How to get a death certificate in Florida

Fees and where to order in Florida

• State fees (mail or walk-in): $5 search fee for one calendar year, including one certified copy (not refundable); $4 for each additional certified copy; $2 per extra calendar year searched if the exact year is unknown (maximum $50); $10 rush fee; $1 shipping and handling. The page gives no effective date; the application form DH727 is dated June 30, 2023.
• Florida law sets the fee ranges: $3 to $5 for the search and first certification, and $2 to $4 for each additional certification of the same record ordered at the same time (F.S. 382.0255(1)).
• Fees are not refundable, except that fees for additional copies are refunded on written request when no record is found.
• Online or phone: VitalChek, (877) 550-7330 (from outside the U.S., 1-615-372-6800). The $15 first-copy fee includes the $5 search fee and a $10 rush fee; additional copies are $4; UPS shipping costs extra.
• Walk-in: 1217 N Pearl St., Jacksonville, FL 32202, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mail: Florida Department of Health, Vital Statistics, P.O. Box 210, Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042, with a check or money order payable to Vital Statistics. Normal processing for deaths from 2009 on is 3 to 5 business days plus shipping.
• County health departments issue certificates for deaths from 2009 to the present, by mail or walk-in; their fees vary.
• Without cause of death: any person 18 or older may apply, and the first five digits of the Social Security number are hidden.
• With cause of death (confidential for 50 years after death): the spouse or parent; an adult child, grandchild or sibling; anyone who shows a will, insurance policy or other document proving an interest in the estate; anyone acting for one of these; or by court order (F.S. 382.025(1)). Valid photo ID is required. Others need a notarized Affidavit to Release Cause of Death Information (DH Form 1959) signed by an eligible person.
• Filing: the funeral director who first takes custody files the death certificate electronically within 5 days after death (382.008).
• Official ordering page: https://www.floridahealth.gov/certificates-records/death-certificates/

Sources: Florida Department of Health, Death Certificates; F.S. 382.0255(1)(e) (2026); F.S. 382.025(1)(a) (2026)

How the death certificate fits the cremation timeline

Every Florida cremation needs the district medical examiner's approval, because F.S. 406.11 puts every body that is to be cremated under the medical examiner's review. Funeral homes request it through the state's Electronic Death Registration System, and the county sets the fee: for example $75 in Lee County and $35 in Sarasota and Manatee counties (DeSoto County charges none). A burial-transit permit from the local registrar is also required. Your funeral home or direct disposer normally handles both.

• F.S. 406.11(1)(c): the district medical examiner must determine the cause of death when a body is to be cremated, dissected, or buried at sea.
• Lee County (District 21 Medical Examiner): funeral homes send cremation authorization requests electronically through the state Electronic Death Registration System (EDRS). The treating physician must give the funeral home the cause of death, and incomplete or improperly certified requests are rejected. The fee for cases not under the medical examiner's jurisdiction is $75.00 (Lee County Ordinance 15-07), invoiced to funeral homes monthly.
• Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties (District 12 Medical Examiner): every death where the body is to be cremated must be investigated and an approval number given to the funeral home or crematory before cremation. The cremation fee is $35 for Sarasota and Manatee county deaths (county ordinances R-08-217 and 2008-083); DeSoto County has no cremation fee. No effective date was shown.
• Other counties set their own fees. See the unverified list.
• Burial-transit permit: issued by the Department of Health or the local registrar or subregistrar where the death occurred, and not until a complete certificate of death is filed unless the funeral director gives adequate assurance it will be (382.006(2)).
• The remains of a person whose identity is not known may not be cremated (406.50(4)).
• When there is information suggesting crime or violence, a licensee may not remove or embalm the body until the medical examiner or other official gives permission (497.387).
• Only one body may be placed in a cremation chamber at a time, unless a legally authorized person gives written permission for each body (497.606(9)(b)).
• Cremation in Florida is done at licensed cinerator facilities and arranged through a licensed funeral home that is also licensed as a cinerator facility, or through a licensed direct disposal establishment (Division FAQ).

Sources: F.S. 406.11(1)(c) (2026); District 21 Medical Examiner (Lee County), Cremation Authorizations; District 12 Medical Examiner, Funeral Homes; Cremation; F.S. 382.006(2) (2026); F.S. 406.50(4) (2026); FL DFS Division of Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services, Consumer FAQ

What to use the certified copies for

Social Security pays a one-time $255 death payment to a surviving spouse. If there is no spouse, some children may get it. You must apply within 2 years of the death, by phone or online after signing in.

Banks, insurers, pension plans, the VA and the county recorder each usually want their own certified copy, so ask the funeral home how many to order at the start. Extra copies ordered at the same time often cost less.

• A spouse who lived with the person may qualify. A spouse living apart may qualify if they can get benefits on the deceased's record.
• If there is no spouse, eligible children include those 17 or younger, 18 to 19 in school (K to 12) full time, or any age if disabled before age 22 ("at age 21 or younger").
• Apply within 2 years of the death.
• Phone: 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778), weekdays 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; tell the representative you want to apply for a lump-sum death payment. The page also offers an online application after signing in to an account.

Source: SSA, Lump-sum death payment