Illinois · Certified copy
Illinois Birth Certificate: Order a Certified Copy Online
We prepare your application and file it with the Division of Vital Records, Illinois Department of Public Health. The office mails the certified copy to you.
- Secure payment
- Encrypted data
- Email support
- Private service — not a government agency
Illinois at a glance
- Issuing office
- Division of Vital Records, Illinois Department of Public Health
- Who can order
- 6 relationships · see the list
- Standard processing
- 30–35 Business Days
- What you need
- Photo ID, names, date and place of birth, parents' names
- Expedited processing
- 20–25 Business Days
- Proof of relationship
- Required for some relationships
A certified copy is the document most agencies accept for a passport, a driver's license, school enrollment or benefits. Illinois issues it for births recorded in the state.
Illinois birth certificate: long form, short form and Cook County records
Illinois birth records are not public. A certified copy goes to the person named at eighteen or older, to a parent shown on the record, or to a legal guardian or legal representative with written proof. The state issues a long form accepted for passports and a shorter version, and county clerks such as Cook County also issue certified copies.
Who may request an Illinois birth certificate
The Vital Records Act limits certified copies to a court order or a written request from the registrant of legal age, a parent or another legal representative, plus certain government bodies. The state's application spells out who counts as a legal representative: an attorney for the registrant, an agent acting under a power of attorney, a court-appointed representative, or an agent holding a written, notarized authorization signed by the registrant. Written evidence of guardianship or legal representation must accompany the request. Grandparents, siblings and adult children are not on the list on their own; they would need one of these roles.
Long form or short form
Illinois issues two kinds of certified copy. The long form is described on the state's application as accepted for all legal uses, including passports and other agencies. The short form carries less detail, and the same application warns that it may not be accepted by every government agency, so for a passport, dual citizenship or anything abroad the long form is the safer choice. Separately, uncertified genealogical copies of births at least seventy-five years old are stamped for genealogical purposes only and cannot be used legally.
Cook County, Chicago and the other county clerks
The state office has kept birth records since January 1916. The county clerk of the county where the birth happened holds the earlier records and can also issue certified copies of later ones, so a Chicago birth can be ordered from the Cook County Clerk as well as from the state, and the same goes for DuPage County and every other county. Each office issues one certified copy per request under its own seal, and the eligibility rules are identical wherever you apply.
What the Illinois application asks for and acceptable ID
The application asks for the full name at birth, the date and the city or county of birth, sex, the mother's or co-parent's maiden name and the other parent's name, plus the requester's name, relationship, address, intended use and signature; the certificate number is optional and no notary is needed. A current government photo ID is required, such as a driver's license, passport, active-duty military ID, veterans medical card or tribal ID. An ID that expired less than half a year ago is accepted with a document showing your current address; otherwise two recent documents, one of them an insurance card, voter card, pay stub or bank statement and the other current mail, take its place. Social Security cards are not accepted.
Adoption, paternity and corrections
Illinois is a closed adoption state: after an adoption a new record is created and the original is sealed. Adult adoptees aged twenty-one or older may request a non-certified copy of their original record. A father can be added through a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity only when the parents were unmarried and no other man is listed; otherwise a court order is needed, and DNA results alone are not accepted. Corrections require an affidavit with supporting documents created before the registrant turned nineteen, and some need a court order.
Genealogical copies, deceased registrants and special Illinois records
Illinois treats genealogy as a proper reason to see a birth record once the birth is at least seventy-five years old, and those copies are uncertified and stamped "For genealogical purposes only". To order the certificate of someone who has died, the requester uses a separate form that asks for their own Social Security number and driver's license number along with the death certificate, and the copy comes back marked "Deceased". The state also keeps a Foreign Birth record for children born abroad and re-adopted in Illinois, and a commemorative certificate for display. When it checks ID, Illinois accepts a matricula consular issued after October 2006 but not a Social Security card.
How it works when you order with BirthChek
Ordering an Illinois birth certificate with BirthChek starts with your role: the person named, a parent on the record, or a guardian or legal representative. You answer the same questions the state form asks, upload your ID and sign. Guardians and representatives then upload their written proof on the order page, and we review it before filing with the state office. You can follow the request on your order page until the certificate is on its way.
Facts checked October 24, 2026 against the sources below.
Sources
- Birth records — Illinois Department of Public Health – Division of Vital Records
- Vital Records Act, 410 ILCS 535/25 — Illinois General Assembly
- Application for a certified copy of a birth record (VR 180) — Illinois Department of Public Health – Division of Vital Records
- Valid government-issued photo ID — Illinois Department of Public Health – Division of Vital Records
- Adoption — Illinois Department of Public Health – Division of Vital Records
- Paternity — Illinois Department of Public Health – Division of Vital Records
- Where to write for vital records: Illinois — Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Where to get a Illinois birth certificate: state and local offices
Certified copies for births recorded in Illinois are issued by the Division of Vital Records, Illinois Department of Public Health.
We take orders for births anywhere in Illinois, including Cook County, Chicago and DuPage County.
Replacing a lost or damaged Illinois birth certificate
A replacement is simply a new certified copy of the same birth record. You answer the same questions as for a first copy and nothing on the record changes. Order one when your copy is lost or damaged, or when you need more than one copy for applications running at the same time.
Who can order a Illinois birth certificate
- You, the person named
- Father
- Mother
- Legal Guardian · proof needed
- Legal Representative · proof needed
- My relationship is not listed · proof needed
Relationships marked "proof needed" must send proof of the relationship with the application; we tell you what counts after you order.
If your relationship is not listed, the office may refuse the application or ask for a court order.
Reasons to request a Illinois birth certificate
- Adoption (International)
- Adoption (US Only)
- Driver's License
- Dual Citizenship/Immigration
- Employment
- Genealogy/Family History
- Government Assistance/Benefits
- Housing
- Identification
- Income Tax
- Inheritance/Estate Settlement
- Insurance
- Legal Purposes
- Marriage (International)
- Marriage (US Only)
- Passport
- Personal Records/Use
- Retirement
- School
- Social Security Card/Benefits
- Sports
- Travel
What you need to order a Illinois birth certificate
- A photo ID: driver's license, state ID, passport or military ID
- Full name on the certificate and date of birth
- City or county of birth
- Both parents' names, including the mother's maiden name
- A debit or credit card
- Proof of your relationship, for the relationships marked above
Prefer to order directly? Find the office in the CDC directory
Ready to order your Illinois birth certificate?
About ten minutes. Have your photo ID nearby.