Health & Human services

To receive a copy of your child’s birth certificate you must apply through the Long Beach Health Department.
The hospital does not apply for you.

The Long Beach Vital Records Program maintains birth records for babies born in Long Beach since January 2019. All other records must be requested through the Los Angeles County Recorder's Office at 800.201.8999.

Birth records for eligible residents can be obtained through an in-person visit or through mail.

IN-PERSON REQUEST

THE OFFICE WILL BE CLOSED ON THE FOLLOWING DATES:
Monday, January 1, 2024
Monday, January 15, 2024
February 19, 2024
May 27, 2024
June 19, 2024
July 4, 2024
September 2, 2024
November 5, 2024
November 28-29, 2024
December 25, 2024

Please arrive with the following:

• Birth Certificate Application Form
• A valid form of identification with picture, such as a driver's license or passport
• Full name of the person as it appears on the birth certificate
• Date of birth for the registrant
• Place of birth/Hospital
• Name of parent(s) at birth
• Form of payment

Once processed, the birth certificate can be mailed to you or picked up within 10 business days. Birth certificates are mailed through the regular postal service. Lost or stolen mail will not be replaced by the City of Long Beach.  A new application will need to be completed and the fee paid.

Fees

Requesting by Mail - Application Must Be Signed in the Presence of a Notary Public

Complete and mail the following:

1. Completed Birth Certificate Application Form.
2. Sworn Statement, which must be signed in the presence of a notary.
3. Check or money order for $32.00 payable to Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services. NO CASH is accepted. Vital Records cannot be held responsible for fees paid in cash that are lost, misdirected, or undelivered.

Please allow up to 2-3 weeks to receive your requested documents. The processing time begins when we have received your completed request.

Once your request has been received and evaluated:

• ACCEPTED: The application will be processed, and a copy of the document will be mailed.
• NOT ACCEPTED (due to insufficient fees/information/documentation): The application request will be mailed back to the requester with a letter explaining what needs to be corrected.

Note: Pursuant to California State Code 103650 the fee for any search of the files and records for a specific record when no certified copy is made shall be paid in advance by the applicant. If a record is not located, the fees for the birth record will be retained as payment for a record search.

Home or Out-of-Hospital Births

Home or out-of-hospital births may be registered in our office by appointment only by calling 562-570-4305. Please gather all the necessary documentation prior to scheduling an appointment with us.

In order to register out-of-hospital or home births at the Long Beach Health Department, all six criteria must be met:

1. Identity of the parent(s) is provided
2. Proof of pregnancy of the mother is provided
3. The infant was born alive
4. The birth occurred in the City of Long Beach
5. The child is less than 1 year
6. Identity of the witness is provided

To schedule an appointment to register an out-of-hospital birth call 562-570.4305 Monday-Friday from 8 AM to 4 PM. 

For births that occurred outside the Long Beach city limits, please contact the Los Angeles County Public Health Department directly at 213.288.7812. Any out-of-hospital birth registered on or after the child’s first birthday must be processed by the California Department of Public Health Office of Vital Records as a Delayed Registration of Birth.

Types of Birth Certificates

If eligible to obtain records, there are two types of certified copies available upon request:

Frequently Asked Questions

• WHO CAN GET AN AUTHORIZED CERTIFIED COPY OF A BIRTH CERTIFICATE?

  • The person listed on the certificate (registrant) or a parent or legal guardian of the registrant. (Legal guardian must provide documentation.) 

  • A party entitled to receive the record as a result of a court order or an attorney or a licensed adoption agency seeking the birth record in order to comply with the requirements of Section 3140 or 7603 of the Family Code. (A court order copy is required.) 

  • A member of a law enforcement agency or a representative of another governmental agency, as provided by law, who is conducting official business. (Companies representing a government agency must provide authorization from the government agency.) 

  • A child, grandparent, grandchild, brother or sister, spouse or domestic partner of the registrant. An attorney representing the registrant or the registrant’s estate, or any person or agency empowered by statute or appointed by a court to act on behalf of the registrant or the registrant’s estate. 

