Chapter 10

Corrections and Amendments

 

 Section 1. General Provisions for Amendments within the First Year. See succeeding sections for specific documents.

 

 (a) Amendments of obvious errors such as transpositions of letters in words of common knowledge on certificates may be made by the State Registrar of Vital Records within the first year after the date of birth, death, marriage or divorce, either upon his or her own observation or query or upon request of a person with a direct interest in the certificate.

 

 (b) The following types of corrections may be made upon receipt of a signed statement from the person or office that filed the original certificate.

  

  (i) Corrections of typographical errors in transferring information from the worksheet or other medical record to the certificate;

  

  (ii) Clarification of inconsistent entries made in response to a query from this office;

  

  (iii) Entry of items which were previously omitted.

 

 (c) The State Registrar may require documentary evidence to substantiate any requested amendment.

 

 (d) Prior to one (1) year of the date of the birth, death, marriage, or divorce recorded on the certificate, corrections or additions may be made by lining through the incorrect information so as not to obliterate it and entering the correct information. A notation as to the source of the information, together with the date the change was made, and the initials of the authorized clerk making the change, shall be made on the certificate.

 

 (e) After an item has been amended, it can only be changed by a court order.

 

 Section 2. General Provisions for Amendments after the First Year. After one (1) year no corrections shall be made on the face of the original certificate. Unless otherwise provided in the regulations or by statute, all amendments to vital records shall be supported by an Affidavit of Correction form and one piece of documentary evidence.

 

 (a) Affidavits of Correction.

 

  (i) Affidavits of Correction must set forth information to identify the  certificate, the incorrect item(s) as it is listed on the certificate, the correct item(s) as it should appear, and a description of the evidence used to support the correction.

 

  (ii) Only those eligible to apply to correct the certificate may sign the affidavit. (See succeeding sections for who is eligible to apply.)

 

  (iii) The applicant shall not alter the affidavit.

 

  (iv) The affidavit must be signed before an official authorized to administer oaths.

 

 (b) Documentary evidence.

 

  (i) Evidence must have been established at least five (5) years prior to

the date of the first application for amendment or within seven (7) years of the date of the

event.

 

  (ii) With the exception of the item or items on the certificate to be corrected, evidence must correspond with the original certificate as to all other pertinent information.

 

  (iii) Documents used as evidence must contain the item(s) of information exactly as it is to be corrected on the certificate.

 

  (iv) Documents that have been altered will not be accepted.

 

  (v) Only one (1) document can be used as evidence. All information to be corrected must be shown on that document.

 

  (vi) A copy of a document from an organization must be certified as a true copy of the original by the custodian of the document and show the date the document was originally made.

 

  (vii) Copies of certified copies will not be accepted.

 

  (viii) Supporting evidence will be copied and returned to the applicant upon completion of the amendment.

 

  (ix) The State Registrar of Vital Records shall evaluate the evidence submitted in support of any amendment to a certificate. When he or she finds reason to question the validity or adequacy of evidence submitted, the amendment may be rejected and the applicant advised of the reasons for this action.

 

 (c) Corrections to a certificate made by affidavit must be completed within one (1) year from the date of the application for correction. After one (1) year the file will be closed. The file can be opened again by the resubmission of acceptable evidence.

 

 (d) After an item on a certificate has been amended, that item can only be amended or changed again by a court order.

 

 (e) All corrections to a certificate made by affidavit must be done at one time. Any corrections thereafter will require a court order.

 

 (f) The Affidavit of Correction shall become a part of the original certificate.

 

 (g) A certificate which has been prepared or amended by court order can only be changed or amended again by a court order.

 

 Section 3. Amendments by Court Order.

 

 (a) An item on a certificate can be changed upon receipt of a certified copy of a court order from a court of competent jurisdiction.

 

 (b) The court order must be specific as to the changes to be made on the certificate.

 

 (c) If the court order specifies that a new certificate be prepared, the original certificate and relevant correspondence shall be retained on file in Vital Records Services. The new certificate shall be prepared on the form in use at the time the original certificate was prepared if possible.

