Virginia § 32.1-273 - Fees for certified copies, searches of files, etc.; disposition

§ 32.1-273. Fees for certified copies, searches of files, etc.; disposition

A. The Board shall prescribe the fee, not to exceed $12, for a certified copy of a vital record or for a search of the files or records when no copy is made and may establish a reasonable fee schedule related to its cost for information or other data provided for research, statistical or administrative purposes. Whenever any veteran or his survivor requires a certified copy of a vital record to obtain service-connected benefits, one copy of such record shall be provided directly to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs upon their request, one copy shall be provided to the Department of Veterans Services upon their request, and one copy shall be provided to the veteran or his surviving spouse upon request. Upon request of the surviving spouse of a veteran, the funeral director or funeral service licensee providing funeral services for the veteran may obtain one certified copy of the death certificate for service-connected benefits. No charge shall be imposed upon a veteran or his survivor for a copy related to obtaining service-connected benefits.

B. Fees collected under this section by the State Registrar shall be transmitted to the Comptroller for deposit. Two dollars of each fee collected by the State Registrar shall be deposited by the Comptroller into the Vital Statistics Automation Fund established pursuant to § 32.1-273.1 for so long as shall be authorized. Ten dollars of each fee shall be credited to a special fund to be appropriated by the General Assembly, as it deems necessary, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this chapter. When the Vital Statistics Automation System is completed, no further deposits into the fund shall be made and all fees collected under this section not credited to the special fund created by this subsection shall be deposited into the general fund of the state treasury.

C. The Department of Motor Vehicles shall collect a fee of $12 for each certified copy of a vital record that it issues and shall transmit all such fees to the State Registrar on a monthly basis to ensure that the State Registrar recovers all costs associated with the issuance of certified copies of vital records at Department of Motor Vehicles facilities. In addition, for each certified copy of a vital record that it issues, the Department of Motor Vehicles shall collect a processing fee of $2 as provided in § 46.2-205.2.

D. Fees collected under this section by county and city registrars shall be deposited in the general fund of the county or city except that counties or cities operating health departments pursuant to the provisions of § 32.1-31 shall forward all such fees to the Department for deposit in the cooperative local health services fund.

E. Fees assessed against local departments of social services for furnished copies of vital records as needed to administer public assistance and social services programs, as defined in § 63.2-100, shall be payable on a quarterly basis.

F. No fees shall be assessed against homeless youth, as described in subdivision A 7 of § 22.1-3, for a furnished copy of a vital record.

Code 1950, § 32-353.28; 1950, p. 484; 1954, c. 429; 1956, c. 412; 1958, c. 296; 1960, c. 451; 1978, c. 308; 1979, c. 711; 1981, c. 527; 1983, c. 240; 1986, c. 194; 1988, c. 287; 1994, c. 373; 2002, c. 747; 2011, cc. 94, 148; 2013, c. 534; 2020, c. 360; 2025, cc. 181, 315.