Maybe you think you have your birth certificate but don't. Heads up:

[mobeau69]

About 30 years ago I needed a copy of my birth certificate for a Washington teachers license. I thought I had it in my files but what it actually was was a “Certificate of Birth” that the hospital gave to my parents. It was not an official copy of my Birth Certificate. I had to request it with a fee from the hospital or the state (don’t remember which).

Get registered and get to the polls!

[Yonnie3]

1. In Virginia you get it via the Health Department's Office of Vital Records

I got a new copy about the time RealID became available here. There was a long wait because of a backlog of requests. It took five weeks rather than the promised two and cost less than $20.

After my father's death I found my hospital issued birth certificate complete with my footprint. He kept that all those years and also the hospital bill with a faded paid stamp on it in his valuable papers.

[Tanuki]

19. My late mother was born at home on the family farm

in rural West Virginia. Her parents saved the cancelled check for $5 that my grandfather wrote out to the midwife. My mom thought the chain of sequential endorsements on the back was interesting... the midwife endorsed it to buy groceries, the grocer then endorsed it to buy coal, etc. I have the check now and I'm grateful that they preserved this bit of family history! And I love that you have your tiny footprint. ♥️

[erronis]

47. That is a fascinating record of history and life at that time and place.

Now, we should also take a photo of these to have another electronic copy, just in case.

[efhmc]

55. I have the original which is on what seems to be tissue paper. It spells my middle name wrong and has bugged me all of

my life.

[Scrivener7]

2. I needed to get a copy a short time ago. It was an easy process and took only a few weeks. Do it now!

Who knows what they're going to try. Be ready.

[bucolic_frolic]

3. Certified copies of birth certificates will have the raised seal on the paper

They are not cheap. I got one for an ancestor ... about $35, and that was 15 years ago.

Spell everything right. One letter wrong and they'll tell you they don't have it and give you 30 days to refile.

They told me it didn't exist. I found the index reference number and they finally coughed up. Ridiculous system.

You might try your library's access to ancestry.com for free, but it's not certified without that raised seal. What a system.

[hunter]

9. Many of those are likewise unacceptable today.

I have a forty year old official birth certificate that I got from the registrar of the county I was born in. It's a Xerox copy of the original document with the embossed official seal stamped in indelible purple ink. This was the only kind of official birth certificate you could get then, and was considered acceptable for everything -- marriage licenses, passports, drivers licenses, passports, government employment, etc.

Today it's not accepted. I was forced to get a new one from the private company that now manages these records.

[bucolic_frolic]

10. Wow, that is really unfair. They roll ya to make money. /nt

[4bonhoffer]

4. THIS IS SO IMPORTANT!!!

I experienced the same thing when it came to paperwork for my pension. Hope people recommend this post.
A certificate of birth is NOT a birth certificate !!!

[Prairie Gates]

5. You get it from the state, not the hospital

If you are an American citizen born abroad, you get it from the US State Department.

[Easterncedar]

6. Yes. We need to be prepared for shenanigans!

[otchmoson]

7. This was my proposal to my senators this morning:

Good morning, Senator Pedo Protector,

I see you plan to “work” through the weekend to satisfy the demand of the pedophilic resident of the White House to pass the SAVE Act. You must consider, above all else, voter identification. ID, ID? Drivers’ license, NO. Passport, YES. Student ID, NO. Concealed carry permit, YES. Birth certificate---not unless a judicial affidavit is affixed. Most Americans are not opposed to identification, but if you put demands on what is and is not acceptable, then it becomes the government’s responsibility to provide it. Anything less is a poll tax. So, get those former census-takers (and other job-seeking individuals) up and running, provide them with transportation, per diem expense accounts, digital cameras, portable backdrops, printers, laminators and send them forth into America to create acceptable identification. This should not cost more than the current military supplemental funding request, so it’s certainly do-able. Get it done.

[3Hotdogs]

8. IN some states you can get it from the town in which you were born.

IF not, the state's Secretary of State.