 

 (d) If the court order does not specify that a new certificate be prepared, an abstract of the court order will be attached to the existing certificate. The abstract will state the date of the order, the order number, the name and location of the court, the data appearing on the original certificate that is to be changed and the new data. The abstract will become part of the certificate.

 

 (e) The certified copy of the court order will be retained by Vital Records Services.

 

 Section 4. Birth Certificate Correction.

 

 (a) Application for correction. The following persons may apply to correct an item on the birth certificate:

 

  (i) One of the parents listed on the certificate;

 

  (ii) A legal guardian upon presentation of proof of guardianship;

 

  (iii) The registrant if of legal age;

 

  (iv) The individual responsible for preparing the certificate.

 

 (b) Correction or addition of given names.

 

  (i) Within the first year following birth, given names may be changed, added, deleted or corrected upon receipt of a signed request of the parents named on the certificate, or the guardian or agency having legal custody. Before the first birthday, the name is added to the face of the birth certificate.

 

  (ii) The child's name may be added before the child's seventh birthday on certificates bearing no given name upon receipt of a signed request of the parents named on the certificate, or the guardian or agency having legal custody. After the first birthday, the name is added by affidavit and the certificate is marked "Amended." After the seventh birthday, the name is added by affidavit and documentary evidence is required.

 

 (c) Amendment of surname.

 

  (i) The surname cannot be changed except upon receipt of a certified copy of a court order of a court of competent jurisdiction.

 

  (ii) Within the first year of birth, spelling and typographical errors may be corrected by a request signed by the parents named on the certificate, or the hospital responsible for preparing the birth certificate.

 

  (iii) After the first year spelling and typographical errors may be corrected by affidavit and documentary evidence.

 

  (iv) Surname suffixes such as Jr., II, etc. are considered part of the surname and the above rules apply.

 

 (d) Date, place and hour of birth. Within the first year of birth corrections to date, place and hour of birth may be made upon receipt of a signed statement from the hospital where the birth occurred or from the attending physician. In the absence of the above, the certifier may make the correction with acceptable evidence.

 

 (e) Sex as stated on birth certificate.

 

  (i) The sex may only be amended by receipt of a signed statement from the hospital or attending physician where the birth occurred indicating sex at birth. In the absence of the above, the State Registrar may correct the sex designation on a birth record if there is acceptable evidence that an error occurred in the recording of the person's sex at the time of birth.  If the State Registrar believes the evidence submitted by the applicant is fraudulent, inadequate, or not authentic, the application for a change to the sex designation will be denied, whereupon the applicant will be advised in writing of the State Registrar's decision.

   

 (f) If the State Registrar ascertains a correction should be made on a certificate and correction proceedings are not completed by the registrant, any copies of the certificate issued shall be stamped "Pending Correction."

 

 Section 5. Death Certificate Correction.

 

 (a) Application for correction. The following persons may apply to amend a death certificate with the exception of the medical certification:

 

  (i) Next of kin;

 

  (ii) Informant listed on certificate;

 

  (iii) Funeral director listed on certificate.

 

 (b) Marital status and surviving spouse.

 

  (i) These items will not be changed on the face of the death certificate.

 

  (ii) Changes can be made only by an Affidavit of Correction form signed by the person listed as the informant on the death certificate or upon receipt of a court order.

 

  (iii) Additional evidence may be required to substantiate the amendment.

 

 (c) The medical certification of cause of death may be changed only upon receipt of a signed statement from the physician or coroner who signed the certificate. In the case of the death or incapacity of the certifying physician, a signed statement from an associate physician with access to the medical records may be accepted. In case of the death or incapacity of the certifying coroner, a signed statement from the coroner's successor may be accepted.

 

 Section 6. Marriage Certificate Correction.

 

 (a) Application for correction. The following person may apply to amend a marriage certificate:

 

  (i) Groom;

 

  (ii) Bride;

 

  (iii) Officiant;

 

  (iv) County Clerk.

 

 (b) When marriage certificates are amended, the county clerk who issued the license shall be informed of the items corrected and what evidence was used to justify the correction.

 

 Section 7. Divorce Certificate Correction. No corrections may be made on a divorce certificate unless the court granting the divorce authorizes such corrections in a signed statement submitted to the State Registrar of Vital Records.