Most people receive birth certificates at birth; however, this does not always occur because on occasion the doctor was not present at the birth, the birth did not occur in a hospital, or the birth was not officially registered.

RC 3705.10 defines a delayed birth registration as being any birth certificate submitted eleven or more days after the birth occurred.

There are different rules regarding delayed birth registrations depending on when the birth certificate is filed.  

  • If the birth certificate is filed more than ten days after birth, but within one year, it will be registered without the need to involve the Probate Court if any of the following conditions met:
    • Birth certificate is signed by the attending physician; or
    • If a physician was not present at the birth or the physician has passed away, then an affidavit by someone other than a parent as to the date, time, place and parties to the birth may be used, and the record will be registered.
  • If a birth certificate is filed more than one year, but not more than seven years after birth, the following conditions apply:
    • If the attending physician signs the birth certificate, the local registrar asks the State Department of Health if a certificate has been filed.  If the state registrar confirms that there is no registration and approves the application, the birth will be registered; or
    • If there was no attending physician, then the birth must be registered through the Probate Court.
  • If it has been more than seven years since the birth occurred and no birth certificate has been issued, the birth must be registered through the Probate Court.

To apply for a Delayed Birth Registration through the Probate Court, the birth must have occurred within the State of Ohio and be filed in either the county of birth, county of child’s current residence, or where the mother resided when the birth occurred

Items necessary to file a Delayed Birth Registration:

  • A statement from the Ohio Department of Health or the local registrar that there is no record of your birth;
  • Application HEA-2782 must be notarized;
  • Must bring at least four (4) pieces of evidence of your birth and identity which can include:
    • Certificate of Baptism
    • Federal Census Records, Social Security application, U.S. Passport
    • Testimony by one or both parents
    • Notarized Affidavit of a witness to the birth
    • A letter from the hospital or attending physician
    • Marriage licenses
    • Certified Copy of birth certificates for other children in the same family, birth certificates for your own children
    • Insurance policies and policy applications
    • Diplomas, school records or transcripts, with an original signature from the records secretary
    • U.S. Armed Forces Discharge (DD 214)
    • Published obituaries of family members
    • See Frequently Asked Questions below
  • Supporting Affidavit(s) completed, and if from other than the delivering physician then blood relatives are preferred;
  • A current Driver’s License or Government issued picture ID of the applicant;
  • The base court cost deposit is eighty-seven dollars ($87.00), this amount includes the cost of a birth certificate; and
  • Complete the Form listed below. Note: It must be typewritten

Frequently Asked Questions

Delayed Birth Registration – ORC 3705.15 and OAC 3701-5-04(D)

Any birth that is submitted more than ten days after the birth is a delayed birth registration.

The registrations for birth occurring not more than seven years after the birth occurred are handled administratively through the local registrar of the county where the Ohio birth occurred.

The Probate Court has no involvement in those proceedings unless the birth occurred more than one year previously and there was no attending physician, or the attending physician is dead.  Probate Court action is required in every instance where it is alleged that the birth occurred more than seven years previously.
To apply for a Delayed Birth Registration through our Probate Court, you must have been born in Ohio and Delaware County must be the county where you were born, where you currently reside, or where your mother resided when you were born.

The “Registration of Birth -Application, Finding and Order for Registration of Birth” (Ohio Dept. of Health Form HEA 2782) must be typewritten and filed with the Court.  Page 2 of the form includes form affidavits for the physician and two supporting witnesses.  The applicant must provide the Court with a “No-Record” Letter from the Ohio Department of Health, Vital Statistics. (Note: In the unlikely event that the birth occurred prior to December 20, 1908, contact should be made with the Probate Court in the county where the birth occurred for the records search.) Four valid documents must be provided to prove the exact date, place of birth, and the parents’ names (mother’s maiden name).  The filings must include the affidavit of the attending physician (or if not available then affidavits from two persons having knowledge of the facts stated in the application).  If affidavits are used, it is preferred they be from blood relatives.

These are some examples of the documentary evidence that may be used in this Court:

  • Certificate of Baptism or Hospital Record
  • Federal Census Records, U.S Passport
  • Certified copy of school records or transcripts, with an original signature from the records secretary
  • U.S. Armed Forces Discharge (DD 214)
  • Certified copy of application for marriage license, showing vital information
  • Life insurance policies (still in effect), having applications as part of them at least 5 years old, showing date and place of birth
  • Letter from the hospital or attending doctor on letterhead (indicating the vital information)
  • Notarized affidavit of a witness to the birth
  • Certified copy of birth certificate of one of your children reflecting your date of birth or place of your birth
  • Family Bible, Church or religious records
  • Voter Registration
  • Published obituaries of family members

Remember that you are trying to establish the person’s Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Age and Name of Parents (mother’s maiden name), and preferably each parent’s birth state.

For delayed registrations of the birth of a minor, and in accordance with applicable law, the social security numbers assigned to the parents of the minor must be provided to the Court in a confidential manner.  While they will not be public records, they will be provided by the Court to the Division of Vital Statistics.

The Court will set a hearing no less than seven days after the filing date, and may require one publication of a Notice of Hearing in a newspaper of general circulation in Delaware County at least seven days prior to the date of hearing.  If publication is ordered, proof of the publication must be filed with the Court prior to the hearing.

When deemed to be appropriate for the facts disclosed, the Court is authorized to conduct an investigation by a specially appointed master commissioner.

At the conclusion of any investigation and the hearing, if the Court finds the facts to be true, the Court will sign the “Judgment Entry on the Registration of Birth” (Form HEA 2782, 5/05) and will prepare a summary of the record by issuing a “Finding and Order Establishing Registration of Birth” (HEA Form 2745, Rev 10.05).  The Court will forward it to the Ohio Department of Health.  The applicant should tender to the Court a proposed Form 2745.

Birth Registration Form