Personal Records and Certificates
Birth, marriage, death, divorce, and similar records are maintained by the office or court responsible for the official record.
What kind of record is involved?
The source depends on the record. Vital-records offices commonly maintain birth, marriage, and death records, while divorce records may come from a court or another government office. The location where the event was recorded usually matters more than where the person lives now.
Ordinary copy, official copy, and certified copy
An ordinary photocopy or scan reproduces a document. An official or certified copy is issued or certified through the office that keeps the record. A notarized photocopy is not automatically the same thing as a government-issued certified copy.
Replacement and correction solve different problems
A replacement provides another valid copy or document. A correction changes information in the underlying record. The office maintaining the record may use different forms, evidence, identity checks, fees, or eligibility rules for those two tasks.
Vital records are kept where the event was recorded
Birth, death, marriage, and divorce records are primarily state and local records rather than one federal certificate system. The federal government’s CDC directory points people to the state or local vital-records office for the place where the event occurred. That is why the state of residence today may be different from the place that can issue the record.
First determine who may obtain the record; then which version is accepted
The records office controls who may order a record and what versions it issues, such as informational or certified copies. The organization using the document separately controls what it accepts. Being eligible to order a copy does not establish that the copy is the version needed for the next process.
Official sources and services
USA.gov — Replace vital documents provides federal guidance for locating the appropriate state or local record source. Vital-record ordering services and record-request services may assist with requests where supported, but the official office remains the source of the record and its requirements.