Vermont Birth Certificate: Town Clerk or State, Fees and Eligibility

The Vermont Department of Health's Office of Vital Records issues Vermont birth certificates, and most town and city clerks can print certified copies of any Vermont birth from January 1, 1909, to the present. A certified copy costs $10 under state law, or $12 per copy when ordered online through Vermont.gov, and you can order online, by mail, or from a town clerk. 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 how to order a certified copy of a Vermont birth certificate, what it costs, who may order one, and how to correct, amend or late-register a Vermont birth record. It applies to births that occurred in Vermont.

Two places to order: your town clerk or the Department of Health

Vermont has one statewide birth record, and two channels print certified copies of it. Vermont has no separate city or county vital records offices.

Town and city clerks

The Department of Health's order vital records page says that if you are in Vermont, the fastest and cheapest way to get a copy of a vital record is to order it directly from your town or city clerk. Most clerks are issuing agents and can issue certified and noncertified copies of any Vermont birth or death certificate from January 1, 1909, to the present, drawn from the Statewide Registration System.

The department's information for town and city clerks confirms that town clerks are authorized to issue certified copies of vital records, including birth certificates. The Department of Health's order vital records page says clerks can also issue birth certificates from 1908 and earlier if filed in their office.

Not every clerk office necessarily issues copies. Under 18 V.S.A. 5000(d)(2), "By filing a written notice with the State Registrar, a town clerk may opt out of serving as an issuing agent." Call your town or city clerk before you go.

The Department of Health Vital Records Office

The state office takes online and mail orders. Its mailing address is Vermont Department of Health, Vital Records, 280 State Drive, Waterbury, VT 05671-8370. The phone number is 800-439-5008 within Vermont or 802-863-7275.

The department's page also says the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration may provide vital records. The Archives' own certified vital records page lists Vermont marriage, civil union and divorce records (2013 and earlier), not birth records.

How to order from the Department of Health

Online

The department's order button leads to the Vermont Department of Health Vital Records Request Service on Vermont.gov. That page says the service is provided by a third party in partnership with the State of Vermont and the Vermont Department of Health.

Each certified copy costs $12.00 through Vermont.gov, which is the $10 state fee plus a $2 online processing fee. The service says credit cards are processed at a higher total price through Vermont.gov, the state's official web portal, and that the extra supports the state's websites and online services.

By mail

Mail the application for a certified birth or death certificate, a copy of your ID, a check or money order payable to the Vermont Department of Health, and a self-addressed envelope to Vital Records, 280 State Drive, Waterbury, VT 05671-8370.

The department's ordering instructions ask for separate applications for different people. Under the names of the parents, use each parent's last name before their first marriage. A free public index of Vermont births and deaths can help you confirm the details before you apply.

In person

For in-person service, go to your town or city clerk. The department's instructions also say to mail or bring the payment, application and identification documents to the location identified on the application.

How much a Vermont birth certificate costs

Under 18 V.S.A. 5017(a), "For a certified copy of a vital event certificate, the fee shall be $10.00." The department charges $10 per certificate whether you order from it or from a town or city clerk.

The pages we reviewed do not list a fee for a correction, an amendment or a delayed birth certificate, so ask the Vital Records Office before you file.

Fee waivers

Under 18 V.S.A. 5017(b), the State Registrar must waive the fee for certified copies issued to:

• an individual attesting to a lack of fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence; and
• an individual between 18 and 24 years of age who resided in a foster home or residential child care facility between 16 and 18 years of age under placement by a child-placing agency.

How long it takes

On the Vermont.gov service, most orders ship by standard US mail within 5 to 7 business days of your request. Expedited orders ship overnight on the day the order is fulfilled, for a flat $14.50.

The Department of Health does not publish a processing time for mail orders, so call the office before you rely on a date. Certificates are mailed to the applicant's mailing address.

Who can get a certified copy

The department says only family members, legal guardians, certain court-appointed parties or their legal representatives can apply for a certified copy of a birth certificate. Under 18 V.S.A. 5016(b)(2), a certified copy may go to:

"(A) the registrant or his or her spouse, child, grandchild, parent, sibling, grandparent, or guardian; a person petitioning to open a decedent's estate; a court-appointed executor or administrator; or the legal representative of any of these;"

The statute also allows a certified copy for a specific person named in a court order finding that a noncertified copy is insufficient, and for authorized employees of public agencies. Applicants must show identification.

ID requirements

The application asks for a copy of one current, unexpired primary ID. The list includes a US driver's license or state ID, a passport, a tribal or military ID, a green card, an employment authorization document, a Vermont state employee ID, a homeless status affidavit, and Vermont Department of Corrections documentation.

If you do not have one of those, you must send copies of two documents from the application's alternate list that together show your current address and signature. The address on your ID documents must match the mailing address on the application.

Certified and noncertified copies

Certified copies are printed on State engraved security paper with a raised seal. Noncertified copies are printed on plain white paper with a noncertified copy watermark and are available at no charge from the department by email request.

The statute limits what a noncertified copy can do: it "shall not serve as prima facie evidence of the facts stated in the certificate" (18 V.S.A. 5016). The department's pages do not describe long-form and short-form versions or say which one passport agencies accept.

