Iowa ranks 32nd out of 51 (the 50 states and D.C.) for how easy, fast and affordable it is to get certified birth, marriage, divorce and death records.
Cost#30 (tie)of 51
Speed#25of 51
Ease of ordering#37 (tie)of 51
Birth certificates #37 of 51
Cost
$20 first copy, $20 each extra copy
Processing time
Online: 2–5 business days with overnight shipping, or 4–6 weeks with regular mail; mail: 4–6 weeks; in person: same day, about 2 hours, at the state office in Des Moines
Time until the copy is in hand
4–6 weeks by mail
Where to order
State office or a local county office
Order online
Yes, through the state’s approved vendor, for an extra fee
Records available
State records from July 1, 1880
Marriage records #25 of 51
Cost
$20 first copy, $20 each extra copy
Processing time
Online: 2–5 business days with overnight shipping, or 4–6 weeks with regular mail; mail: 4–6 weeks; in person: same day, about 2 hours, at the state office in Des Moines
Time until the copy is in hand
4–6 weeks by mail
Where to order
State office or a local county office
Order online
Yes, through the state’s approved vendor, for an extra fee
Records available
State records from July 1, 1880
Divorce records #27 (tie) of 51
Cost
$50 per certified copy from the court, plus $0.50 per page
Processing time
Varies by county
Time until the copy is in hand
Varies by county
Where to order
County only: the Clerk of the District Court in the county where the divorce was granted
Order online
No statewide online ordering
Death certificates #37 of 51
Cost
$20 first copy, $20 each extra copy
Processing time
Online: 2–5 business days with overnight shipping, or 4–6 weeks with regular mail; mail: 4–6 weeks; in person: same day, about 2 hours, at the state office in Des Moines
Time until the copy is in hand
4–6 weeks by mail
Where to order
State office or a local county office
Order online
Yes, through the state’s approved vendor, for an extra fee
Records available
State records from July 1, 1880
Note: These rankings were done on . Prices, processing times and ordering rules may have changed since then, so check with the issuing office before you order. Times marked “estimate” add typical mail delivery to the office’s posted processing time. “Not published” means the office does not post that detail.
How to order Iowa birth, death, marriage and divorce records
How do I get an Iowa birth certificate?
A certified Iowa birth certificate costs $20 per copy from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Health Statistics, or a County Recorder. In-person requests at the state office in Des Moines are processed in about 2 hours; mailed requests take 4–6 weeks and must be notarized.
Iowa birth records: ordering details
Who can order
Iowa vital records are closed to the public. You must have a “direct and tangible interest”: the person named on the record (18 or older to receive it), or their spouse, children, parents listed on the record, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, legal representative or guardian. Proof of entitlement must be provided; siblings, guardians and legal representatives need extra proof.
Fee
$20 per certified copy, including the first, at both the state and the county. The $20 is a search fee: if no record is found you get a no-record letter and the fee isn’t refunded. VitalChek adds its own fee, starting at $14 per order online or $9 per order by phone, plus shipping. Commemorative certificates are $35.
How to order
Online: order through VitalChek, the only third-party vendor Iowa HHS authorizes, to have it shipped. Or choose VitalChek Will Call to pick it up in Des Moines (you need an Iowa address). By phone: VitalChek at (866) 809-0290, 6 a.m.–7 p.m. CST, Monday–Friday. By mail: the Application to Order an Iowa Vital Record (470-5451) with your signature notarized, a clear copy of your ID, and a check or money order payable to the “Iowa Department of Health and Human Services”, to Iowa HHS, Bureau of Health Statistics, Lucas State Office Building, 1st Floor, 321 E. 12th Street, Des Moines, IA 50319-0075. In person: the Bureau of Health Statistics at that address, 7 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Monday–Friday. You sign the application in front of staff. Pay by check, money order or credit card; cash isn’t accepted. County: the same application can be used at a County Recorder’s office (see “Older and local records”). Some recorders accept only cash or money orders in person and money orders by mail.
ID needed
Current, unexpired, government-issued photo ID; send a legible photocopy by mail. For mailed applications, the notary checks your ID. The state’s identity documents list accepts a driver’s license, state ID, work or school photo ID, military ID, passport or visa, permanent resident card or employment authorization card. Otherwise use two or three documents in the same name and address, such as an expired driver’s license plus another document, a tax return, car registration or a current utility bill.
Processing time
Average times from Iowa HHS: in person, about 2 hours if your request arrives by 2 p.m. on a weekday. Regular mail takes 4–6 weeks. VitalChek takes 2–5 business days with UPS overnight, 5–10 business days with UPS 2-day, or 4–6 weeks by regular mail; VitalChek Will Call orders are ready when you’re notified. Genealogy requests can take up to 60 business days and are always mailed. Iowa HHS says times aren’t guaranteed and asks people needing records for REAL ID to order early.
