Death certificates can be corrected under certain circumstances prescribed by the Vital Records Act (410 ILCS 535) and 77 Ill. Adm. Code Part 500 (see LAWS & RULES to the right). Every request is unique.
Every person entitled to request a correction, must complete an Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request (see FORMS in the right-hand column). Because each request is different, additional documentation will be required and may vary, according to the type of correction requested.
In order to request a correction to a death certificate you must complete the Affidavit and Certificate of Correction Request (see FORMS in the right-hand column)in its entirety and submit it along with the following information:
A valid government issued photo identification (ID) that must be readable and is not expired/out of date (if an ID is not provided, unreadable, or expired, the request will be returned unprocessed)
To learn more about valid IDs, see RESOURCES in the right-hand column and click on IDs
To learn more about the required costs/fees, see RESOURCES in the right-hand column and click on Costs/Fees
The documents listed below are provided as general guidelines. In those cases when the documentation provided does not clearly support the change requested, you may need to obtain a court order (to learn more, see RESOURCES in the right-hand column).
Marriage/civil union record/divorce/dissolution record
Surviving spouse's birth record
Marital/civil union proof such as: federal or state tax returns, bank statements, brokerage and loan accounts, insurance policies. All proof of Marital/Civil Union Status must have existed within two years of the date of death.
Informant's marriage/civil union record
Notarized statement from both funeral homes