Maryland birth, death, marriage and divorce records: where to look
Maryland splits its records. The Division of Vital Records issues recent ones, and the Maryland State Archives holds older birth and death records, with online indexes. The Division's pages disagree with each other on some start years, so we list both. Fees are $10 for a birth or death certificate and $12 for a marriage certificate, plus $13 for internet orders.
At a glance
| Record | Years at the state | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Birth | The birth page gives no start year. The Division's overview page says 2007 to present for its certified copies. The Maryland State Archives guide covers Baltimore City births 1875 to 1924 and county births 1898 to 1924 (indexes), and lists later indexes it holds but cannot supply records for. [6][8] | $10 per copy. Internet orders add $13. Expedited shipping for internet orders is $20. [4] |
| Death | Division: 2012 or later per the death page. The Archives' order form covers Baltimore City 1875 to 2015 and counties 1898 to 2015, and says deaths after 2016 are only at the Division. The Division's overview page says 2007 to present, which disagrees with 2012. [2][6][10] | Division: $10 for the first copy, $12 for each additional copy in the same transaction, plus $13 for internet orders. Archives: $25 per copy, which covers a search for one record, one name, one year and one place and is not refunded. [4][10] |
| Marriage | January 1, 2007 to present at the Division. [3] | $12 per certificate, plus $13 for internet orders. [4] |
| Divorce | The FAQ says verification is available for 2007 to present. The Division's overview page says 1992 to present. [6][7] | $12 for a divorce verification, plus $13 for internet orders. [4] |
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 Division of Vital Records in Baltimore (lobby by appointment, mail), some local health departments, or online through VitalChek, which the state says is its partner company. [1]
- Years covered
- The birth page gives no start year. The Division's overview page says 2007 to present for its certified copies. The Maryland State Archives guide covers Baltimore City births 1875 to 1924 and county births 1898 to 1924 (indexes), and lists later indexes it holds but cannot supply records for. [6][8]
- Who can get a certified copy
- The person, a parent named on the certificate, a court-appointed guardian (foster care is not enough), a surviving spouse, or a representative with a notarized letter of permission. [1]
- Fee
- $10 per copy. Internet orders add $13. Expedited shipping for internet orders is $20. [4]
- Processing time
- Lobby same day. Mail 6 weeks. Online 5 weeks with regular shipping or 3 weeks with expedited shipping. The state says it has temporarily increased these times. [5]
Mail applications need a photocopy of your ID and a self-addressed envelope, and expedited shipping is not available by mail.
Death records
- Where it is kept
- The Division of Vital Records for deaths in 2012 or later. The Maryland State Archives for earlier deaths. [2]
- Years covered
- Division: 2012 or later per the death page. The Archives' order form covers Baltimore City 1875 to 2015 and counties 1898 to 2015, and says deaths after 2016 are only at the Division. The Division's overview page says 2007 to present, which disagrees with 2012. [2][6][10]
- Who can get a certified copy
- A surviving relative or authorized representative of the deceased, or the funeral director in charge of final disposition. [2]
- Fee
- Division: $10 for the first copy, $12 for each additional copy in the same transaction, plus $13 for internet orders. Archives: $25 per copy, which covers a search for one record, one name, one year and one place and is not refunded. [4][10]
- Processing time
- Same table as births. [5]
The Archives says no documentation is needed to order a death certificate for 2015 and earlier, and that it can supply only records it has received from the state.
State death page Archives death records guide Archives death certificate order form
Marriage records
- Where it is kept
- The Division of Vital Records for marriages on or after January 1, 2007. Before that, the circuit court of the county where the marriage took place, or the Maryland State Archives. [3]
- Years covered
- January 1, 2007 to present at the Division. [3]
- Who can get a certified copy
- Either spouse, a representative with a notarized letter from a spouse, or an attorney representing a spouse with proof. [3]
- Fee
- $12 per certificate, plus $13 for internet orders. [4]
- Processing time
- Same table as births. [5]
Divorce records
- Where it is kept
- The Division issues a verification of divorce only. A decree must be requested from the circuit court that granted it. [7]
- Years covered
- The FAQ says verification is available for 2007 to present. The Division's overview page says 1992 to present. [6][7]
- Who can get a certified copy
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- Fee
- $12 for a divorce verification, plus $13 for internet orders. [4]
- Processing time
- Same table as births. [5]
The FAQ links to a Who can request page for divorce verification that we did not read.
About ordering online
The state's pages say online orders go through VitalChek Network, which charges an extra fee. The state says it cannot vouch for the services or fees of any other online vendor. [1]
Archives and other places to look
- The Maryland State Archives guide links online indexes for Baltimore City and county births and deaths, such as Baltimore City births 1875 to 1924 and Baltimore City deaths 1875 to 1972. The page says some listed years are available online but the matching records cannot be supplied. [8][9] Archives birth records guide
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 Maryland.
Historical newspapers
The Library of Congress's Chronicling America lists 66 digitized newspaper titles published in Maryland, with issues dated from November 9, 1838 to December 31, 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 Maryland 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
- Fee table: birth $10, death $10 with $12 for each additional death in the same transaction, marriage $12, divorce verification $12. Internet orders add $13.
- The Division issues marriage certificates for January 1, 2007 and later, and death certificates for 2012 and later.
- The Archives sells death certificate copies for $25 each and covers deaths through 2015.
- Processing: lobby same day, mail 6 weeks, online 5 weeks (3 with expedited shipping).
- A Maryland divorce decree comes from the circuit court, not the Division.
Could not verify
- The Division's pages disagree on years: deaths 2012 (death page) versus 2007 (overview), and divorce verification 1992 (overview) versus 2007 (FAQ).
- The start year for birth certificates at the Division. The birth page gives none.
- Who may request a divorce verification. The linked page was not read.
- How much of the Archives' birth and death material is online for each county.
Pages read 2026-10-27. The fee table cells were parsed from the saved page and stored as raw/md_fees_table.txt.
Sources
- Maryland Vital Statistics: Request Birth Certificates Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland Vital Statistics: Request Death Certificates Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland Vital Statistics: Request Marriage Certificates Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland Vital Statistics: Fees Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland Vital Statistics: Processing Time Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland Vital Statistics: Division of Vital Records Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland Vital Statistics: Frequently Asked Questions Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland State Archives Guide: Birth Records Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland State Archives Guide: Death Records Official state page read 2026-10-27
- Maryland State Archives: Certified Death Certificate Order Form Official state page read 2026-10-27