Apostille for West Virginia Death Certificate
Updated: Sep 20
When you need to apostille a West Virginia death certificate, you will need to make sure to have a certified copy of the vital record beforehand. If you need to order one, your best bet is to go through the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources. Here's what their website says about obtaining one:
Note: The ordering details on this page describe how the state vital records office works. American Apostille is not part of that office and does not issue certified copies. We handle the apostille step on a certified copy you already have.
Death Certificates
Who Can Purchase Certified Copies:
In terms of obtaining vital records, West Virginia is not an "open record" state.
The people who may obtain a Death certificate are:
The Parents and Grandparents of Person on the Certificate
The Wife or Husband of the Person on the Certificate
The Children and Grandchildren of the Person on the Certificate
The Brothers or Sisters
Funeral Director
Anyone who has Legal interest in the Certificate
How Much Does it cost?
By Mail or In Person
$12 per copy. The fee includes a non-refundable search fee. If our computerized search doesn't find the record, we will search the year specified, the year before and the year after. Additional searches may be paid for at a rate of $12 per three year period.
We accept cash, check and money orders. We do not accept debit/credit cards at our walk up counter, or by mail at this time, but next to our office is an ATM machine and West Virginia United Federal Credit Union.
By Phone, Internet or Fax (Credit Card/Debit Card Only) We contract with a company named VitalChek to take expedited credit card orders. This Service requires additional fees charged by them. Order TypeFee Charged by VitalChekNon-Rush.$30.50 + shippingRush$35.50 + shippingNote: Shipping cost varies depending upon shipping method
How long does it take?
In Person Ordering in person is the fastest way to obtain a certificate. Please allow for at least fifteen minutes, even though most requests are completed much quicker. 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM is a busy time, so keep this in mind if you are coming in on your lunch break. By Mail Ordering by mail is the slowest method to obtain a certificate. Total time consists of processing time and transit time. Processing time is the time it takes the office to enter your order into its computer system, make and mail the certificate to you. Transit time is the time it takes the Post Office to deliver the mail. Processing time is usually about five business days, but can change depending upon staffing and order volume. Transit time can vary greatly. If mail within the State of West Virginia, the mail usually takes one to two days to arrive. We suggest that you allow the Post Office five to seven days for delivery. Total time is the time it takes from when you mail the request until you receive the certificate. Total time can be as short as five business days, to 19 business days or longer. By Phone, Internet or Fax (Credit Card/Debit Card Only) From two days to ten days, depending upon what options you choose when ordering the certificate
Death Certificate Requested by the Funeral Home It is our goal to file death certificates and send out the certified copies of the death certificates the same day we receive them.
How Do I Place an Order?
In Person The state vital records office offers same day walk in service. The office is located on the corners of Capitol and Washington Streets, (the old 'Diamond Department Store' building) in downtown Charleston, across the street from FedEx-Kinkos®. Our Address is 350 Capitol Street. The public entrance to the building is on Capitol Street, and we are located on the right side of the lobby. Click here for Detailed Instructions on how to purchase a certified certificate from our walk-in office By Mail Click here for Instructions on how to purchase a certified certificate by mail By Phone, Fax and Internet We offer an expedited service is available through a company called VitalChek® at an additional charge. You must pay with a credit or debit card (they accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover cards). Contacting VitalChek
Phone: 877-448-3953
For orders and customer service
Fax: 866-870-8723
For fax orders only
Internet: http://www.vitalchek.com
For Online Ordering and general information
*Before calling, it may be helpful for you to print out a copy of our Death Certificate Request form and be prepared to give all of the information, along with your credit card information, to the customer service representative.
West Virginia Death Apostille
When you are in the United States and you need to conduct this sort of business internationally, an apostille most likely will be required. There is no margin for error with the authentication or apostille process. If mistakes are made, both your time and money will be wasted and you'll have to start all over again. If you want to look into outsourcing this service to someone with experience, please email me at jared@apostillellc.com or call 848-467-7740 to request my services or learn more.
At https://casinimigliori.com, I've noticed that a clear list of who can access something saves everyone a ton of back-and-forth, so seeing the eligibility rules for a West Virginia death certificate laid out like that is genuinely helpful. It also caught my eye that the in-person option can take as little as fifteen minutes — that's a lot better than the 19 business days by mail. Anyone dealing with an apostille should check those restrictions first, or they'll hit a wall.