How to Get a Death Certificate in Arkansas
From Everendium · Last reviewed October 17, 2026
This guide covers Arkansas. For the general overview, see Getting Death Certificates: How Many You'll Need and Why.
Quick answer
In Arkansas, certified death certificates are issued by the Arkansas Department of Health's Vital Records office in Little Rock and its local health units. Arkansas charges $10 for the first copy and $8 for each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time. If no record is found, state law requires the department to keep $10 as a search fee. Online orders add a $5 processing fee and a $1.85 identity verification fee.
Getting a death certificate is one of the first practical steps after a death in Arkansas, and the details of who issues it and what it costs are specific to Arkansas.
Who issues death certificates in Arkansas?
Certified copies come from the Arkansas Department of Health’s Vital Records office in Little Rock and its local health units. In practice, the funeral home usually files the certificate and orders an initial batch of certified copies for you.
How much does a certified copy cost in Arkansas?
Arkansas charges $10 for the first copy and $8 for each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time. If no record is found, state law requires the department to keep $10 as a search fee. Online orders add a $5 processing fee and a $1.85 identity verification fee.
Who can order a copy in Arkansas?
Only eligible individuals can order a death certificate. The Arkansas Department of Health publishes the list of who is eligible, and you must send a copy of acceptable photo ID with a mailed request.
How do I order more copies in Arkansas?
- At a local health unit: the department offers vital records services in its local public health units, so check yours for hours.
- Walk-in: at the Arkansas Department of Health’s vital records office in Little Rock.
- By mail: with the application, a copy of your ID, and a check or money order payable to the Arkansas Department of Health (no cash or temporary checks), sent to Arkansas Department of Health, Vital Records, Slot 44, 4815 West Markham Street, Little Rock, AR 72205.
- By phone or online: call toll-free (866) 209-9482, or order through the state’s vital records portal.
What else should I know before I order?
Only the names and dates you list on the application are searched for the $10 fee, so include every possible name and date of death.
What should I do next?
Confirm with the funeral home how many copies it is ordering for you, then decide how many more you need; see how many death certificates you need in Arkansas and our general guide to death certificates.
Add this to your Final Day Plan: your Social Security number, birthplace, and parents’ full names - the death certificate application asks for these, and they’re often surprisingly hard for a family to track down under pressure.
Fees and rules change - confirm current details with the Arkansas Department of Health Vital Records before you send payment.
Sources
About this review
Everendium Editorial Team · last reviewed October 17, 2026.
Fees, eligibility rules, and ordering options were checked on October 17, 2026 against the state's own published fee information, application forms, and county government pages listed in the sources. Death certificate fees change often, and some official pages were read only as search extracts, so the current fee should be confirmed on the agency's page before paying. Recommended for periodic re-verification. This is general information, not legal advice
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