  • Appointed rights in a power of attorney, or an executor of the registrant’s estate. (Please include a copy of the power of attorney, or supporting documentation identifying you as executor with the application). 

  Effective July 1, 2015, Assembly Bill 1733 states that each local registrar or county recorder is mandated to issue a birth record without fee to an eligible homeless person, or homeless child or youth. Eligible persons must present an affidavit signed by an agent for a homeless services provider to receive a fee-exempt copy. Completed affidavits should be taken at face value and processed the same as sworn statements when applicants sign under penalty of perjury. County vital records offices are not responsible for verifying if a homeless services provider is legitimate. 

• IS IT POSSIBLE TO ADD AN INFANT'S FATHER TO THE BIRTH CERTIFICATE?

  Yes, there are three ways. 
   
  1. By completing the Declaration of Paternity – You must comply with few requirements in order to do this process: the person to be listed as “father”, must be the biological father; the mother must not be married to anyone else; and the father needs to be willing to be listed as such. The Declaration of Paternity process was created to facilitate those parents who are willing to add the father’s name without the need to go through a court process. Therefore, if the father is refusing to sign the Declaration of Paternity, the only way to establish paternity will be through a court process by performing a DNA test and obtaining a court order for adding the father’s name to it. Contact any Family Court for more detailed 
   

  2. By court order – You must obtain a court order authorizing you to add the father’s name to the 

  3. By marriage – If the parents got married after the child’s birth certificate was created and the father’s name was not listed on it, you may choose just to amend the record by completing the form, Acknowledgement of Paternity (VS22), and submitting it with a copy of the marriage license or certificate to the California Office of Vital Records in Sacramento, CA. 

• WHAT IS THE PATERNITY OPPORTUNITY PROGRAM (POP)?

  The Paternity Opportunity Program (POP) is a State mandated Child Support Services Department local program whose purpose is to provide the opportunity for voluntary paternity acknowledgment for children born out of wedlock. 

  A Declaration of Paternity form is used to legally establish the father (paternity) of a child when the mother and the father are not married to each other.  Both parents must agree to sign the Declaration of Paternity form. It should be signed by the biological mother only if she is not married. It may be signed by the biological father regardless of his marital status. Signing the Declaration of Paternity is a voluntary act, and by doing so you will be giving up some rights that you may have, including the right to a court trial to decide the issue of paternity.  For detailed and complete information about your rights, please refer to the Declaration of Paternity form or consult an attorney. The form is available at our office. 

  Once you complete the Declaration, it must be registered with The Department of Child Support Services. You will need to submit a photocopy of the Declaration to the CDPH-VR office (with the VS22 form) to add the father to your child’s birth certificate. 

  For more information about establishing paternity, contact the California Department of Child Support Services, Paternity Opportunity Program (POP) by telephone at (916) 464-1982 or (toll free) at 866- 249-0773; e-mail to askpop@dcss.ca.gov; or visit their website at: www.childsup.ca.gov/resources/establishpaternity.aspx 

• WHAT TYPE OF CERTIFICATION DO I NEED IF THE COUNTRY I AM TRAVELING TO REQUIRES AN APOSTILLE?

  If the country to which you are traveling requires an Apostille or Certification; you must obtain a certified copy of the record from the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder. The California Secretary of State will only provide authentication of the County Clerk or Recorder’s signature.  To obtain copies of these records, contact the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder at (800) 201-8999. 

• HOW DO I OBTAIN AN APOSTILLE?

  The California Secretary of State provides an Apostille to authenticate California public officials' signatures on documents to be used outside the United States of America. There are two ways to obtain an Apostille in California: By Mail - An Apostille can be requested by mail through our Sacramento office. 

  If the country to which you are traveling requires an Apostille or Certification; you must obtain a certified copy of the record from the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder. The California Secretary of State will only provide authentication of the County Clerk or Recorder’s signature. To obtain copies of these records, contact the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder at 800. 201.8999 or visit their website at www.lavote.net.