Access Santa Clara Death Records

Death records for Santa Clara are maintained at the county level, not by the city. Santa Clara County Clerk Recorder handles all obituary records and death certificates for people who died within Santa Clara city limits. The main office is located in San Jose at 110 West Tasman Drive, just a short drive from Santa Clara. Residents can visit in person, order by mail, or use the VitalChek online system. The county maintains death records going back to 1873, covering over 150 years of vital statistics. Recent deaths take about four weeks to process before certificates become available. Each certificate costs $26. You need to prove your relationship to the deceased to get an authorized copy, or anyone can request an informational version for genealogy purposes.

Where to Get Santa Clara Death Certificates

Santa Clara County processes all death certificate requests for the city of Santa Clara. The county clerk recorder office is at 110 West Tasman Drive, First Floor, San Jose, CA 95134. This is the only location that can issue death certificates for Santa Clara deaths. Office hours run Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The office closes for lunch but stays open without breaks. Parking is available on site. Bring ID and payment when you visit.

You can call the office at (408) 299-5688 if you have questions before you go. Staff can verify whether a death record has been registered yet. For deaths that just happened, you may need to wait a month before the file is ready. The county gets death records from the state vital statistics system, which takes time to process and transmit. Calling ahead saves you a wasted trip if the record is not ready yet.

Email inquiries go to clerkrecorder@rec.sccgov.org. The county responds to most emails within a few business days. You can ask about fees, hours, required documents, and whether your relationship to the deceased qualifies you for an authorized copy. The county cannot search for records over email or tell you if a specific person died. You must submit an official request with payment to search the files.

The Santa Clara County death certificate order page provides forms, instructions, and links to VitalChek for online ordering. This page explains the difference between authorized and informational copies. It also lists acceptable forms of payment and what ID you need to bring. Read this page before you visit or mail in a request to make sure you have everything required.

How to Order a Death Certificate

To request a death certificate for someone who died in Santa Clara, you need the person's full legal name and the date of death. If you do not know the exact date, provide the year and month. The county can search by name and approximate time frame, but it takes longer. You also need to give your own name, mailing address, phone number, and relationship to the deceased.

For an authorized certified copy, you must be one of these people: spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, attorney for the estate, or funeral director. You need to fill out a sworn statement declaring your relationship. This statement must be notarized by a licensed notary public. Take the form to a bank, UPS store, or other location with notary services. Bring your photo ID to the notary. The notary will watch you sign and stamp the form.

If you do not qualify as an authorized person, you can still get an informational copy. This type of certificate shows all the same data but has a watermark saying it cannot be used to establish identity. Genealogists, researchers, and distant relatives usually request informational copies. No notarized statement is needed for informational copies. Just fill out the application and pay the fee.

In person requests are processed while you wait in most cases. Bring your completed application, notarized statement if applicable, photo ID, and payment of $26. You can pay with cash, check, or card. Staff will search the index and print your certificate. If the death was a long time ago, the file might be archived off site, and you may need to come back the next day. Most records from the past 50 years are on site and ready to go.

For mail requests, send your application, notarized statement, a check or money order for $26, and a self addressed stamped envelope to County of Santa Clara Clerk Recorder, 110 West Tasman Drive, First Floor, San Jose, CA 95134. Make checks payable to County of Santa Clara. Do not send cash. Mail orders take two to three weeks to process and return by mail. If the record is not found, the county keeps your fee and sends a letter saying no record exists.

Ordering Death Certificates Online

Santa Clara County partners with VitalChek for online ordering. VitalChek is the only authorized vendor for this service. Go to the county website and click the link to VitalChek. You will fill out the same application online. You need a credit or debit card to pay. VitalChek charges a service fee on top of the $26 county fee. The total cost is usually around $33 plus shipping.

VitalChek offers regular mail and expedited shipping. Regular mail takes about a week once the order is processed. Expedited options include overnight and two day delivery for extra fees. If you are in a hurry, expedited shipping can get your certificate to you in just a few days. However, the county still needs time to process the request, so there is no instant delivery.

If you order an authorized copy online, you still need to submit a notarized sworn statement. VitalChek lets you upload a scanned copy of the notarized form. You can also mail the form to the county after you place the online order. The county will not send your certificate until they receive the notarized statement. This can delay your order by a week or more if you mail the form instead of uploading it.

Note: Some third party websites claim to offer California death records but are not authorized by the county. Only use VitalChek or order directly from the county to avoid scams and extra fees.

California Death Record Laws

California requires all deaths to be registered with the county where the death occurred. Funeral directors usually file the certificate within a few days of death. The doctor or coroner must certify the cause of death. Once filed, the county sends a copy to the California Department of Public Health. This creates a permanent state record in addition to the county file.

State law restricts who can get a certified copy of a death certificate. Health and Safety Code Section 103526 defines authorized persons. This law was passed to prevent identity theft and fraud. Before 2003, anyone could request a certified copy. Now only family and legal representatives can get copies that work for official purposes.

Death records older than 75 years are public records. For deaths in Santa Clara before 1951, you do not need to prove a relationship. Anyone can request a certified copy of these old records without restrictions. The fee is still the same. Older records may take longer to retrieve because they are stored in archives or on microfilm.

If there is an error on a death certificate, you must contact the California Department of Public Health to request an amendment. The county cannot change a record once it is filed. Common errors include misspelled names, wrong dates, incorrect cause of death, or missing information. The state charges a fee to amend a vital record. You need to provide proof of the correct information, such as medical records or affidavits.

Additional Resources

The Santa Clara County Medical Examiner Coroner handles cases where a death is sudden, suspicious, or unexplained. Their office is at 850 North First Street in San Jose. Call (408) 793-1900 for case information. The coroner investigates the cause of death and releases the body to a funeral home. Once the coroner finishes their work, the funeral home files the death certificate with the county clerk.

For genealogy research, the California State Archives in Sacramento has microfilmed death records from many counties, including Santa Clara. These archives are useful for finding old records from the 1800s and early 1900s. The archives are at 1500 11th Street in Sacramento. Call (916) 653-6814 for research help. Many records are also available online through FamilySearch and other free genealogy sites.

The California Department of Public Health maintains a death index for 1905 to 1997. This index is searchable for free on genealogy websites. You can look up a name to find the year and county of death. This helps when you are not sure where someone died in California. Once you know the county, you can order the certificate from that county's clerk recorder.

Legal help is available from the Santa Clara County Bar Association at (408) 971-6822. They can refer you to an attorney who handles probate, wills, and estate matters. Many lawyers offer a free initial consultation. Legal aid organizations in Santa Clara also provide free assistance to low income residents dealing with death related legal issues.

Other Cities in Santa Clara County

All cities in Santa Clara County use the same county office for death certificates. San Jose, Sunnyvale, Milpitas, Mountain View, and Palo Alto residents all go to the clerk recorder in San Jose. There are no city run vital records offices in Santa Clara County. The county handles everything for the entire county.