A computer generated certified birth certificate for the last 100 years is available for persons born in TN. Computer generated birth certificates will be processed while you wait. Certified copies of the original records are available to the person named on the record and to certain family members or legal representatives. If you request a birth certificate through the mail, it is usually returned to the customer within one to five days of the date received.

The fee will be $15.00 for each certified copy.

You will need to provide Vital Records with the following information:

• full name on certificate
• date of birth
• place of birth
• mother's maiden name and father's name
• a check or money order made payable to Hamilton County
• your signature and relationship to the person named on the birth record
• a photocopy of a government form of ID, which includes the signature of the requester.

  Identification Requirements for Births:
  

  • If the application is signed and notarized, no additional identification documents are required.
  • If the actual mother’s copy of a birth certificate is for the prior or current year and is submitted as the application and the response is being mailed or presented to a parent, no additional identification documents are required.

    Otherwise, you will need one item from the first list OR two items from the second list.

  One item from the following list:

  • Current drivers license, including the issue and expiration date.
  • Current passport, Military I.D. card, alien, temporary or permanent resident card
  • Employment authorization card
  • U.S. Certificate of Naturalization Certificate of Citizenship or Citizenship I.D. card

  or
  
  Two items from the following list:

  • Current pay stub or W2
  • Vehicle registration with name and current address
  • Voter Registration card
  • Military Discharge (DD214)
  • Utility Bill, Bank Statement or deposit slip with name and current address
  • Health care coverage card
  • Medical record Application page of an insurance policy
  • Signed Social Security Card

  For those persons who have had their identification stolen, a copy of a police report or other official document which verifies the theft is required.

• the address to which the original should be mailed
• a daytime telephone number

Mail your request to:
Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department
Vital Records Department
921 East Third Street
Chattanooga, TN 37403

This information can be faxed to us at (423) 209-8024 if you prefer to pay with Discover, Visa or Mastercard. You can call us at (423) 209-8025 with your credit card information.

For your convenience, applications for certificates can be obtained online from the Office of Vital Records at http://tn.gov/health/article/vr-applications
You can complete the form and mail it to the address above.

Death records are issued for events occurring in Tennessee within the last 50 years. Cause of death is available only to the decedent's parent, child, spouse, or an attorney or agency acting on behalf of the decedent's estate, or qualifying family member. Please submit a photocopy of a government issued form of identification which includes your signature. Copies of any legal documents, where applicable, should also be submitted.

You will need to provide Vital Records with the following information:

• full name on certificate
• date of death
• sex and age at death
• county of death
• name and location of funeral home
• the purpose for the copy of the certificate
• a check or money order made payable to Hamilton County
• your signature and relationship to the person named on the birth record
• a photocopy of a government form of ID, which includes the signature of the requester
• the address to which the original should be mailed
• a daytime telephone number

You may also request certificate by mailing required information to our address listed under birth records information.
Our fax number is (423) 209-8024 if you prefer to pay with Discover, Visa or Mastercard. You may call us at (423) 209-8025 with your credit card information.
For your convenience, applications for certificates can be obtained online from the TN Office of Vital Records at http://tn.gov/assets/entities/health/attachments/PH-1663.pdf You can complete the form and mail to our office.

Most information from Hamilton County births for the years 2012 to 2016, or deaths for the years 2011-2016, can be provided to any requester as a hand written transcript. The death verification does not include cause of death. This is called a verification.

Requests for verification should be made in writing. You must provide enough information so that our staff can locate the record you would like verified. The fee is $15.00 per record per year searched. This fee is charged for the search for the record and is not refunded even if no record is found. Applications for verification's can be obtained online at http://tn.gov/health/article/vr-applications

You may complete the front side of the form and submit it to Hamilton County Vital Records in Chattanooga, TN by mail or by fax at (423) 209-8024. Please allow one week for the search and we will mail or fax the information to you. 

Verify a birth form:  http://tn.gov/assets/entities/health/attachments/ph-3061.pdf

Verify a death form:  http://tn.gov/assets/entities/health/attachments/ph-3055.pdf

For birth records more than 100 years old and death records more than 50+ years old, check with the Tennessee State Library and Archives here http://sos.tn.gov/tsla/history

The State Vital Records Office can be contacted at (615) 741-1763 (Central Time Zone). 

Expedited orders for births and deaths

The Tennessee Office of Vital Records in Nashville provides expedited services for an additional charge for copies of birth and death certificates. You may call or fax your request and charge it to your credit card.  The phone number for credit card requests is (866) 233-0740; the fax is (866) 234-8802, or you can order online at http://www.vitalchek.com/.

After a child’s birth certificate has been recorded at the TN Office of Vital Records, parents who did not acknowledge paternity in the hospital may go to the local health department for assistance in acknowledging paternity. Unmarried parents can make an appointment at the Hamilton County Vital Records Office to add the father to the certificate through the paternity acknowledgment process. Call (423) 209-8025 to schedule an appointment.