[Mossfern]

22. That's how it is in NJ

It's usually a quick trip to the town's health office or bureau of records (whatever they call it). Just call the town and they'll direct you. The cost is not very high if I remember.

[radical noodle]

32. Or from the county

In Indiana, it's the county.

[travelingthrulife]

43. This is the problem. Each state does it differently.

Also, how does a birth certificate prove who you are without photo of you as an adult?

[Katinfl]

11. Will these documents be required when we vote or only when someone registers to vote?

I am not clear about the SAVE act other than it is a form of voter suppression.

[Kaleva]

18. It appears that it'd be only required to register

[DownriverDem]

30. Yes but

doesn't the SAVE ACT require everyone to register to vote again?

[travelingthrulife]

44. I don't think it does, but I remember reading that if you hadn't voted within a year they take you

off the registration. Then you would have to re-register. Some short period of time to screw us all over.

[Kaleva]

50. Here's what I found

“There’s no requirement in the bill for all registered voters to reregister“

https://www.factcheck.org/2026/03/qa-on-the-save-america-act/

[valleyrogue]

28. It isn't law and likely never will be. n/t

[mobeau69]

36. I never thought pedocon would ever get elected.

[Katinfl]

42. I agree.

[travelingthrulife]

45. It is clearly a poll tax. Why is this even a thing our supposed Constitutional

experts are even allowed to consider, much less turn into law.

[Wednesdays]

53. Two GOP senators have said they're voting no.

That leaves 51 Repug senators voting yes. We need two more to flip in order to defeat the bill. Keeping in mind that Vance casts the deciding vote in case of a tie.

[Random Boomer]

33. Trump wants it required for both

I believe the bill in its current form is that the birth certificate is needed for registration. Trump wants it for both registration AND voting, but so far hasn't managed to coerce the GOP into that version.

[TheJillMill]

12. Birth Certificate Complications

My 46-year-old son who just moved from Utah to Michigan for a transfer VA job (civilian worker) had complications getting a Michigan license. He had his birth certificate, but for some reason, my and my ex’s names were not on it. I figured it was because maybe he was our only home birth in upstate New York. So I had to go to the county where I still live and pay $35 for an original, which looked completely different. It was signed by different people and even signed by us and they did the raised seal. Only had to wait about 10 minutes and mailed it to him priority, and it was completely acceptable. Still, it looked *nothing* like a typical birth certificate.

[Joinfortmill]

13. This is so fucking maddening... My story

I'll begin at the end. I have a passport, so I'm fine. But my parents divorced when I was very young and my mother remarried. My step-father adopted me and my last name was changed. Actually, they changed the spelling of my first name, also by adding an additional letter. Luckily for me, my parents kept the adoption papers and the name change and I now have them.

Later I married and divorced. I took my maiden name back, thank God, or I'd probably be in a damn mess now shuffling all the paperwork around: birth certificate, adoption papers with name change, marriage certificate, divorce decree. My advice to women, especially with all this, is to keep your maiden name, at least for legal purposes.

I hate these horrible people. I just hate them.

[travelingthrulife]

48. I kept my last name because I liked it. I was surprised to hear how much

trouble some women have to legally prove who they are. Make sure to keep your voter registration updated.

[Emile]

14. We got ours for 7 dollars a copy

many years ago, I'm sure it's a lot more now. We contacted the vital records office in the state or territory where we were born. The county courthouse can direct you on how to obtain it.

[moniss]

15. Years ago

here in Wisconsin if you walked in to the County offices where you were born and showed a drivers license they gave you a certified copy of your birth certificate. So if someone faked a drivers license they got your birth certificate. I don't know what it is now but when it comes down to it the more tech they throw at it the less and less secure anybody can be about their identity being stolen.

[ananda]

16. I had to learn that years ago, the first time I needed it.

I had to get it from the Dallas County office,
and I still have it. It's the good oiginal.

