Washington Death Records
Washington death records are maintained by the Washington State Department of Health, Center for Health Statistics, along with local health departments in each of the state's 39 counties. If you need to find or obtain a Washington death record, you can order through the state office, contact a local county health district, or use the free Washington State Digital Archives for older certificates. The process depends on when the death happened and which county issued the record. This guide covers your main options for searching and obtaining Washington death records.
Washington Death Records Overview
Washington State Department of Health
The Washington State Department of Health, Center for Health Statistics, is the primary custodian of Washington death records. This office holds records for deaths that occurred from July 1, 1907 to the present. If a death happened more than two months ago, you order through the DOH. For very recent deaths within the last two months, contact the local health department in the county where the death occurred.
The DOH offers three types of death record products. The long form death certificate is the official document printed on certified security paper. It contains cause and manner of death and the Social Security number of the deceased. You need this version for legal purposes such as closing bank accounts, claiming life insurance, or settling an estate. The short form death certificate is also official, but it does NOT include cause of death or Social Security number. It works for vehicle title transfers, real estate transactions, and probate cases. Note that the short form is only available for deaths registered electronically from January 1, 2018 forward.
A third option is the noncertified informational copy. It carries the same data as the short form, but it has a watermark that says it cannot be used for legal purposes. The key difference is access. Anyone can request an informational copy. You do not need to prove your identity or your relationship to the deceased. This makes it useful for genealogy research and family history. It is not available for fetal death records or for the long form version of a death certificate.
The Washington DOH vital records page is your starting point when ordering a certified Washington death record through the state office in Olympia.
The DOH death certificate ordering page explains each method for obtaining a certified copy and what documents you need to provide.
Who Can Get a Death Certificate
Washington became a closed record state on January 1, 2021. Under RCW Chapter 70.58A, certified long form death certificates are restricted to qualified applicants. You must prove both your identity and your relationship to the person on the record. Qualified applicants under RCW 70.58A.530 include the deceased's spouse or domestic partner, child, parent, stepparent, stepchild, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, and great grandparent or great grandchild.
Legal representatives, authorized agents, and government agencies acting in an official capacity also qualify. A funeral director can request records within 12 months of the death. Under RCW 70.58A.540, all vital records are exempt from inspection under the Public Records Act, Chapter 42.56 RCW. You cannot view them unless you qualify under the statute or request a noncertified informational copy. All records requests require a valid government-issued photo ID at minimum.
To place a request you will need the full name of the deceased, the date of death or approximate date with at least the month and year, and the city or county where the death occurred.
The DOH certificates FAQ answers common questions about who qualifies to request Washington death records and what documents are required.
How to Order Washington Death Records
Four ordering methods are available. Online and phone orders go through VitalChek, the only approved third-party vendor for Washington vital records. In-person orders go to the DOH office in Olympia or a local county health department. Mail orders go directly to the state. Each method has different processing times and total costs.
Online or phone through VitalChek takes three to seven business days. The total starts at $40.50, which breaks down as $25 for the certificate, $8.50 for the VitalChek service fee, and $7 for a DOH processing fee. An optional identity authentication quiz adds $3, bringing the total to $43.50. Mail orders cost just $25 but take eight to ten weeks. In-person service is the fastest. Walk-in orders are often processed the same day at the DOH office or at county health departments. Contact the DOH Center for Health Statistics toll-free at 1-866-687-1464, or write to P.O. Box 9709, Olympia, WA 98507-9709. For errors on a certificate, call (360) 236-4313.
VitalChek is the state's only contracted online ordering vendor for Washington death certificates and vital records.
The Social Security Administration's program documentation covers procedures for federal agencies requesting death record verification from Washington State.
Washington State Digital Archives
For older Washington death records, the Washington State Digital Archives is a free public resource. It holds more than 49 million searchable records, including over 2.2 million death certificates from July 1, 1907 through December 31, 1996. You can search by full name, partial name, or using Soundex phonetic matching. You can filter by death year range, county, and record type. Images of these historical records are viewable online at no charge. You do not need to prove eligibility to search or view Digital Archives records.
The Digital Archives also holds the Department of Health Death Index covering 1907 to 1960 and 1965 to 2017. Pre-1907 records came from county auditor offices before statewide registration began. For example, the Seattle Municipal Health Department Death Records from 1881 to 1907 includes 19,110 entries with an index and images. All 39 counties have some pre-1907 death records in the digital system. The records were digitized in part by volunteer indexing projects including the FamilySearch Indexing Project.
The Washington State Digital Archives provides free access to over 2.2 million digitized death certificates from 1907 through the mid-1990s plus pre-1907 county records.
Washington State Archives Branches
The Washington State Archives maintains five regional branches that hold original death registers and returns from the counties each branch serves. Under RCW 70.58A.510, death records transfer to the State Archives after 25 years. Once transferred, these records are accessible to researchers at the appropriate regional branch. Each branch is open to the public. Appointments are recommended for extensive research visits.
