How to order a Kansas death certificate
Who holds it: KDHE Office of Vital Statistics (deaths from July 1, 1911); earlier: Kansas Historical Society / county registers1
On this page
Fee
$20 per certified copy (five-year search fee; retained if no record found); +$15 VitalChek or +$5 IKAN1
Who may order
Same direct-interest rule as births (not public records)2
Related records in Kansas
- Birth certificates: who holds it
- KDHE Office of Vital Statistics, 1000 SW Jackson, Suite 120, Topeka, KS 66612-2221 (statewide, births from July 1, 1911; some delayed certificates back to the 1860s). Pre-1911 county registers: Kansas Historical Society.3
- Birth certificates: fee
- $20 per certified copy (each additional copy of same record also $20); the first $20 is a five-year search fee retained if no record is found3
- Probate: who holds it
- District court of the county (probate is handled by the district court; wills may be filed for safekeeping with an affidavit in the district court of the decedent's last residence)4
- Older records: vital records for genealogy
- Statewide birth/death records start July 1, 1911 (KDHE); before 1885 very few county records — use Kansas state/federal censuses (every five years 1855–1930) and probate indexes5
How Kansas handles it
- Marriage and divorce records are public at the district court but the KDHE copies are restricted vital records6
Death certificates in Kansas counties with a full guide
The local office, its official online search and its own fee, for each county with a full guide. Local fees can differ from the statewide figures above.
| County | Office | Search online | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson County | Not held by the county; Kansas Office of Vital Statistics (785-296-1400)7 | — | — |
| Leavenworth County | — | — | — |
| Sedgwick County | KDHE Office of Vital Statistics (deaths recorded since 07/01/1911)8 | — | — |
| Shawnee County | KDHE Office of Vital Statistics9 | — | $20 per certified copy (KDHE)10 |
| Wyandotte County | KDHE Office of Vital Statistics, Topeka (state); deaths filed from July 1, 191111 | — | — |
For any other county, see the county list on the Kansas guide.
Official copies vs look-alike sites
A certified copy comes only from the office that holds the record; reports and "research copies" sold by commercial sites are not issued by any Kansas office. How to tell an official record source from a paid look-alike.
Rules in other states: death certificates in every state. Everything else in Kansas: Kansas public records guide.
Sources
Every fact above links to the official page it comes from. Fees and rules change, so check the office's own page before you pay or travel.
- KDHE — Death CertificateKansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Office of Vital Statisticschecked November 4, 2026
- KDHE Office of Vital Statistics — home (eligibility)Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Office of Vital Statisticschecked November 4, 2026
- KDHE — Birth CertificateKansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Office of Vital Statisticschecked November 4, 2026
- K.S.A. 59-618a — Filing of wills in district court with affidavitKansas Office of Revisor of Statutes (ksrevisor.gov; www.ksrevisor.org redirects here)checked November 4, 2026
- Kansas Historical Society — Kansas vital records (genealogy)Kansas Historical Societychecked November 4, 2026
- KDHE — Marriage CertificateKansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Office of Vital Statisticschecked November 4, 2026
- District Court - Records RequestJohnson County District Courtchecked November 4, 2026
- KORA - Birth and Death RecordsSedgwick County, Kansaschecked November 4, 2026
- Birth CertificateKansas Department of Health and Environmentchecked November 4, 2026
- Death CertificateKansas Department of Health and Environmentchecked November 4, 2026
- KDHE — Death CertificateKansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Office of Vital Statisticschecked November 6, 2026