments and late registration for Hawaii birth certificates held by the Hawaii State Department of Health, based on the department's Vital Records pages and Hawaii Revised Statutes section 338-18.

How to order a Hawaii birth certificate

The department's birth and marriage certificates page lists three ways to order. It labels online ordering as highly recommended.

Online. Complete the order form on the state's portal at vitrec.ehawaii.gov. Have a government-issued photo ID (such as a state driver license, state ID or passport) ready to upload. The portal takes only debit or credit cards, and certificates are mailed to the return address you give. The portal says all transactions are non-refundable, the $12.50 one-copy fee is charged for the search even if no record is found, and it covers records from July 1909 to the present.

The department notes that the name on the card should match the name of the person making the request, or the order may be delayed. The portal itself says the card name must match both the requester and the name on the birth certificate, or the order may be delayed or denied.

By mail. Download and complete the Request for Certified Copy of Birth Record from the department's page. Mail it with the fee and a copy of your government-issued ID to:

State Department of Health, Office of Health Status Monitoring, Issuance/Vital Statistics Section, P.O. Box 3378, Honolulu, HI 96801.

Mail orders are paid only by cashier's check, certified check or money order payable to the State Department of Health. The department asks for the exact amount; an underpayment or overpayment may be returned.

In person. The department's appointment scheduler, linked from the Vital Records home page, says to complete an order online at vitrec.ehawaii.gov before coming in for an appointment or walk-in service at 201 Merchant St., Suite 100, City Financial Tower, and to bring a valid photo ID to pick up the order. The Vital Records home page says the Issuance, Registration and Corrections offices are open Monday through Friday, 7:45 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and closed on State holidays. The certificates page still lists cash, credit card, cashier's check, certified check or money order for in-person orders, which does not match the scheduler, so call (808) 586-4539, option 2, before you go.

Neighbor islands

If you live on a neighbor island, the department says to contact your local District Health Office, and notes that online orders are accessible statewide. It lists Kauai at (808) 241-3498 and states that no pick-up service is available on Maui.

The department's pages do not spell out which certificate services each District Health Office offers, so call ahead before you travel to one.

Apostilles

The department states that apostille or authentication requests are mail-in only. Its apostilles page says to mail a paper request for a new certified copy (it does not accept copies you already have) together with the Office of the Lieutenant Governor's apostille form and a $3 fee per document. The department coordinates with the Lieutenant Governor's Office, and requests can take up to 3-4 weeks.

How much does a Hawaii birth certificate cost?

These are the department's published fees for certified copies of birth certificates.

The administration fee rises with the size of the order: $2.50 for up to 5 copies, $5.00 for 6 through 10 copies, and $7.50 for 11 through 15 copies. The department's genealogy page shows the totals that result: $12.50 for one birth certificate and $16.50 for two.

A letter of verification confirms that a birth record is on file and verifies facts you supply. It does not disclose information from the certificate that you did not provide. The same eligibility rules apply as for a certified copy.

How long does it take?

The department says processing times usually take up to 4-6 weeks for orders. The online ordering portal currently says the average processing time for orders sent by mail delivery is 6 to 8 weeks. It warns that delays can occur because of REAL ID requirements, and that partial, missing or inaccurate information on an application can add time.

The department's ordering page does not list an expedited or rush service. Treat these figures as estimates, not promises, and order well ahead of a passport appointment or other deadline.

Who can get a certified copy of a Hawaii birth certificate?

Hawaii birth records are not open to the public. Under HRS 338-18(b), the Department of Health "shall not permit inspection of public health statistics records, or issue a certified copy of any record or part thereof, unless it is satisfied that the applicant has a direct and tangible interest in the record."

The statute lists who has that interest, including:

• The registrant (the person named on the certificate)
• The registrant's spouse
• A parent of the registrant
• A descendant of the registrant, such as a child or grandchild
• A person with a common ancestor with the registrant, such as a sibling, aunt, uncle or cousin
• A legal guardian of the registrant
• A person or agency acting on behalf of the registrant
• A personal representative or trustee of the registrant's estate or trust
• A person whose right to a certified copy is established by a court order

The statute names a few narrower categories too, such as adoptive parents who have petitioned to adopt and need to confirm a natural parent's death. If you cannot establish a direct and tangible interest, the department says you will not be issued a certified copy.

For how Hawaii's closed-record rule compares with other states, see are birth certificates public records.

Using a Hawaii birth certificate for a passport or REAL ID

For a first U.S. passport, federal rules generally require a birth certificate that shows your full name, place and date of birth and your parents' full names, is signed by the official custodian of birth records, carries the issuing office's seal, and shows a filing date within one year of birth (22 CFR 51.42). If a certificate does not meet that standard, for example because it was filed more than a year after birth, the applicant must submit secondary evidence.

The federal REAL ID rule lists a certified copy of a birth certificate filed with the vital statistics office of your state of birth as an acceptable identity document (6 CFR 37.11). A certified copy from the Hawaii Department of Health is that kind of document.

