Death Certificates

New Types of Certified Copies!!

North Dakota  Minnesota

Another change that will go into effect as a result of these legislative changes, will be three new types of certified copies of death records for use by the surviving family and the general public:

1) A Certification of the Facts of Death. This certificate will be issued immediately after the funeral home registers the facts of death with our office. This copy will have limited demographic information about the deceased, but will include the social security number. The inclusion of the social security number on this type of copy is critical because immediate family members can use this type of certificate to close bank accounts, secure discounted airline travel, transfer title of land or property, etc. This copy should be used for all banking and financial needs where the cause of death is not required.

2) A Certification of Death. Once the medical portion of the record is completed by a physician or coroner, our office can issue to the immediate family a full and complete copy of the death record that includes the cause of death and a social security number. This type of copy is usually needed for life insurance matters and any other matter where the cause of death and the social security number are required. Family members who have a certification of the facts of death record will be able to exchange it for a certification of death record for up to 90 days after the date of death at no cost. (This copy is the one that most families received in the past)

3) An Informational Copy of a Death Record. Other individuals, such as genealogists, sometimes need a copy of a death record. These individuals will receive certified informational copies. These types of copies would be similar to a full death record and could be issued to anyone for any reason; however, these copies would not include the cause of death or social security numbers. This would allow anyone to obtain the information about a death, but would not allow them to use the copy for any official business.

Please understand that all three of these copies are official certified copies and are intended to serve a specific purpose or need. Because the disclosure of a decedent’s cause of death and social security number is restricted by state law, these three types of certified copies have been developed to reduce the number of unnecessary disclosures of this confidential information.

North Dakota   Minnesota