How to get a death certificate in Georgia

Fees and where to order in Georgia

• Fees (DPH): death certificate $25.00, additional copies $5.00. Payment is required first, fees are not refundable after the service is provided, and if no record is found a not-on-file letter is issued. Personal checks are not accepted.
• Online: through ROVER, run by the Georgia Technology Authority and DPH, paid by debit or credit card. The fee is $25 per certified copy plus $8 for processing. FedEx expedited shipping is offered but does not shorten processing time, which is up to 10 weeks.
• By mail: complete the Request for Search of Death Record (Form 3912), including the county where the death occurred, and mail it to your county vital records office with ID, proof of relationship and a money order or cashier's check. DPH says state office mail requests take 8 to 10 weeks.
• In person: at county vital records offices; cash is accepted only for walk-in service.
• ID: a valid physical government-issued photo ID is required; electronic or digital IDs are not accepted.
• The State Office has death records from January 1919 to the present. Its address for amendments and other certificate services is 1680 Phoenix Boulevard, Suite 100, Atlanta, GA 30349.
• Filing: the funeral director who first takes custody files the report of death, within three calendar days after death (rule 511-1-3-.19).
• Official ordering page: https://dph.georgia.gov/ways-request-vital-record/death

Sources: Georgia DPH, Vital Records Fees (page updated 3/11/2026); Georgia DPH, How Do I Order Georgia Birth and Death Records Online; Georgia DPH, Death Records; Georgia DPH, How Do I Order Georgia Birth and Death Records by Mail

How the death certificate fits the cremation timeline

A Georgia cremation needs a disposition permit, which the funeral director gets from the local registrar in the county where the death happened. The permit can be issued only after the cause of death is certified, the attending doctor approves, or, for deaths that must be reported to the coroner or medical examiner, that official approves. We did not find a rule that a medical examiner must review every cremation (a 2010 state audit said Georgia did not require it), and we found no state fee for the permit.

• O.C.G.A. 31-10-20(a), as amended by S.B. 241 (effective July 1, 2025): the funeral director or other person who first takes custody of the body must obtain a disposition permit for cremation, organic human reduction, or removal from the state.
• Rule 511-1-3-.23(1)(b): a disposition permit may not be issued until the cause of death is certified, the attending physician authorizes it, or, for a body subject to inquiry under the Georgia Death Investigation Act, the county coroner or medical examiner approves.
• The state Permit for Disposition of Human Remains (revised October 2019) can only be issued in the county of death. The funeral director attests that the physician will certify the cause of death, or that the coroner or medical examiner will and has approved disposition, including cremation. False statements are a crime under 31-10-31.
• Deaths that must be reported to the county coroner or medical examiner (O.C.G.A. 45-16-24, as summarized by the GBI) include deaths from violence, suicide or casualty, sudden deaths in apparent good health, suspicious or unusual deaths, apparent drug overdoses, deaths in custody or in a state hospital, and deaths unattended by a physician. Deaths of hospice patients are not treated as unattended.
• A 2010 performance audit of the State Medical Examiner's Office noted that Georgia did not require a medical examiner to review the case and issue a permit before cremation. A 2026 bill (S.B. 581) proposed separate cremation permits; it does not appear on the Governor's 2026 signed legislation list. See the unverified list.
• Identification: before cremation the body must carry a durable tag with the name, date of death, Social Security number, county and state of death, and the serial number of any removed prosthesis. The tag goes inside the urn or container with the ashes, and the container is labeled on the outside (43-18-8(a)).
• When the crematory releases the ashes, its funeral director must give a sworn affidavit, on the Board's form, that the container holds substantially the remains of the person identified (43-18-8(b)).
• Crematories are inspected at least once a year, their cremation chamber must be inspected yearly by the manufacturer or an authorized repair company, and the funeral director in charge must be a certified crematory operator (Board rule 250-6-.07).

Sources: O.C.G.A. 31-10-20(a), in S.B. 241 (2025), as signed; Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 511-1-3-.23(1)(b); Georgia DPH, Permit for Disposition of Human Remains (revised 10/2019); GBI Medical Examiner's Office, ME FAQ; Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts, Performance Audit 10-11, State Medical Examiner's Office (December 2010); Georgia Senate First Readers, February 26, 2026 (S.B. 581); Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 250-6-.07(4)

What to use the certified copies for

Social Security pays a one-time $255 death payment to a surviving spouse. If there is no spouse, some children may get it. You must apply within 2 years of the death, by phone or online after signing in.

Banks, insurers, pension plans, the VA and the county recorder each usually want their own certified copy, so ask the funeral home how many to order at the start. Extra copies ordered at the same time often cost less.

• A spouse who lived with the person may qualify. A spouse living apart may qualify if they can get benefits on the deceased's record.
• If there is no spouse, eligible children include those 17 or younger, 18 to 19 in school (K to 12) full time, or any age if disabled before age 22 ("at age 21 or younger").
• Apply within 2 years of the death.
• Phone: 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778), weekdays 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; tell the representative you want to apply for a lump-sum death payment. The page also offers an online application after signing in to an account.

Source: SSA, Lump-sum death payment