Older and local records
Iowa registration of births, deaths and marriages began July 1, 1880; nothing earlier is on file at the state. Statewide birth searches cover July 1, 1880 forward. Any County Recorder can issue certified copies of births from 1986 to the present. For earlier events, order from the county where the birth occurred. County offices don’t hold birth, death and marriage records from 1921 to 1941, delayed records, sealed records or adoptions; order those from the state.
Tip: Have a small pink or blue wallet-size Iowa birth certificate issued between 1993 and 2009? You can exchange it for a full-size certified copy at no charge by sending it back with a completed application and ID.
A certified Iowa death certificate costs $20 per copy from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Health Statistics, or a County Recorder. In-person requests at the state office in Des Moines are processed in about 2 hours; mailed requests take 4–6 weeks and must be notarized.
Iowa death records: ordering details
Who can order
Iowa vital records are closed to the public. You must have a “direct and tangible interest”: the person named on the record (18 or older to receive it), or their spouse, children, parents listed on the record, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, legal representative or guardian. Proof of entitlement must be provided; siblings, guardians and legal representatives need extra proof.
Fee
$20 per certified copy, including the first, at both the state and the county. The $20 is a search fee: if no record is found you get a no-record letter and the fee isn’t refunded. VitalChek adds its own fee, starting at $14 per order online or $9 per order by phone, plus shipping. Commemorative certificates are $35.
How to order
Online: order through VitalChek, the only third-party vendor Iowa HHS authorizes, to have it shipped. Or choose VitalChek Will Call to pick it up in Des Moines (you need an Iowa address). By phone: VitalChek at (866) 809-0290, 6 a.m.–7 p.m. CST, Monday–Friday. By mail: the Application to Order an Iowa Vital Record (470-5451) with your signature notarized, a clear copy of your ID, and a check or money order payable to the “Iowa Department of Health and Human Services”, to Iowa HHS, Bureau of Health Statistics, Lucas State Office Building, 1st Floor, 321 E. 12th Street, Des Moines, IA 50319-0075. In person: the Bureau of Health Statistics at that address, 7 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Monday–Friday. You sign the application in front of staff. Pay by check, money order or credit card; cash isn’t accepted. County: the same application can be used at a County Recorder’s office (see “Older and local records”). Some recorders accept only cash or money orders in person and money orders by mail.
ID needed
Current, unexpired, government-issued photo ID; send a legible photocopy by mail. For mailed applications, the notary checks your ID. The state’s identity documents list accepts a driver’s license, state ID, work or school photo ID, military ID, passport or visa, permanent resident card or employment authorization card. Otherwise use two or three documents in the same name and address, such as an expired driver’s license plus another document, a tax return, car registration or a current utility bill.
Processing time
Average times from Iowa HHS: in person, about 2 hours if your request arrives by 2 p.m. on a weekday. Regular mail takes 4–6 weeks. VitalChek takes 2–5 business days with UPS overnight, 5–10 business days with UPS 2-day, or 4–6 weeks by regular mail; VitalChek Will Call orders are ready when you’re notified. Genealogy requests can take up to 60 business days and are always mailed. Iowa HHS says times aren’t guaranteed and asks people needing records for REAL ID to order early.
Older and local records
Iowa registration of births, deaths and marriages began July 1, 1880; nothing earlier is on file at the state. Statewide death searches cover July 1, 1904 forward. For earlier deaths, the application must give the county, the year and the person’s first and last name; searches of 1880–1895 deaths cost $20 per year and county. Any County Recorder can issue certified copies of deaths from 1954 to the present. For earlier events, order from the county of residence or the county where the death occurred. County offices don’t hold birth, death and marriage records from 1921 to 1941, delayed records, sealed records or adoptions; order those from the state.
Tip: Searching for a death before July 1904? Put the county, the year and the person’s full name on the application. Without them, Iowa HHS returns it for more information.
A certified Iowa marriage certificate costs $20 per copy from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Health Statistics, or a County Recorder. In-person requests at the state office in Des Moines are processed in about 2 hours; mailed requests take 4–6 weeks and must be notarized.
Iowa marriage records: ordering details
Who can order
Iowa vital records are closed to the public. You must have a “direct and tangible interest”: the person named on the record (18 or older to receive it), or their spouse, children, parents listed on the record, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, legal representative or guardian. Proof of entitlement must be provided; siblings, guardians and legal representatives need extra proof.
Fee
$20 per certified copy, including the first, at both the state and the county. The $20 is a search fee: if no record is found you get a no-record letter and the fee isn’t refunded. VitalChek adds its own fee, starting at $14 per order online or $9 per order by phone, plus shipping. Commemorative certificates are $35.
