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Death Certificates

In many cases, records for individuals who died in New Hampshire are available from the City or Town Clerk in your community.  If the death occurred in Manchester, NH or occurred in New Hampshire sometime after 1965, you will likely be able to obtain a certified copy of the death certificate at our office located at One City Hall Plaza or from the New Hampshire Bureau of Vital Records.

Purchase Death Certificates Online Credit Card Only


Confidentiality

Death records are considered private and confidential, with access limited to those individuals who have a "direct and tangible" interest in the record. The only exception is death records more than 50 years old which are considered public and are opened to the public.

Copies of death records may only be obtained by the registrant, a member of his/her immediate family, guardian, funeral director or a representative with a "direct and tangible interest" such as an attorney. In order to determine if the "legal representative" may have access to the record, the direct and tangible interest must be listed in any written correspondence with a copy of such legal document being provided.

Definition of Immediate Family:  Mother, father, son, daughter, brother, sister, husband, wife, grandfather, grandmother, grandson, granddaughter, great-grandmother, great-grandfather, nephew, niece or any spouse of divorced or legally separated person or person whose former marriage has been annulled. It shall not include cousins.


Penalty

Any person shall be guilty of a Class B Felony if he/she willfully and knowingly makes any false statement in an application for a certified copy of a vital record (NH RSA 126:24).


Fees

The fees for a certified death certificate is $15.00 for the first copy and $10.00 for each additional copy requested at the same time for the same record. When requesting a copy of a death certificate by mail, please make sure you indicate whether you need it with the cause of death or without the cause of death. Please make check or money order payable to the City of Manchester.  If you are coming in person, we also accept credit cards.  Please note that if you use a credit card, there is an additional fee of $1.95 or 2.75% of the transaction amount (whichever is greater).


Applying for a Certified Copy of a Death Certificate

In Person - You may come down to the Office of the City Clerk, One City Hall Plaza, Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.  You will need to provide photo identification and complete a request form.

Online - You may click on the “Purchase Death Certificates Online” button above.  You will be required to email a copy of your photo identification. 

By Mail - You may complete the application form Request for Death Certificate and send with proper payment to the Office of the City Clerk, One City Hall Plaza, Manchester, NH 03101.  A self-addressed return envelope with the appropriate postage affixed is required to process all mail requests.

If the record is not found, the office will retain the $15.00 for each record requested and notify you that the record was not found.

The State of NH requires a copy of a valid photo identification for the individual applying for the death certificate before a record will be released.

If you do not have valid photo identification this documentary evidence form needs to be completed and the documents are to be provided.


Amending a Death Certificate

Sometimes a person may find that the information on the official death record is not correct or information is missing. If this is the case, it is possible to have the official record corrected or information added. There is a fee of $10.00 for any correction to a death record if the correction is not done within 14 days from the file date. It must be done in person in the town or city in which the death occurred.

There are special forms that need to be completed and you may be required to provide additional documentation in order to correct the record. Please contact the Office of the City Clerk at (603) 624-6455 or by with any questions you may have regarding amending a death record.

1880s Permission to Remove Body
Burial Permit Form