[Jersey Devil]

17. After 9/11 my birth certificate was declared invalid by the State of NJ

During investigations it was determined that some of the plane hijackers had obtained fake birth certificates through the office of the Hudson County NJ Bureau of Vital Statistics and NJ declared that all birth certificates issued by Hudson County NJ were invalid. Since I was born in Jersey City (Hudson County) in order to renew my NJ driver license I had to travel to the State Bureau of Vital Statistics in Trenton and obtain a new birth certficate issued by the State, after appearing in person and bringing all kinds of documents for them to review. Since I lived in the very northeastern part of NJ in Bergen County I had to travel to Trenton (over 100 miles) and basically spend an entire day getting this done. I can only imagine that in larger states people would have to travel hundreds of miles in some cases to do the same thing.

[FalloutShelter]

31. Same

My NJ birth Certificate was just reject in PA this month. Now I have to apply for a new one.

The SAVE ACT MUST NOT PASS . Call your reps and be angry.

Let’s get real. If the SAVE ACT passes it’s game I’ve for the Republic.

[Javaman]

20. yup discovered just that myself about 20 years ago when I was getting my passport. nt

[Midnight Writer]

21. My neighbor just went to get his at the county courthouse.

He walked in, told them his name and information, and they gave him a copy with the embossed seal. Took maybe ten minutes.

The funny thing is, he did not show ID to get this document the government says he needs to prove his identity. He said anyone could have walked in and requested a copy of his birth certificate.

[hunter]

52. Many people do not live anywhere near the county they were born in.

Complications abound when you are getting your birth certificate by mail.

[AverageOldGuy]

23. It's not that easy and be prepared to pay

I was born in Mississippi, wife in Alabama, married in Alabama, we now live in Virginia.

We can't walk into our local health department or courthouse and get birth certificate, marriage license, etc., from another state.

So -- went on line, searched for (1) Alabama birth certificate and marriage license, and (2) Mississippi birth certificate. Both states have farmed out the process to a third-party. Fill out forms online, submit photo of front and back of driver's license of the person whose documents you are ordering, pay fee, got the documents in a few days -- total cost was close to $200 for documents for the two of us. What we received were official versions complete with raised seal.

How many people do not now live in the state where they were born or married? How many will be able to go through the online process? How many can cough up the $$$$ ??

But wait -- it gets better.
--- Wife's birth name was T R G.
--- She was never called by the first name T, always called by middle name R, she did not like the first name T.
--- My last name is S.
--- After we were married, she called herself and signed all documents R G S .
--- That is, until we encountered Virginia DMV who told looked at her birth certificate and told her her VA drivers license would be issued to T G S -- a name she did not want.
--- So -- off to county courthouse, talked to Clerk of the Court -- filled out a form, submitted copy of birth cert and marriage license, judge signed off on name change from T G S (the DMV version) to R G S (her version), back to DMV for new DL.
--- Now, any time we have to show her birth cert and marriage license, we also show a copy of the court order changing her name -- at $5 for each certified copy they are a bargain.
---- We recently laid in a stock of birth certs, marriage license, her name change document along with passports and the passport card.

[themaguffin]

24. If this passes, the mess it will create (intentionally of course) will be significant

...though, I think that they underestimate how much it will hurt their own voters as well, but damage will be done.

[DownriverDem]

25. Same with me

I too had the Certificate of Birth Registration. It got me into Kindergarten, driver's training and college. When I was applying for a passport, I was told it wasn't my birth certificate. Then I had to apply for it. It's good to keep your passport up to date too. I didn't change my name when I married so different names won't be a problem.