How to order
Online: order through VitalChek, the only third-party vendor Iowa HHS authorizes, to have it shipped. Or choose VitalChek Will Call to pick it up in Des Moines (you need an Iowa address). By phone: VitalChek at (866) 809-0290, 6 a.m.–7 p.m. CST, Monday–Friday. By mail: the Application to Order an Iowa Vital Record (470-5451) with your signature notarized, a clear copy of your ID, and a check or money order payable to the “Iowa Department of Health and Human Services”, to Iowa HHS, Bureau of Health Statistics, Lucas State Office Building, 1st Floor, 321 E. 12th Street, Des Moines, IA 50319-0075. In person: the Bureau of Health Statistics at that address, 7 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Monday–Friday. You sign the application in front of staff. Pay by check, money order or credit card; cash isn’t accepted. County: the same application can be used at a County Recorder’s office (see “Older and local records”). Some recorders accept only cash or money orders in person and money orders by mail.
ID needed
Current, unexpired, government-issued photo ID; send a legible photocopy by mail. For mailed applications, the notary checks your ID. The state’s identity documents list accepts a driver’s license, state ID, work or school photo ID, military ID, passport or visa, permanent resident card or employment authorization card. Otherwise use two or three documents in the same name and address, such as an expired driver’s license plus another document, a tax return, car registration or a current utility bill.
Processing time
Average times from Iowa HHS: in person, about 2 hours if your request arrives by 2 p.m. on a weekday. Regular mail takes 4–6 weeks. VitalChek takes 2–5 business days with UPS overnight, 5–10 business days with UPS 2-day, or 4–6 weeks by regular mail; VitalChek Will Call orders are ready when you’re notified. Genealogy requests can take up to 60 business days and are always mailed. Iowa HHS says times aren’t guaranteed and asks people needing records for REAL ID to order early.
Older records
Iowa registration of births, deaths and marriages began July 1, 1880; nothing earlier is on file at the state. Statewide marriage searches cover July 1, 1916 forward. For earlier marriages, the application must give the county, the year and a first and last name; searches of 1880–1915 marriages cost $20 per year and county. Any County Recorder can issue certified copies of marriages from 1954 to the present. For earlier events, order from the county where the marriage application was made. County offices don’t hold birth, death and marriage records from 1921 to 1941, delayed records, sealed records or adoptions; order those from the state.
Tip: Iowa HHS also offers a framable commemorative marriage certificate for $35, signed by the Governor and State Registrar. It arrives in about 60 business days and isn’t a substitute for a certified copy.
Iowa divorce records are kept by the courts, not the state vital records office. For a certified copy of a divorce (dissolution of marriage) decree, contact the Clerk of District Court in the county where the case was filed. The Iowa Judicial Branch fee to certify and seal a court document is $50, plus $0.50 per page for copies.
Iowa divorce records: ordering details
Who can order
Contact the Clerk of District Court in the county where the case is on file.
Fee
$50 for certification and seal of a court document, plus copies at $0.50 per page (Iowa Judicial Branch fee schedule, updated for 2026). Confirm the total with the clerk.
How to order
District court case records are available only through the clerk of court office in the county where the case is on file, or on the public computer in that office. Find the clerk’s contact information in the Iowa Judicial Branch court directory.
ID needed
Varies by county; contact the clerk.
Processing time
Varies by county.
Older records
Contact the Clerk of District Court in the county where the divorce was granted. Iowa HHS vital records cover only births, deaths and marriages.
Tip: Don’t order a divorce record from Iowa HHS. The state vital records office keeps only births, deaths and marriages, so go to the county clerk of court.
Note: Fees, processing times and rules are set by the issuing offices and can change. Times are estimates. Check with the office before you order. PublicLibraries.com is not a government agency.
Other records
Other Iowa records people search for
Official Iowa sites for other common lookups. Some records are kept by counties or carry fees; the note on each line says so.
Note: Links go to official state sites or services the state designates. Access rules, fees and coverage are set by each office and can change. PublicLibraries.com is not a government agency.
About Iowa public records
Certificate Information
Most records and certificates from 1880 to present are archived at the Iowa Bureau of Health Statistics along with the local county
offices. Certificates for births and deaths are available online, by mail, in person and over the phone. There is a $15 dollar
search fee which includes one certified copy with each additional copy costing $15 dollars. Commemorative birth certificates are
available for $35 dollars.
Iowa Department of Public Health
Lucas State Office Building
321 E. 12th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319
(515) 281-4944
While marriage records are available from the state, divorce decree records are only available from the Clerk of Court from the county
in which it was filed. Commemorative marriage certificates take approximately 30 days to process and cost $35 dollars.
Adoptees of adult age are legally allowed to receive medical records as long as all identification is still confidential. While
unlocking of adoption records is an option, it requires a court order at any age. Iowa provides a voluntary database for birth
parents, birth siblings, adoptees and other direct relatives.
Property and parcel records are kept through multiple departments within the county including the Assessor's Department, GIS department
and Treasurer's Office.
