How to Get a Death Certificate in Ohio

How to get a death certificate in Ohio is straightforward, with one quirk worth knowing first: the state office only holds recent records. Deaths from 1971 to the present come from the Ohio Department of Health, while older deaths come from the Ohio History Connection or the county probate court. For most families dealing with a recent death, the state or local office will have the record, and this guide covers the fee, the form, and the three ways to order.

How to get a death certificate in Ohio by mail

Mail your request to Vital Statistics, Ohio Department of Health, P.O. Box 15098, Columbus, OH 43215-0098. Use the state’s Application for Certified Copies, which can be used for birth, death, fetal death, and acknowledgment of paternity records. Include a copy of your photo ID and payment of $21.50 per certified copy, by personal check or money order made payable to Treasury, State of Ohio. The application asks for as much identifying detail as you can give: the full name of the person who died, the date of death, the city or county of death, your relationship to the person, and your name, address, and daytime phone number. The more of these you provide, the faster the record can be located.

Ohio does not publish a single processing time on the pages used for this guide, and times vary by route and volume, so confirm the current turnaround on the Department of Health site before you mail payment. As a rule, online orders are processed faster than mail, and local offices are often faster than the state office, so use mail when you have time to spare and another route when you do not.

Ordering online

Online ordering with a credit card is the fastest state route. The state processes online orders within about five business days before mailing the certificate, though delivery time is extra. You will need the same identifying details as the mail form, plus a card in your name. If you need the certificate for an estate filing or an insurance deadline, online ordering from the state, or an in-person visit to a local office, will beat mail by weeks.

Ordering locally

Local health departments and registrars in the city or county where the death occurred also issue certified copies, and they are often the fastest option of all. Many counties offer their own online ordering, and in-person visits can produce a certificate the same day. Local fees may differ from the state fee of $21.50, so confirm the county’s fee before you pay. The limit on local orders is the same as elsewhere: a local office can only issue records for deaths in its own jurisdiction, so use the county where the death occurred, not the county where you live now.

Which records the state holds

The state office can issue death records from 1971 to the present. For deaths from 1908 to 1970, write to the Ohio History Connection in Columbus or to the probate court of the county where the death occurred, which holds the earliest records. If you are tracing family history and want an older record, the state office’s indexes can be searched by appointment, and information from a record found in the index may be viewed and copied, though the supplied copy itself must stay in the building. For legal purposes, you need a certified copy from the office that holds the record, so match the year of death to the right office before you apply.

Open records and identification

Ohio death records are open records, and the state issues only certified copies, not uncertified or short-form versions. The information on the copy may vary with your relationship to the person who died, and the application asks for your relationship as part of the request. Bring or send a copy of your photo ID with the application, and give a daytime phone number so the office can reach you if a detail needs checking. A complete application with exact dates and places is the best way to avoid a return letter asking for more information.