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Vital records · Minnesota

Minnesota birth certificate by mail: sign in front of a notary

Minnesota Rules 4601.2600 subpart 5 says an application that is not made in person must be notarized. The Department of Health's birth and death certificate requests print the instruction in capitals on the signature page: Required, sign this form in front of a notary public. No photocopy of your ID goes in the envelope; the notary's identity check takes its place, and the department returns applications that were not signed before a notary.

A Minnesota birth certificate application with the instruction to sign in front of a notary, a seal and the outline of the state

What the mailed application needs

Mailed application needs

Notarized signature

Minn. R. 4601.2600 subp. 5: an application not made in person 'must be notarized' (Minn. Stat. §§358.41-358.50). The MDH forms say 'REQUIRED – Sign this form in front of a notary public' (death form: 'if ordering by mail or fax'); the notary completes 'Signed or attested before me on ___ day of ___, 20__' (a jurat-style attestation). No photocopy of ID is required in the mailed packet – the notary's identity verification substitutes. MDH 'returns applications that are incomplete, not signed in front of a notary public, or not paid in full'.

Authority: Minn. Stat. §144.225 subd. 7 (who may obtain certified records); Minn. R. 4601.2600 subp. 5 (notarization when not in person), subp. 12 (tangible interest)

Fees

Birth certificate
$26 first copy, $19 each additional copy
Death certificate
$13 first copy, $6 each additional copy
Marriage certificate
county fee (typically $9 certified copy – confirm with county)

Optional faster processing $20; express delivery $21; check/money order payable to Minnesota Department of Health or credit card; mail to MDH Office of Vital Records, PO Box 64499, St. Paul, MN 55164-0499 (fax 866-416-1357 for card payments).

Minnesota Department of Health – Office of Vital Records ↗

Official forms

Who may order a certified copy

  • public birth records (parents married): parent named on the record; grandparent; great-grandparent; child; grandchild; great-grandchild; current spouse; the subject
  • legal custodian, guardian or conservator of the subject (copy of the court order naming you)
  • health care agent for the subject (valid health care power of attorney document)
  • subject's personal representative or successor, where the certificate is required for administration of the estate
  • person who provides proof that the certificate is needed to determine or protect a personal or property right (tangible interest, evaluated under Minn. R. 4601.2600 subp. 12)
  • adoption agency (post-adoption search) and local/state/tribal/federal government agency (employee ID)
  • attorney representing the subject or a person in items 1-14 (Minnesota attorney license number; out-of-state attorneys attach a copy of their license)
  • holder of a valid U.S. court order (not a subpoena) releasing the certificate
  • person holding a signed statement from an authorized person above that identifies the record and authorizes them to obtain the certificate
  • confidential birth records (unmarried mother, not made public): only a parent named on the record, the court-appointed custodian/guardian/conservator, the subject when 16+, specified Minnesota program representatives, or a court order

How the mailed request works

Page one of the Birth Certificate Request identifies the record and your relationship to it; page two is the signature page with the notary attestation. You sign in front of the notary, who records that the form was signed or attested before them, prints their name and commission expiry and applies the stamp. Mail it with a check or money order to the Office of Vital Records in St. Paul, or fax it with card payment. Optional faster processing and express delivery are available for extra fees.

County vital-records offices, the local registrars, issue the same certificates with the same notary requirement and are often quicker. The county forms we index are listed below. Marriage certificates come from the county that issued the license, not from the state office.

Tangible interest: who may order

Minnesota Statutes §144.225 subdivision 7 lists who has a tangible interest in a birth record: the subject, a parent named on the record, grandparents and great-grandparents, children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, the current spouse, a court-appointed guardian or conservator, a health-care agent, the personal representative of the estate, an attorney for any of those people, holders of a court order, and anyone who proves the certificate is needed to determine or protect a personal or property right. The form numbers these categories; you tick one and attach the proof it asks for.

Confidential birth records, where the parents were not married and the record was not made public, have a much shorter list: a parent named on the record, the court-appointed guardian, the subject once sixteen, or a court order.

