Quick answer
Get a certified copy from the Florida Department of Health in St. Johns County, then send it to us — we file it in person in Tallahassee. $220, 5–7 business days.
- Certified copy from
- Florida Department of Health in St. Johns County
- County seat
- St. Augustine
- St. Johns County government
- sjcfl.us
- Clerk of Court
- stjohnsclerk.com
- Florida state fee
- $10 — included in $220
- Electronic certified copies
- VitalChek online orders
- How to send
- Online order + FedEx from St. Augustine
- Turnaround
- 5–7 business days, filed in person
Where to get a certified death certificate in St. Johns County
In St. Johns County, certified death certificates are issued by the Florida Department of Health in St. Johns County (vital records office), as well as statewide by the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics in Jacksonville and online through VitalChek. For an apostille, the copy must be signed by the State Registrar and certified in 2014 or later — if yours is older, order a fresh one before you send it to us.
From St. Johns County: order online and drop the prepaid FedEx envelope at any FedEx location in or near St. Augustine. We file in person in Tallahassee.
What the copy must look like
A certified copy signed by the State Registrar and certified in 2014 or later. The year of death doesn't matter; the certification date does. Copies with or without the cause of death can both be apostilled, but photocopies and notarized copies cannot.
State fee: $10 — included in our $220. Fees the Florida Department of Health in St. Johns County charges for the certified copy are not included.
Why death certificates get rejected
- Certified before 2014, even for an old death
- Photocopy or notarized copy
- Funeral-home or hospital paperwork instead of the certified certificate
- Death recorded in another state
$220 per document, $380 for two and $160 each for three or more — the state fee, request form, in-person filing in Tallahassee and FedEx shipping inside the U.S. are included. Shipping the finished apostille is a flat $100 per order.
Not included: whatever the issuing office charges for the certified copy or certificate, and notarization (online notarization is $40 for the first document — $10 notarization fee + $30 technology platform fee — and $20 for each additional one).