Town Clerk

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61 Echo Lake Road
Watertown, CT 06795
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Ph: 860.945.5230
Fax: 860.945.2706
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Monday - Friday
8:30 am - 4:30 pm

Vital Records

Checklist for Obtaining a Certified Copy of Certificates

  • Make sure that you are eligible to obtain the birth certificate if applicable 
  • Complete the application and bring it to the Town Clerk’s office or mail it to:

Watertown Town Clerk
61 Echo Lake Rd.
Watertown, CT 06795

  • Include your photo ID
  • Provide documentation proving that you are entitled to obtain the birth certificate (only applicable if the requester is not the birth registrant or a parent listed on the birth certificate)
  • Include the applicable fee of $20 per certified copy

Forms of payment accepted:

1. In Person: Cash, check, credit card

2. Mail-in: Check made payable to Watertown Town Clerk

Please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope if mailing in the application. Note that applications are processed the same day they are received.

Birth Certificate Request

Birth Certificate Request Form
For a birth occurring on or after January 1, 2003

You may request a certified copy of the birth certificate from any town vital records office or the State Vital Records Office. 

For a birth occurring prior to January 1, 2003

You may request a certified copy of the birth certificate ONLY from the following:

  • The town vital records office of the town where the birth occurred, or
  • The town of the mother’s residence at the time of birth, or
  • The State Vital Records Office
Who Can Request a Certified Copy of a Birth Certificate?

Birth records are confidential records and are not open to the general public, except for those that are at least 100 years old.  For birth certificates less than 100 years old, you can only obtain the birth certificate if:

  • It’s you and you are 18 years of age or older, or an emancipated minor or a certified homeless youth
  • You are the parent, legal guardian, grandparent, spouse, adult child, or adult grandchild
  • You are an attorney-at-law representing the person named on the birth certificate or an eligible relative (see above), an agent of an approved state or federal agency, a member of a Connecticut genealogical society (see the Connecticut State Library for more information), or a Conservator of Person
  • For additional eligible parties see G.S section 7-51

All requests for certified copies of birth certificates must be accompanied by:

  • valid, government-issued photographic identification that includes the requester’s name, date of birth, signature, and expiration date. If the State or town vital records office has reason to doubt the authenticity of a document presented, the requester may be asked to provide additional documentation.

OR

  • Other forms of identification:  If a photographic identification is not available, two (2) of the documents listed below may be substituted. For mail requests, a photocopy of the document is sufficient, do not send original;
    • Social security card;
    • Social security card supplemented with either an employment identification card, a paycheck stub, or a W-2 form. Providing the documents in this subdivision fully satisfies the identification requirements of this section;
    • Automobile registration;
    • Copy of utility bill showing name and current address;
    • Checking account deposit slip or bank statement stating the name and current address;
    • Voter registration card;
    • Valid government-issued trade or professional license;
    • Valid government-issued firearm permit;
    • Probation documents issued by a court or other government agency, pursuant to a criminal conviction;
    • Letter from a government agency verifying identity. The letter shall be dated within six months prior to the date of the request;
    • Release documentation from a correctional institution containing a photograph of the former inmate and release date within 12 months prior to the date of the request;
    • Birth certificate of the requester;
    • Military discharge papers;
    • Current school or college photographic identification; or
    • Government-issued photographic identification that has expired within 12 months prior to the date of the request.
If you are requesting a birth certificate for someone other than yourself or your child

You will need to submit proof verifying your relationship with the person whose birth certificate you are requesting.  For example:

  • If you are requesting the birth certificate of your parent, you must submit a copy of your own birth certificate in order to prove the parent/ child relationship.
For persons with a legal name change
  • If you have had a legal name change and your identification documents do not match the information on the vital record you are requesting, you must submit a copy of the court order verifying the legal name change.

Death Certificate Request

Death Certificate Request Form
How to Purchase a Certified Copy of a Death Certificate

A certified copy of a Connecticut death certificate may be purchased for $20 each by anyone at least 18 years old.  The death record is located in the town of occurrence and the town where the decedent lived in at the time of the death. Note that the decedent’s social security number can only be accessed by the decedent’s spouse or next of kin. If you need a copy of the death certificate with the social security number on the certificate, you will need to provide proof of identity and proof of the relationship that allows you to obtain the death certificate with the social security number.

Marriage Certificate Request

Marriage Certificate Request Form
How to Purchase Certified Copies of a Marriage Certificate

Once you are married, the marriage license is filed at the vital records office of the town where the marriage occurred. After the document is filed, it is referred to as a marriage certificate.

To obtain a certified copy of a marriage certificate, you must submit your request to the vital records office of the town where the marriage occurred, or the town(s) where the parties to the marriage resided at the time of the marriage, or the State Vital Records Office.    

Who Can Request a Certified Copy of a Marriage Certificate?

A certified copy of a marriage certificate may be purchased for $20 by anyone who is at least 18 years old. All information on the marriage certificate is available to the requester, except the social security numbers of the spouses.

Copies of marriage certificates that include the spouse’s social security numbers will only be issued to the parties to the marriage.

If you are requesting a copy of the marriage certificate with the social security numbers on the certificate, you will need to provide proof of identity that you are one of the parties named on the marriage certificate.