Obtaining a Birth Certificate in the State of Georgia
Now that your baby has arrived one of the next questions is, “How do I get a Birth Certificate?” In some states birth certificates are automatically sent to parents once the midwife files them. Unfortunately it is not quite that simple in Georgia. The good news is you should automatically get your baby’s Social Security card in the mail once the birth certificate is in the system if you authorized us to request one. Please notify us if you do not receive the Social Security card within a month of the baby’s birth registration.
Below are the steps you will need to follow to get the birth certificate.
- Complete the two-page abbreviated Birth Certificate Worksheet and give to your midwife at the home visit. (If we do not have the worksheet within a few days of the birth your baby will be named Baby Boy/Girl Mother’s Last Name. We will not check the box for the baby to get a Social Security card. You will need to go to Vital Records to update the records as well as to the Social Security office to apply for a Social Security card.)
- If you are not married to the father of the baby we will also need an affidavit of paternity in order to add the father’s name to the birth certificate. We will give you the form you need for that.
- We are required to file your birth certificate within five days of the birth. Once we fill out the form you will be emailed a copy to verify everything is correct. You need to respond to that email as soon as possible so we can mail in the form. If we do not receive a response we will send it as is.
- We will email you a final copy of the birth certificate worksheet once the information has been submitted to the state electronically.
- At that point your certificate should be ready for pickup.
- You can pick the birth certificate up at any Vital Records office in Georgia.
- You can order the birth certificate online but please note that there is an $8 processing fee for convenience. http://dph.georgia.gov/birth-records
- You can print the request form online to order the birth certificate and mail it in to the State. http://dph.georgia.gov/birth-records
- The State charges $25 for the first copy and $5 per additional copy. We always recommend you get at least three for your files, otherwise you will be paying $25 each time you need another copy.
Vital Records Offices
County Registrar webpage listing
County Registrar contact information -includes all Georgia counties
Rules and Regulations for obtaining a birth certificate after having a homebirth in Georgia