New Jersey birth, death, marriage and divorce records: where to look
New Jersey's Health Department keeps births from 1925 and marriages and deaths from 1951; the State Archives has earlier records back to 1848. The state says vital records are not public records and cannot be searched online, and it splits requests into genealogical (older, for deceased people) and non-genealogical.
At a glance
| Record | Years at the state | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Birth | The Health Department holds births from 1925. Its genealogical page treats births more than 80 years old and up to 1925 as genealogical; the State Archives page lists births May 1, 1848 to December 31, 1925 as Archives-owned (the Health home page says the Archives has births through 1924). [1][4][6] | $25 for the initial search and one certified copy or certification (or a no-record statement), and $2 for each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time. Genealogical searches add $1 per extra year. VitalChek adds its own processing fee ($6 by mail, $12.95 by phone in the state's table). [2][3][4] |
| Death | The Health Department holds deaths from 1951. The State Archives lists deaths May 1848 to 1950 as its own, and says it has microfilm copies of Health Department deaths January 1951 to December 1965 for in-person use. [1][6] | $25 first copy and $2 for each additional copy ordered at the same time. [2][3] |
| Marriage | The Health Department holds marriages from 1951 (civil unions from 2007 and domestic partnerships from 2004). The State Archives holds marriages May 1848 to 1950 and has a searchable database of marriages 1848 to 1900. [1][6] | $25 first copy and $2 for each additional copy ordered at the same time. [2][3] |
| 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 Office of Vital Statistics and Registry in Trenton (walk-in, same day), a local registrar in the municipality of the event, or mail and online orders processed through VitalChek, the vendor the state's page names. [3][5]
- Years covered
- The Health Department holds births from 1925. Its genealogical page treats births more than 80 years old and up to 1925 as genealogical; the State Archives page lists births May 1, 1848 to December 31, 1925 as Archives-owned (the Health home page says the Archives has births through 1924). [1][4][6]
- Who can get a certified copy
- For a certified copy you must be the person named, a parent, legal guardian or representative, the spouse or civil union partner, a child, grandchild or sibling of legal age, a state or federal agency, or have a court order. Others can get a "certification," an uncertified informational copy not valid for identity or legal use. [3][5]
- Fee
- $25 for the initial search and one certified copy or certification (or a no-record statement), and $2 for each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time. Genealogical searches add $1 per extra year. VitalChek adds its own processing fee ($6 by mail, $12.95 by phone in the state's table). [2][3][4]
- Processing time
- Online orders: 4 to 6 weeks. Mail through VitalChek: typically 2 to 4 weeks. Walk-in at the state office: typically about 2 hours. These exclude delivery time. [3]
The state says non-genealogical births are those in the last 80 years.
State non-genealogical records page State genealogical records page
Death records
- Where it is kept
- Same offices as births. Deaths before 1951 are with the State Archives. [1][6]
- Years covered
- The Health Department holds deaths from 1951. The State Archives lists deaths May 1848 to 1950 as its own, and says it has microfilm copies of Health Department deaths January 1951 to December 1965 for in-person use. [1][6]
- Who can get a certified copy
- Same certified-copy rule as for births as the state describes it for vital records generally; non-genealogical deaths are those in the last 40 years. [3]
- Fee
- $25 first copy and $2 for each additional copy ordered at the same time. [2][3]
- Processing time
- Same as births. [3]
State genealogical records page State Archives genealogical collections
Marriage records
- Where it is kept
- The Office of Vital Statistics and Registry, a local registrar, or the State Archives for older records. [1][6]
- Years covered
- The Health Department holds marriages from 1951 (civil unions from 2007 and domestic partnerships from 2004). The State Archives holds marriages May 1848 to 1950 and has a searchable database of marriages 1848 to 1900. [1][6]
- Who can get a certified copy
- Non-genealogical marriages are those in the last 50 years; the state's page lists a separate no-record-of-marriage statement. [3]
- Fee
- $25 first copy and $2 for each additional copy ordered at the same time. [2][3]
- Processing time
- Same as births. [3]
Divorce records
- Where it is kept
- Not confirmed on the official pages we read.
- 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 did not find a divorce-record page on the New Jersey pages we read.
About ordering online
The state's page points online orders to VitalChek, which adds a processing fee and optional UPS shipping fees. Mailing the state directly costs only the state fee ($25 first copy) and the check or money order must go to "Treasurer, State of New Jersey". [2][3]
Archives and other places to look
- The State Archives has searchable databases of marriages (1848 to 1900) and deaths (1848 to 1900), plus request forms for births, marriages and deaths. The Archives page lists them; we did not test the databases. [6] State Archives genealogical collections
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 New Jersey.
Historical newspapers
The Library of Congress's Chronicling America lists 53 digitized newspaper titles published in New Jersey, with issues dated from September 21, 1765 to February 1, 1928. 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 New Jersey 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
- State fee: $25 including one certified copy or certification; $2 for each extra copy ordered together.
- Health Department holdings: births 1925 on, marriages and deaths 1951 on (domestic partnerships 2004, civil unions 2007).
- State Archives holdings: births 1848 to 1925, marriages and deaths 1848 to 1950; searchable marriage and death indexes to 1900.
- Vital records are not public records; non-family requesters get an uncertified certification.
- State Archives has Health Department death microfilm copies for January 1951 to December 1965 (in-person use).
Could not verify
- Divorce records. We found no official divorce page.
- Whether Archives births end in 1924 or 1925. The Health home page says 1924; the Archives page says 1925.
- Local registrar fees and times. The state says they vary by municipality.
- Older State Archives catalog pages that may list different microfilm date ranges. We did not read them.
Pages read 2026-10-27.
Sources
- NJ Dept. of Health: Vital Statistics home Official state page read 2026-10-27
- NJ Dept. of Health: Fees at a Glance Official state page read 2026-10-27
- NJ Dept. of Health: Getting Copies of Non-Genealogical Records Official state page read 2026-10-27
- NJ Dept. of Health: Getting Copies of Genealogical Records Official state page read 2026-10-27
- NJ Dept. of Health: Frequently Asked Questions Official state page read 2026-10-27
- NJ State Archives: Search Genealogical Collections Official state page read 2026-10-27