Correcting or amending a Hawaii birth certificate

The department's amendments page says an original entry on a birth certificate may be amended either at the private request of an individual or by order of a court. An amendment includes changes, corrections, additions, deletions or substitutions.

Every amendment needs documentary evidence. What evidence you need depends on whether the change is court-ordered or, for a private request, whether it materially affects the validity and integrity of the record.

In most cases, the fee is $3.00 for each request to amend an item or group of items on a certificate. New certified copies showing the change are ordered and paid for separately.

One rule matters if you plan more than one change: once an item has been amended, the department will not amend it again without a court order, or, for a name, without a change of name decree.

To ask about a specific amendment, call the Corrections Section at (808) 586-4541 or write to State Department of Health, Office of Health Status Monitoring, Corrections Section, P.O. Box 3378, Honolulu, HI 96801. Walk-in service is available Monday to Friday, 7:45 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., excluding State holidays.

Name changes

A legal name change runs through the courts first. Our guide to Hawaii name change laws covers that process. Once you have the decree, the amendment process above is how the change reaches the birth record.

Sex designation

The amendments page says you can apply for a new birth certificate for a sex designation change by following separate special instructions linked from that page. Those instructions set the documents required; read them on the department's site, or call the Corrections Section, before you apply. This reflects the department's page as read on October 8, 2026.

Late registration and the Certificate of Hawaiian Birth

Hawaii has a distinct history here. The department's late birth certificate page explains that the Certificate of Hawaiian Birth program began in 1911 to register people born in Hawaii whose births had not been registered by age one, and ended in 1972.

You can order certified copies of a Certificate of Hawaiian Birth under the same rules as a standard birth certificate.

If you ask to amend an entry on a Certificate of Hawaiian Birth, the department treats the request as an application to register a late certificate of birth, unless a standard birth certificate already exists for you. You submit documentary evidence of the birth facts, and the department reviews it.

If the application is approved, a late birth certificate is issued and the original Certificate of Hawaiian Birth must be surrendered to the department for cancellation. The department charges no filing fee for the late birth certificate.

The department's pages read for this guide do not set out the general rules for registering a birth that was never recorded at all. If that is your situation, contact the department before gathering documents.

Adoption

Adoption changes the birth record, and who can see the original record afterward depends on state law. Our guide to Hawaii adoption records covers those access rules.

Older records and genealogy

Hawaii's restriction does not last forever. HRS 338-18(e) allows the department to give people working on genealogy projects access to copies of vital records of events that occurred more than 115 years before the current year.

The department's genealogy page says that for events 115 years or less before the current year, you must still establish a direct and tangible interest. Genealogy requests are made by mail to the Issuance/Vital Statistics Section, using the department's genealogy forms and instructions, at the same certified-copy fees.

This article is general legal information about Hawaii birth certificates, not legal advice. Fees and procedures change, so confirm current requirements with the Hawaii State Department of Health, Vital Records, before you order. Information last verified on October 8, 2026.

Related

• Birth certificates by state
• Are birth certificates public records?
• Hawaii adoption records
• Hawaii name change laws

Last updated: October 8, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much is a birth certificate in Hawaii?

The Hawaii State Department of Health charges $10 for the first certified copy and $4 for each additional copy, plus a $2.50 general administration fee for each group of up to 5 copies. One copy totals $12.50 and two copies total $16.50.

How long does it take to get a birth certificate in Hawaii?

The department says processing usually takes up to 4-6 weeks on its certificates page, and its online portal currently gives an average of 6 to 8 weeks for mail delivery. It says REAL ID demand or incomplete information can cause delays. Its ordering page does not list an expedited service.

Can I order a Hawaii birth certificate online?

Yes. The department's own portal at vitrec.ehawaii.gov takes online orders, which it labels highly recommended. You upload a government-issued photo ID and pay by debit or credit card.

Who can request a Hawaii birth certificate?

Only someone with a direct and tangible interest under HRS 338-18(b), including the registrant, a spouse, a parent, a descendant, a person with a common ancestor, a legal guardian, someone acting on the registrant's behalf, or a person with a court order.

Where do I get a birth certificate in person in Hawaii?

The department's appointment scheduler says to place the order online at vitrec.ehawaii.gov first, then pick it up with a valid photo ID by appointment or walk-in at the Vital Records office, 201 Merchant St., Suite 100, Honolulu, open Monday through Friday, 7:45 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. On a neighbor island, the department says to contact your local District Health Office; it notes no pick-up service is available on Maui.

How do I correct a birth certificate in Hawaii?

Apply to the department's Corrections Section with documentary evidence supporting the change. Most amendment requests cost $3.00, and an item that has already been amended is not changed again without a court order or, for a name, a change of name decree.

What is a Certificate of Hawaiian Birth?

A record from a program that ran from 1911 to 1972 to register people born in Hawaii whose births were not registered by age one. A request to amend one is treated as an application for a late birth certificate, which carries no filing fee.