[hlthe2b]

26. Yes. I keep screaming at tv when some advocate fails to state clearly CERTIFIED BIRTH CERTIFICATE

--that includes the official stamp or embossed notary signatures from the State Department of Vital Statistics. The mechanism for gaining one if you are no longer living in the state of birth varies a bit, but it will require some time and $$ (since most states will only send it to you via a special certified delivery system that they can fully track against attempts to steal identities). If you don't have the documentation that is required for online validation, it can take even more time. This can be especially true if you have multiple marriages/divorces (and thus multiple name changes) and might require divorce certificates be obtained/presented as well

Most people think REAL ID-driver's licenses can suffice but 49/50 states WITH REAL ID do not meet the requirements to certify US citizenship and thus the damned "SAFE" bill is going to cause an precedented chaotic disaster as lawsuits fly, voters try to check their status with overwhelmed workers and systems trying desperately to respond in time to what this would mean. If you live in a mail ballot system with drop boxes that has worked well for decades as I do, this will mean a BIG court challenge, but leave voters not knowing what to do. Do they enter the chaotic system to try to address all this? Do they have the time off from work and $$$ to do so?

In anticipation of my passport expiring during the process I was trying to renew it, I went ahead and obtained two more certified copies of my birth certificate from out of state. Because i had the documentation necessary for a quick validation online, the process was not bad. But it was not inexpensive either (and that doesn't even include the passport fees).

I hope to hell they block SAVE or millions may be invalidated from voting. Do MAGATs know this? They are as likely or perhaps more to be impacted...

[valleyrogue]

27. The SAVE Act isn't law and likely never will be.

Why are people acting like it is?

[Random Boomer]

37. "Likely" isn't very reassuring

I didn't think Trump was "likely" to win the presidency.

If by some fluke or preponderance of chicanery the SAVE Act does pass, I want to be prepared. Waiting until the last minute is a sure path to disenfranchisement.

[Wednesdays]

54. Two GOP senators have said they're voting no. Murkowski and Tillis.

Can you name two more Republican senators? Because that's what we'll need to defeat this bill, which from what I heard is coming to a vote this weekend.

[crud]

29. After reading the comments

it appears that every state has a different process. But in case you were born in PA, I had to apply to the state of PA when my "certificate of birth" was not acceptable to get a passport. I did it by mail from CA and it took about 5 weeks. Had to provide copies of SS card and other ID's.

[flor-de-jasmim]

34. My hospital B.C. says "Compliments of the PET Milk Company "!

[valleyrogue]

35. In Oregon, a birth certificate and a certificate of live birth are the same thing.

It is issued by the department of vital records. A hospital can issue one, but that isn't the legal document.

I mean, there is no other alternative in Oregon. Vital records clearly calls this document a "certificate of live birth."

[New Breed Leader]

38. Correct. You need a certificate of LIVE birth.

nm

[Wiz Imp]

39. FYI, the bill does not require already registered voters to re-register and show the documentation..

It would only apply to new registrations and/or people who need to update their registration due to moving etc.

https://www.factcheck.org/2026/03/qa-on-the-save-america-act/

Would registered voters be required to reregister with proper documentation to vote?
There’s no requirement in the bill for all registered voters to reregister. However, if a voter did need to reregister for other reasons, such as moving or changing their name, they would have to show documentation proving their citizenship. “Under any method of voter registration in a State, the State shall not accept and process an application to register to vote in an election for Federal office unless the applicant presents documentary proof of United States citizenship with the application,” the legislation says.

[Attilatheblond]

40. CDC list of links for each state to get certified copied of vital records

For CERTIFIED copies of birth certificates and marriage licenses: https://www.usa.gov/request-documents]

Pick the state from which you need a CERTIFIED copy of birth or marriage certificate and follow the links. Some states may require you to print out a request form and sign before a public notary then send in the forms. It takes time. Get on it NOW.

CERTIFIED copies of birth certificates and marriage licenses.
Sadly, not enough for anyone who took spouse's surname. Yep, they are terrified of women voters. And they intend to make us pay for our right. If you have the means, think about helping someone who is barely keeping a roof over their head and food in the house get the needed forms, and now a passport.

[yaesu]

41. Now I know why my state clerk didn't like my bc for my fancy drivers license

But they excepted it and warned me to get the right one for next time, I probably won't live long enough to worry about it.

