Illinois Death Certificates

Ordering Illinois Death Certificates Online

Order Death Certificates Here

General Information on Ordering Illinois Death Certificates

Death records are not public records and are only available to those who have a personal or property right interest with the decedent. If you are not a relative of the deceased person, a letter or document from the office or agency that needs the death certificate must accompany the request.

Death records can be obtained from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), Division of Vital Records or from the county clerk's office in the county where the death occurred. Records filed prior to 1916 must be obtained from the county clerk's office in the county where the death occurred.

The IDPH, Division of Vital Records can provide entitled persons with a certified copy of the death certificate for $17. Uncertified, genealogical copies of a death record can be provided for $10 if the death occurred at least 20 years prior to the date of the request. Extra copies of the same record for either a certified or genealogical copy are $2 each if requested at the same time. If no record is found as part of a certified or genealogical search, a no record statement will be issued. The $10 search fee is non-refundable.

When ordering the death record, you will need to provide the following information:

• the decedent's full name;
• the date of death;
• the city and county where the death occurred, if known;
• the parent(s) name(s);
• any additional identifying information you may have;
• your relationship to the decedent;
• and the reason for requesting the record.

Information for Genealogists

For assistance with your family history research, please do not contact the State of Illinois. Instead please refer to the following websites for help:

• Illinois Birth, Marriage and Death Records - online databases of primary records.

• Illinois Adoption Registry - for help with locating adoptees and birth families from Illinois.

• Illinois Obituaries - find obituaries from Illinois newspapers.

• Social Security Death Index - National database of deaths dating back to the 1940's.