Arizona birth, death, marriage and divorce records: where to look
Arizona's health department runs the Bureau of Vital Records. Its birth application says a certified copy is $20 and that you must send proof of your relationship. Its free genealogy search shows images of birth certificates from 1855 to 1945 and death certificates from 1870 to 1970. The rest of the ADHS page is built so the fee and eligibility text did not load for us, so several details are marked as unconfirmed below.
At a glance
| Record | Years at the state | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Birth | Genealogy search covers births 75 years after the date of birth, listed as 1855 to 1945. We did not find the date statewide registration began on a page we read. [3] | $20 per certified copy and $30 for a correction or amendment, per the application. For online orders the form says to see VitalChek's current fees. [2] |
| Death | Genealogy search covers deaths 50 years after the date of death, listed as 1870 to 1970. [3] | Not confirmed on the official pages we read. |
| Marriage | Not confirmed on the official pages we read. | Not confirmed on the official pages we read. |
| Divorce | Not confirmed on the official pages we read. | Not confirmed on the official pages we read. |
Superscript numbers point to the official page each fact came from, listed at the bottom of this page.
Birth records
- Where it is kept
- The ADHS Bureau of Vital Records, by mail or online through VitalChek, which the state's own page and form link. The form gives a phone number for the Bureau: 602-364-1300. [1][2]
- Years covered
- Genealogy search covers births 75 years after the date of birth, listed as 1855 to 1945. We did not find the date statewide registration began on a page we read. [3]
- Who can get a certified copy
- The form asks you to check your relationship to the person on the certificate: parent, self, brother or sister, grandparent, legal guardian, spouse, government agency, or other. It says proof of relationship must be provided. The ADHS page also lists eligibility rules, but that text did not load for us. [2]
- Fee
- $20 per certified copy and $30 for a correction or amendment, per the application. For online orders the form says to see VitalChek's current fees. [2]
- Processing time
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
For a mailed application the form's checklist asks for a photocopy of your signed photo ID (or a notarized signature), proof of relationship, a self-addressed stamped envelope, and the correct fee. It says not to mail cash.
Death records
- Where it is kept
- The ADHS Bureau of Vital Records. [1]
- Years covered
- Genealogy search covers deaths 50 years after the date of death, listed as 1870 to 1970. [3]
- Who can get a certified copy
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Fee
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Processing time
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
We read the birth application only, so we have no verified fee, eligibility or timing for death certificates.
Marriage records
- Where it is kept
- The ADHS page has a section headed Marriage & Divorce Records and links to the Arizona Courts locator. The text of that section did not load for us. [1]
- Years covered
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Who can get a certified copy
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Fee
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Processing time
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
We could not read what the ADHS section says, so we do not say which office issues marriage records or from what year.
Divorce records
- Where it is kept
- Same ADHS section as marriage, with the Arizona Courts locator link. [1]
- Years covered
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Who can get a certified copy
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Fee
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Processing time
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
Same limit as marriage. Divorce decrees are court records, so the courts locator is the state's own pointer.
About ordering online
The state's page and form link to VitalChek for online ordering. The form says to check VitalChek for its current fees. We read no ADHS page that gives the online total. [1][2]
Archives and other places to look
- ADHS runs a genealogy search of birth certificate images (75 years or older, 1855 to 1945) and death certificate images (50 years or older, 1870 to 1970). The page says the images are not certified copies. [3] Arizona Genealogy Search
The National Archives describes FamilySearch.org as free with account creation (see our census page), but we could not open FamilySearch's own pages, so we do not describe what it holds for Arizona.
Historical newspapers
The Library of Congress's Chronicling America lists 161 digitized newspaper titles published in Arizona, with issues dated from March 3, 1859 to December 27, 1963. Coverage is uneven inside that span: it is a list of titles, not a promise that every town or year is there. Chronicling America includes select digitized newspapers through 1963.
Browse Arizona titles at the Library of Congress
New to newspaper research? See our guide to finding old newspapers (obituaries, marriage notices, birth announcements).
Counts come from the Library of Congress's "All Digitized Titles" list, read October 27, 2026. The Library of Congress says it believes these newspapers are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions.
How we verified this page
Last verified October 27, 2026. Offices change fees and rules without notice. If something here no longer matches the official page, trust the official page.
Confirmed on official pages
- A certified birth certificate copy is $20, and a correction or amendment is $30, per the ADHS application.
- The application asks for proof of relationship and lists the relationships it accepts.
- Genealogy search covers births 1855 to 1945 and deaths 1870 to 1970, and the images are not certified copies.
- ADHS links to VitalChek for online orders and to the Arizona Courts locator for marriage and divorce.
Could not verify
- Eligibility rules, fee schedule, and processing times on the ADHS site. Those sections did not load when we fetched the page.
- Death certificate fee and who may order one.
- Which office issues marriage and divorce records, and from what year.
- When Arizona's statewide birth and death registration began.
- Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records holdings. That site refused our request even through a second fetch tool.
Pages read 2026-10-27. The ADHS vital-records page builds its fee and eligibility sections in the browser, so that text was not in the page we saved. The azlibrary.gov site blocked our fetch.
Sources
- ADHS: Bureau of Vital Records Official state page read 2026-10-27
- ADHS: Request for Copy of Birth Certificate (application PDF) Official state page read 2026-10-27
- ADHS: Arizona Genealogy Search Official state page read 2026-10-27