Legal
Death Certificate
A death certificate is the official government record of a person's death, issued by the vital records office of the state or county where the death occurred. It states the decedent's name, date and place of death, and cause of death. Certified copies are required to settle an estate, claim life insurance, close accounts, and access survivor benefits.
You can get up to 20 free certified copies of a death certificate at the time of death; most families order around ten, and additional copies typically cost about $15 each.
Written & maintained by the Granite team · Last updated June 2026
Overview
A state or county vital records office issues death certificates, usually filed by the funeral home with a physician or medical examiner. Settling an estate takes many certified copies — each bank, insurer, and agency typically wants its own original with a raised or printed seal, so families often order ten or more. The funeral director can request these for you, and many states provide up to 20 free certified copies at the time of death.
There are two versions: a certified copy with cause of death (often required by insurers and for most legal needs) and an informational copy marked not valid for legal use. In many states the cause of death is confidential and released only to eligible parties — typically the spouse, parent, child, sibling, or estate representative — for a set period after the death. Knowing which version an institution requires, and having enough certified copies, avoids weeks of delay during an already hard time.
When you’ll get your Death Certificate
- You're the executor or next of kin settling an estate
- You're claiming a life insurance payout
- You're closing bank, investment, or utility accounts
- You're applying for survivor or Social Security benefits
- You're transferring property, vehicles, or titles of the deceased
What’s on your Death Certificate
These are the fields Granite reads and extracts automatically the moment you upload one.
- Decedent's Name
- The legal name of the person who died.
- Date of Death
- The official date recorded.
- Place of Death
- Where the death occurred — city, county, and state.
- Cause of Death
- The medical cause, on the certified (vs informational) version.
- Certificate / File Number
- The vital records office's identifier for the record.
- Official Seal
- The seal that makes a copy 'certified' and legally accepted.
How long to keep it
Keep at least one certified copy permanently with the estate's records.
A death certificate is referenced long after the death — for delayed insurance claims, reopened estate matters, property transfers, and genealogy. Keeping a certified copy permanently with the estate file means the executor or family can prove the death whenever an institution later requires it, without reordering from the issuing office.
How Granite handles your Death Certificate
Granite reads a death certificate — decedent, date and place, cause, and file number — and files it with the estate's documents under encryption. As executor, you can pull a clear copy when an institution needs proof, track how many certified originals remain, and keep the certificate alongside the will, accounts, and insurance it's needed to unlock.
FAQ
Death Certificate: common questions
- How do I get a death certificate?
- Contact the vital records office of the state where the death occurred to order a certified copy online, by mail, or in person. You'll need the date and place of death. The funeral home usually files the death and requests the initial certified copies for the family. Eligibility is generally limited to family, executors, and authorized representatives.
- What is the fastest way to get a death certificate?
- Have the funeral home request copies at the time of death — that's the quickest route, and many states include up to 20 free certified copies then. For later needs, ordering online (often through a state vital records portal or VitalChek) is usually faster than mail. In-person pickup at the county office can be same-day in some jurisdictions.
- How many copies of a death certificate should I order?
- Ten is the average for most families. Each bank, insurer, brokerage, and government agency typically requires its own certified original with a seal and won't accept a photocopy. Order extra up front, since requesting more later from the vital records office adds cost and delay to settling the estate.
- What's the difference between a certified and informational death certificate?
- A certified copy bears an official seal and is accepted for legal and financial matters — settling estates, insurance claims, closing accounts. The cause of death appears on the certified version, which many states restrict to eligible family and estate representatives for years after the death. An informational copy is marked not valid for legal use. Confirm which version each institution requires.
- How long should I keep a death certificate?
- Keep at least one certified copy permanently with the estate's records. It's referenced long after the death — for delayed claims, reopened estate or property matters, and family history. Having a certified copy on hand avoids reordering from the issuing office whenever an institution later requires proof.
Sources
This page is checked against primary and authoritative sources:
Keep your Death Certificate in one place.
Drop it in once. Granite reads it, files it, and makes it findable forever — by you today, and by the people who'll need it later.