The Northwest Regional Branch is in Bellingham at 808 25th Street. It serves Jefferson, San Juan, Island, Skagit, Whatcom, and Snohomish counties. Call (360) 650-3125 or email NWBranchArchives@sos.wa.gov. The Central Regional Branch in Ellensburg covers Kittitas, Chelan, Douglas, and Okanogan counties at (509) 963-2136. The Southwest Regional Branch in Olympia handles Pacific, Grays Harbor, Thurston, and Mason counties at (360) 753-1684. The Eastern Regional Branch is in Cheney at 960 Washington Street and serves Stevens, Ferry, Pend Oreille, Asotin, Spokane, and Whitman counties at (509) 235-7508. The Puget Sound Regional Branch in Bellevue covers King, Kitsap, and Pierce counties at (253) 590-5806.
The Washington State Archives system maintains five regional branches that hold original county death registers going back to the territorial period before 1907.
Washington Vital Records Law
Washington death records are governed by RCW Chapter 70.58A, the Vital Statistics Act. This chapter took effect January 1, 2021, replacing the earlier Chapter 70.58. It sets out who can obtain certified copies, what fees apply, how records are retained, and when they transfer to the archives. The law also defines penalties for violations and establishes the registration system used statewide.
The standard fee for a certification or informational copy is $25 per RCW 70.58A.560. This fee cannot be waived except in specific situations. The exceptions include Veterans Administration compensation claims, deaths of registered sex offenders when requested by law enforcement, and birth certificates for persons experiencing homelessness or children receiving food assistance benefits. Under RCW 70.58A.540, all vital records are exempt from the Public Records Act. No person may inspect, disclose, or copy vital records except as authorized by the statute.
RCW Chapter 70.58A is the controlling Washington law for death records. It covers eligibility, fees, confidentiality, and transfer of records to the state archives.
The complete text of RCW 70.58A at the Washington State Legislature site covers the full legal framework for how death records are created, maintained, and accessed in Washington.
Library and Genealogy Resources
The Washington State Library holds more than 50,000 reels of microfilm covering Washington newspapers from the territorial period to the present. The library maintains a Death Index on microfilm from July 1, 1907 through 2004, organized by the Soundex system. You can submit specific lookup requests through the Ask-A-Librarian service, and staff will search microfilm reels if you provide a date range. A free obituary lookup service is also available for Washington State newspapers in the library's collection. This can fill gaps when the official death certificate is restricted or unavailable.
The Washington State Historical Society in Tacoma at 1911 Pacific Avenue maintains collections including artifacts, photographs, ephemera, and archival materials related to Washington State from prehistoric times to present. Their searchable databases include keyword search with Boolean operators, phrase search, and accession number search. Columbia Magazine, published by the society for more than 20 years, covers Northwest history and has searchable PDFs of past issues available online. County-level genealogical societies operate in most Washington counties and can provide obituary lookups, cemetery records, and local history research assistance.
The Washington State Historical Society maintains searchable collections and archives that can supplement official death record searches across all 39 counties.
The Washington State Library's genealogy section includes a microfilm death index from 1907 to 2004 and an obituary lookup service covering Washington newspaper archives.
Federal Reference for Washington Records
The CDC Where to Write for Vital Records guide for Washington confirms that the Center for Health Statistics holds records from July 1, 1907 forward. The CDC lists the DOH phone as (360) 236-4300 and the mailing address as Department of Health, Center for Health Statistics, P.O. Box 9709, Olympia, WA 98507-9709. For deaths before 1907, the CDC recommends contacting the county auditor in the county where the death occurred. The CDC guide is a useful cross-reference when you need to confirm the correct agency to contact.
The CDC maintains a state-by-state vital records guide that confirms official contact information for obtaining Washington death certificates.
Washington Courts and Probate Records
Death often triggers court proceedings, especially when an estate is involved. The Washington Courts directory lists all Superior Courts in the state. Superior Court clerks maintain probate filings, estate proceedings, and other court records tied to deaths. If a person died with or without a will, the estate case is usually filed at the Superior Court in the county where they lived. Court records are generally public unless sealed by a judge. You can search probate and estate cases through the county clerk or through the statewide Washington Courts case search tool. These records often contain the date of death, county of residence, a list of assets, and the names of heirs or beneficiaries.
The Washington courts directory is the starting point for locating probate and estate records that may contain death-related information in any of the state's 39 counties.
Browse Washington Death Records by Location
Counties
Every Washington county has a local health department or health district that handles death certificates for deaths that occurred within that county. Browse by county to find specific contact information, office hours, fees, and procedures.
View All 39 Washington Counties →
Cities
Washington cities do not issue their own death records. Residents use the county health district that covers their area. Browse by city to find which office handles records for your location and what the process looks like locally.