[Wiz Imp]

46. Birth Certificate cost by state:

https://trustedcare.com/costs/birth-certificate-cost#:~:text=Additional%20fees%20and%20hidden%20costs,separate%20fees%20and%20processing%20times.

State Birth certificate cost*
Alabama $15
Alaska $30
Arizona $20
Arkansas $12
California $29
Colorado $20
Connecticut $30
Delaware $25
Florida $10
Georgia $25
Hawaii $10
Idaho $16
Illinois $15
Indiana $10
Iowa $15
Kansas $20
Kentucky $10
Louisiana $15
Maine $15
Maryland $10
Massachusetts $20
Michigan $34
Minnesota $26
Mississippi $17
Missouri $15
Montana $16
Nebraska $17
Nevada $25
New Hampshire $15
New Jersey $25
New Mexico $10
New York $30
North Carolina $24
North Dakota $15
Ohio $22
Oklahoma $15
Oregon $25
Pennsylvania $20
Rhode Island $22
South Carolina $12
South Dakota $15
Tennessee $15
Texas $22
Utah $22
Vermont $12
Virginia $12
Washington $25
West Virginia $12
Wisconsin $20
Wyoming $25

Waiver eligibility: Some individuals may qualify for fee waivers based on circumstances such as military service, homelessness, or natural disaster relief.

Search fee: Many states keep all or a portion of the base fee as payment for the record search when you order a birth certificate, even if the search is unsuccessful.

VitalChek birth certificate cost
VitalChek is an authorized third-party vendor that provides certified birth certificates online. While convenient, using VitalChek involves additional service fees, with total costs ranging from $25 to $60 or more, depending on the state and shipping options. Many states use only VitalChek as their authorized vendor.

Online ordering
VitalChek is just one of several third-party agencies offering online ordering for birth certificates. While each platform has its own fee structure, most charge an additional $8 to $15+ service fee that you would not pay when ordering in-person or by mail.

Additional fees and hidden costs
Most states charge a base fee for birth certificates, but there may be extra costs:

Processing & shipping: Rush services and expedited shipping add anywhere from $15 to $50 or more to the cost, depending on the state, how quickly you need the document, and where you need it shipped.

Service charges: Online orders may include convenience fees of $5 to $15 or more.

Credit card transactions: Some offices or third-party services add a small percentage if you pay by credit card.

[twodogsbarking]

49. Born in 52. Got the state (pa) certifed BS in 84. Went to get a passport last summer and this one was not accepted.

Had to get a new one that had my parents' names on it. Then I got my passport. Otherwise it went smoothly. The newer BS had the time of my birth on it too.

[Sancho]

51. It can be really difficult...!!!!

Florida story. When FL passed the new requirements, my wife and I had hospital certificates, but we wrote, paid for originals from other states, etc. and got registered...but here is the short version of the story.

My neighbors were a mister and miss. Mister was a WWII German engineer in the US via Argentina about 1920, offered amnesty by the US to build rockets for the military here. He later finished a degree at MIT and retired as a Gov. employee.

The miss was born on a farm in Nebraska, and had nothing but a Bible with names and dates.

Mister and Miss both had voted in Florida for decades (always for the GOP)!

Their two children are both attorneys practicing in Florida. After a year of trying, they could never get documentation to vote under the new laws. There was simply no way to document their history at the time to satisfy Florida's requirements. The lawyers wrote to Germany, county records in Nebraska, produced marriage certificates, employment records, etc. At the time of their deaths, both were still fighting the battle.

The current list of documents is below, but it changes from time to time:

An original or certified copy of a United States birth certificate
A valid, unexpired United States passport
A naturalization certificate issued by the United States Department of Homeland Security
A Consular Report of Birth Abroad provided by the United States Department of State
A current and valid Florida driver license or Florida identification card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, if such driver license or identification card indicates United States citizenship
A current and valid photo identification issued by the Federal Government or the state which indicates United States citizenship
An order from a federal court granting United States citizenship