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Every situation is unique. The items listed below are only general guidelines for amendments. Your situation may require additional documentation and/or a court order. Illinois law allows this office to reject any documentation to protect the integrity of the vital record.
FIRST AND/OR MIDDLE NAME OF THE CHILD If the child is younger than 1 year of age; this change can also be requested by the hospital of birth if the hospital made the error when creating the birth record. The Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form needs to be completed. The request must be submitted with photo IDto this office and the amendment completed before the child is 1 year of age. There is no fee in this situation; however, an amended birth record is not furnished to the requester unless a fee is submitted. Only one change can be made to this part of the child's name without additional documentation and a fee being required. If the child is older than 1 year of age; the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and the fee are required. You must submit proof of the requested amendment through documentation. Acceptable documentation includes
Any documentation submitted must have been created prior to the age of 19. If documentation is not available as proof of the requested change, then a court order of legal name change is required. You should contact your local court system. To amend the last name of a child requires the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and the fee. If the child's last name is misspelled and that child has the same last name as a parent listed on the birth record, a copy of that parent's birth record is required. In some situations, a copy of the parents' marriage record or an older sibling's birth record also can be used. The document submitted must have been created prior to the birth of the child. If the original handwritten worksheet from the hospital of birth supports the requested amendment, a copy of this document can be submitted as proof. The hospital can send this document directly to this office. If a Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity form, administrative order of paternity or court order of paternity has been completed, you can, within one year, make one change to the child's name. THIS IS ONE YEAR FROM THE DATE THE VOLUNTARY ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF PATERNITY WAS SIGNED OR PUBLIC AID OR THE COURTS ESTABLISHED PATERNITY. IT IS NOT ONE YEAR FROM THE DATE THIS OFFICE COMPLETED THE CHANGES ON THE BIRTH RECORD. The Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and the fee are required. Both parents separately must complete the affidavit. If either parent is not willing or unavailable to complete the affidavit, then a court order of legal name change is required. If a court order of non-paternity was previously submitted to this office, then a court order of legal name change is required to change the child's name. To amend the date of birth requires medical records from the hospital of birth. If hospital no longer has that information, then a statement as to such from the hospital is needed. At that time, this office will advise you as to what documents can be submitted. If you were born at home, this office will advise you as to what documents can be submitted. The Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and the fee are required. MOTHER'S AND/OR FATHER'S FIRST AND/OR MIDDLE NAME If the child is younger than 1 year of age; the hospital of birth also can request this amendment if the hospital made the error when creating the birth record. This only applies to omissions and spelling errors. An example of a spelling error is Tracy to Tracey NOT Jane to Janet. The Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form needs to be completed. The request with photo ID must be submitted to this office and the amendment completed before the child is 1 year of age. There is no fee in this situation; however, an amended birth record is not furnished to the requester unless a fee is submitted. Only one change can be made to this part of a parent's name without additional documentation and the fee being required. If the request is for more than a spelling error or omission, documentation, the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and the fee are required. If the child is older than 1 year of age; the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and the fee and a notarized statement as to why the name was given incorrectly are required. A copy of the mother's and/or father's birth record(s) is required. A copy of the original handwritten worksheet from the hospital of birth also can be used as proof to support the amendment. The hospital can send this document directly to this office. In some situations, a court order is required to correct this item. For example, either parent was using an alias at the time of birth, a court order is required to make this change. MOTHER'S AND/OR FATHER'S LAST NAME The Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID, a notarized statement as to why the name was given incorrectly and the fee is required. A copy of that parent's birth record is required. If the original handwritten worksheet from the hospital of birth supports the requested amendment, that document can be used as proof. The hospital can send this document directly to this office. If the parent's birth record is not available, this office will advise you as to what documents can be submitted. This item may require a court order to amend. For example, either parent was using an alias at the time of birth, a court order is required to make this change. If the child is younger than 1 year of age; this change also can be requested by the hospital of birth if the hospital made the error when creating the birth record. If the child's name is of obvious gender such as Mary Elizabeth or John Peter, then only the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form needs to be completed. If the child's name is not of obvious gender, such as Courtney or Sydney, then documentation and the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form are required. The request must be submitted with photo ID to this office and the amendment completed before the child is 1 year of age. There is no fee in this situation; however, an amended birth record is not furnished to the requester unless a fee is submitted. If the child is older than 1 year of age; and if the child's name is of obvious gender, such as Mary Elizabeth or John Peter, then the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and fee are required. If the child's name is not of obvious gender, such as Courtney or Sydney, then medical records from the time of birth, the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and the fee are required. If medical records are no longer available, a statement from the hospital as to such is required. Then, a copy of a biological child's birth record can be submitted as proof. COURT ORDERED LEGAL NAME CHANGE The Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, a certified court order, photo ID and the fee are required. A certified court order can be obtained from the court that originally completed the legal name change. Requests for amendments to items not specifically listed above can be initiated by submitting an Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request form, photo ID and the required fee. Requests are responded to in the order in which they are received. Please note: Current processing time on mailed requests for ANY CORRECTIONS OR CHANGES to birth and death records that contain the appropriate fee is between 8 and 10 weeks from the date the request is received. To expedite your request, submit it through any type of an overnight delivery service, include proof of immediate need and a prepaid overnight delivery return envelope. It will then be treated as a rush and responded to in approximately 15 business days. Items considered as proof of immediate need include the following:
PLEASE NOTE: corrections or changes to a birth record cannot be completed by phone, fax or e-mail. If you contact this office, we can only advise you of the procedure you must go through to complete the change or correction.
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LINKS Vital Records Act |
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