For a first U.S. passport, federal rules call for 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, bears the issuing office's seal, and shows a filing date within one year of birth (22 CFR 51.42). For REAL ID, federal rules accept a certified copy of a birth certificate filed with the vital statistics office in your state of birth (6 CFR 37.11). For use abroad, the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration issues apostilles on behalf of the Secretary of State for $10 each, and you can order one online together with the certified copy through the Vital Records Request Service (Vermont Secretary of State).

Correcting or amending a Vermont birth record

Apply with the Application to Correct or Amend a Vermont Birth Certificate and supporting evidence. The timing decides which rule applies.

• Within six months of birth. Under 18 V.S.A. 5073, the State Registrar may correct or complete a birth certificate on the application of a parent, the hospital where the birth occurred, or the certifying attendant. A corrected certificate is not marked Amended.
• After six months. Under 18 V.S.A. 5075(a), any alteration is an amendment. The registrant, a parent or guardian, the hospital or the certifying attendant applies, and the State Registrar may amend the certificate if the application and evidence show the amendment is warranted. The amended certificate shows Amended and the date.

If the State Registrar denies the request, you can petition the Probate Division of the Superior Court.

The child's name

The department says completions or changes to the child's name within six months of birth require the signature of both parents if two parents are listed. More than six months after birth, a name change on the certificate requires a certified copy of a court order. The court process itself is covered in our guide to Vermont name change laws.

Adding a second parent

A second parent can be added at any time with a court order adjudicating parentage, or with a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Parentage, plus a Denial of Parentage if one applies.

Gender marker

The department's order page, last updated June 30, 2026, says to change the gender marker on a birth certificate by completing the Affidavit of Gender Identity form. The birth certificate application offers Male, Female and Non-binary.

Under 18 V.S.A. 5112, "the State shall adopt a simple process by which an individual may amend the marker on a birth certificate to reflect the individual's gender identity, including a third non-binary marker." Records relating to these amendments are confidential and exempt from public inspection under the same section.

If a birth was never registered

Under 18 V.S.A. 5075(b), a person born in Vermont whose birth certificate was not filed during the first year, or that person's parent or guardian, may apply to the State Registrar for a delayed certificate of birth. The department's delayed birth certificate instructions call for a notarized Request for Delayed Certificate of Birth and a notarized Statement of Information, sent to Vital Records with original or certified supporting documents.

• Age 10 or older: three documents, each showing the birth date or age and created at least 10 years before the request or within 3 years of birth. One must show a Vermont birthplace and one must name a parent.
• Under age 10: two documents that together show the mother was in Vermont at the birth, and the child's name, date of birth, Vermont birthplace and a parent.

Personal affidavits are not accepted as primary documents. A denial may be appealed to the Probate Division.

Adoption and original birth certificates

After an adoption, the State Registrar acts on the report of adoption under 15A V.S.A. 3-802 to issue a new birth certificate. The department says that beginning July 1, 2023, adoptees may request a certified copy of their original Vermont birth certificate from the Department of Health. Eligibility and the process are covered in our guide to Vermont adoption records.

Older records and genealogy

Certified copies stay restricted to the eligible people above, but anyone can request a free noncertified copy, and a statewide public index of births and deaths is searchable online. The pages we reviewed do not set a date after which Vermont birth records become fully public. Whether birth certificates are public in other states is covered in are birth certificates public records.

Birth certificates registered before January 1, 1909, are not issued from the Statewide Registration System. For those, contact the town clerk of the town where the birth was recorded. Under 18 V.S.A. 5000(c)(3), pre-1909 certificates stay with the town clerks and cannot be amended under the vital records statutes.

This article is general legal information about Vermont birth certificates, not legal advice. Fees and procedures change; confirm with the Vermont Department of Health Vital Records Office or your town or city clerk before ordering. Information last verified on October 8, 2026.

Related

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

Last updated: October 8, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much is a birth certificate in Vermont?

A certified copy costs $10 under 18 V.S.A. 5017, at the Department of Health or a town or city clerk. Ordered online through Vermont.gov it costs $12 per copy, and overnight shipping adds a flat $14.50.

Can I get my Vermont birth certificate at the town clerk?

Usually, yes. Most Vermont town and city clerks can issue certified copies of any Vermont birth certificate from January 1, 1909, to the present, but state law lets a clerk opt out of serving as an issuing agent (18 V.S.A. 5000(d)(2)), so call ahead.

How long does it take to get a Vermont birth certificate?

For online orders, most ship by standard US mail within 5 to 7 business days of the request, according to the Vermont.gov service. The Department of Health does not publish a processing time for mail orders.

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

Under 18 V.S.A. 5016, the registrant or their spouse, child, grandchild, parent, sibling, grandparent or guardian, a person petitioning to open the registrant's estate, a court-appointed executor or administrator, or a legal representative of any of these. Anyone can request a free noncertified copy.

How do I correct a birth certificate in Vermont?

Submit the Application to Correct or Amend a Vermont Birth Certificate with supporting evidence. Within six months of birth the State Registrar can correct or complete the record (18 V.S.A. 5073); after six months, changes are amendments and the certificate shows Amended and the date (18 V.S.A. 5075).

How do I change the gender marker on a Vermont birth certificate?

The Department of Health says to complete the Affidavit of Gender Identity form. State law directs a simple process that includes a third non-binary marker, and records of these amendments are confidential (18 V.S.A. 5112).