Row Officers

The Office of the Prothonotary

Birth Certificates

To obtain a certified copy of your Pennsylvania birth record or the record of an immediate family member, you are welcome to visit the Department of Health's web site at: www.health.state.pa.us or you may choose one of the following options:

1. By visiting one of the public offices located in New Castle, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Scranton, Erie or Philadelphia.
2. By sending your request via facsimile machine using a valid credit card.
3. By mailing your request, with the required fees, and the necessary information pertaining to the birth to:

Division of Vital Records
P.O. Box 1528
New Castle, PA 16101

All of these options are further explained including processing times, by visiting the Department of Health's web site at: www.health.state.pa.us.

Please Note: New Requirement for U.S. Birth Certificates Effective April 1, 2011

Beginning April 1, 2011, the U.S. Department of State will require the full names of the applicant’s parent(s) to be listed on all certified birth certificates to be considered as primary evidence of U.S. citizenship for all passport applicants, regardless of age.  Certified birth certificates missing this information will not be acceptable as evidence of citizenship.  This will not affect applications already in-process that have been submitted or accepted before the effective date.

In addition to this requirement, certified copies of birth certificates must also include the following information to be considered acceptable primary evidence of U.S. citizenship:

• Full name of the applicant
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Raised, embossed, impressed or multicolored seal of issuing authority
• Registrar’s signature
• The date the certificate was filed with the registrar’s office (must be within one year)

For more information, please go to travel.state.gov

If you were not born in the state of Pennsylvania you may visit http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w.htm for information on ordering a birth records from another state.