How to Get a Death Certificate in Vermont
From Everendium · Last reviewed October 17, 2026
This guide covers Vermont. For the general overview, see Getting Death Certificates: How Many You'll Need and Why.
Quick answer
In Vermont, certified death certificates are issued by the Vermont Department of Health's Vital Records office, the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration, and town and city clerks. Certified copies cost $10 per certificate, so every copy costs the same, and ordering online adds a $2 processing fee. Noncertified copies, printed on plain paper with a watermark, are free.
Getting a death certificate is one of the first practical steps after a death in Vermont, and the details of who issues it and what it costs are specific to Vermont.
Who issues death certificates in Vermont?
Certified copies come from the Vermont Department of Health’s Vital Records office, the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration, and town and city clerks. 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 Vermont?
Certified copies cost $10 per certificate, so every copy costs the same, and ordering online adds a $2 processing fee. Noncertified copies, printed on plain paper with a watermark, are free.
Who can order a copy in Vermont?
The Department of Health issues certified copies only to authorized individuals and organizations, as the application describes, and asks for a copy of valid photo ID. Anyone can get a free noncertified copy.
How do I order more copies in Vermont?
- At a town or city clerk: any Vermont town clerk can issue a certified death certificate for any death in the state, usually for $10 in person. Some towns bill extra for postage and search time.
- Online: through the Department of Health’s ordering page with a credit card ($10 plus a $2 processing fee). The Department has birth and death records from January 1909 on.
- By mail: with the application, a copy of ID, and a check or money order payable to the Vermont Department of Health. The department’s page lists the current mailing address.
What else should I know before I order?
If you only need to confirm the details of a death, the state’s free noncertified copy may be enough.
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 Vermont 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 Vermont Department of Health or a town clerk before you send payment.
Sources
- Vermont Department of Health - Order Copies of Vermont Vital Records ($10 certified, $2 online fee; noncertified free; records from 1909)(Government)
- Town of Guilford Clerk - Certificates of Birth, Death and Marriage (any Vermont death certificate; $10; ID)(Government)
- Town of Lincoln Clerk - Vital Records (authorized individuals; $10 per copy)(Government)
- CDC National Center for Health Statistics - Where to Write for Vital Records: Vermont ($10; records back to 1909)(Government)
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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