The state of Louisiana has been keeping birth records since 1907, though many individual parishes can have records going back much farther. If you are going to make a request for a certified copy of a Louisiana birth record, you will only be able to do so for those with a date of birth at least 100 years ago due to the privacy laws of the state unless you are a direct relative of the person on the record. For records purposes, that means you have to either be the person on the record yourself, or their parent, child, grandparent, grandchild, spouse or sibling.
For records older than 100 years, you can search at the Louisiana State Archives as well as making a request with the state office of Vital Records. More recent Louisiana birth records are only available from the state. Records from before 1907 will need to be found through the parishes.
Whether you are requesting from the state or county office, you will need to fill in the proper forms first. They are available for download from the Department of Health website (http://www.dhh.louisiana.gov/offices/miscdocs/docs-252/Issuance/Birth/Birth%20Certificate%20Order%20Form.pdf). All the current addresses, rules and fees are printed on the form and should be read before going further to make sure nothing has changed.
To locate the right record, you will have to supply the name, birth date, place of birth and parent's names for the record you want. You can request either a long or short form certificate, for $9 and $15 USD respectively. When filling out the form, you need to identify yourself and your relationship to the person on the record. Copies of photo identification are to be included to prove the relation. If the Louisiana birth record you want is not found, the fees are kept to cover the cost of the search. You will get a notice that the file was not located though.
Send your completed forms to the Vital Records Registry, PO Box 60630, New Orleans LA, 70160 USA. When sending a request by mail, you can expect a response within 2 to 4 weeks.
You can also make your request in person, either to the main Vital Records office or to one of the smaller parish health units. The physical address for the state office is 1450 Poydras Street, Benson Tower Suite 400, New Orleans LA, 70112 USA. Service can sometimes be while-you-wait or you may have to come back the next day to pick up your records.
When looking for pre-1907 Louisiana birth records, you will have varying degrees of success depending on the parish. Orleans parish has records from 1790 for example but each parish will differ. Contact the Louisiana State Archives research Library (http://www.sos.louisiana.gov/tabid/88/Default.aspx) to access their indexes and collections of historic records. Their website allows for searching online, and you can order copies from the microfilm records for a fee.
How to request Louisiana birth certificates:
Step 1.
To request Louisiana birth records by mail, you will need to start by filling out an application for a Louisiana Birth Certificate.
Step 2.
You will also need to make a photocopy of your government-issued photo ID to send along with your application.
Step 3.
Return the application and ID to the Vital Records Registry, along with a check or money order in the amount of $15.50 to cover the state charge and search fee. Processing takes two to four weeks.
If you have further questions regarding the access of Louisiana birth records, you can contact the Department below:
Louisiana Department of Health
Vital Records Registry
P.O. Box 60630
New Orleans, LA 70160
(504) 219-4500
How To Request Louisiana Birth Records
Louisiana is a closed records state, meaning that Louisiana birth records are not open to the public. To make a request, you will need to contact the Louisiana Department of Health.
Ordering Method Options
You have a few different options for how to order Louisiana birth records. You can visit the Vital Records Service Center in person and make a request, or you can mail them the appropriate fees and paperwork. There is also the option to order Louisiana records by phone, fax, and online through an authorized service provider, though additional charges will apply for those services.
Birth Records Are Closed Records
Because Louisiana birth records are not considered to be part of the public record, access to them is restricted. In order to make a request for a birth certificate, you must be the person listed, or the person's parents or grandparents, adult children or grandchildren, or a sibling. Any other requests must have legal authorization before they are fulfilled.
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