The signature page of the Minnesota request

Page two of the MDH Birth Certificate Request (11/2024). The death request prints the same block with the note that it applies when ordering by mail or fax.

Birth Certificate Request: Signature

Requester's name: ______

Required: sign this form in front of a notary public (Minnesota Rules 4601.2600).

I certify that the information provided on this application is correct and complete to the best of my knowledge.

Requester's signature (must match the name of the requester on page one): ______

Notary: signed or attested before me on ___ day of ______, 20__.   Printed name of notary public ______   Notary public signature ______   My commission expires ______   (Notary stamp/seal)

A jurat-style attestation: the notary certifies that you signed, or attested to, the statement in their presence.

Applying for someone else in Minnesota

Notarized authorization letterAttorney representing the registrantCourt orderLegal guardian (with papers)Power of attorney

Minn. Stat. §144.225 subd. 7(a)(5) allows 'a representative authorized by a person' in the eligible list. On the MDH form this is item 18: 'I have a signed statement from a person above; it specifies the subject's full name, date of birth, parents' names, the signer's relationship to the subject of the record and it authorizes me to obtain the certificate.' MDH guidance says that signed statement itself need not be notarized, but the representative's own application still must be signed before a notary when mailed. A POWER OF ATTORNEY is accepted only in the specific form of a 'health care power of attorney' (item 10 – 'health care agent'); a general/financial POA is not listed, so an agent should instead attach the principal's signed statement (item 18). Guardians/conservators attach the court order (item 9); attorneys give their MN license number (item 16); court orders releasing the record qualify (item 17). Not available for confidential birth records (items 19-23).

Minnesota's route for a helper is item 18 on the form: a signed statement from a person with a tangible interest that names the subject, the date of birth and the parents, states the signer's relationship, and authorizes you to obtain the certificate. The department says that statement need not itself be notarized, but your application, the one you mail as the representative, still must be signed before a notary.

A power of attorney counts only in one specific form, a health-care power of attorney, which makes you the subject's health-care agent under item 10. A general or financial POA is not on the list, so an agent should attach the principal's signed statement instead. Guardians and conservators attach the court order; attorneys give their license number.

The power of attorney usually has to be notarized as well: see notarizing a power of attorney online. A notarized authorization letter is a short jurat or acknowledgment and takes one online session.

County and city application forms in Minnesota

Local registrars and county clerks issue the same certificates and publish their own application forms. These are the ones in our index, each with the PDF, the office’s instructions and a one-click path to an online notarization.

Forms with a notary block

Forms without a notary block

More local forms on the Minnesota page.

Notarize your Minnesota application online

Upload the completed application, meet a licensed online notary on video, swear and sign. The notarized PDF arrives by email in about 15 minutes, ready to print and mail with your ID copy and fee.

Common questions

Does a Minnesota birth certificate application have to be notarized?
Yes, whenever it is not submitted in person. Minnesota Rules 4601.2600 require a notarized signature on mailed and faxed applications for certified copies, and the department returns forms that were not signed in front of a notary. Non-certified copies are exempt.
Do I need to send a copy of my ID with a Minnesota application?
No. The notary verifies your identity when you sign. You do need to attach whatever proof your eligibility category asks for, such as a court order for a guardian.
Can I order a Minnesota birth certificate for a relative with a power of attorney?
Only a health-care power of attorney is recognized on its own. With any other POA, have the relative sign the short statement described in item 18 of the form authorizing you to obtain the certificate, attach it, and have your own application notarized.

Sources

Checked October 2026. Fees and forms change; confirm with the issuing office before mailing. General guidance, not legal advice.

Other states with a notary step

California

Notarized sworn statement

Texas

Notarized sworn statement

New York

ID copy, no notary

New York City

Notarized signature

Iowa

Notarized signature

Arizona

Notarized signature or ID copy

Montana

Notarized signature or ID copy

Wyoming

Notarized signature or ID copy

All 50 states in the vital records guide. The sworn statement glossary entry explains the notarial act these forms use.

Need this notarized?

Upload the application, verify your ID, and sign with a licensed online notary in about 15 minutes.