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New Jersey public records: who holds what

In New Jersey, deeds are recorded by the County Clerk; birth and death certificates come from the Local Registrar / NJ Department of Health, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry; and requests for other government records fall under the Open Public Records Act (OPRA). Below: who holds every other record, what copies cost and the official link for each office.

Last checked against official sources on .

On this page
  1. Who holds what in New Jersey
  2. Public records law in New Jersey
  3. Court records in New Jersey
  4. Divorce records in New Jersey
  5. How New Jersey organizes its records
  6. Other records: background checks, voters, businesses, maps
  7. Counties in New Jersey
  8. Warnings from official sources
  9. Official copies vs look-alike sites
  10. Official directories
  11. Sources

Who holds what in New Jersey

The office that keeps each record, and the fee the law or the office sets for a copy. Open a record type for the full rules, ordering steps and older records.

RecordWho holds itCopy fee
DeedsCounty Clerk in most counties; in Essex County, a separate Register of Deeds and Mortgages; State forms use the term 'county recording officer'.1County example: $2.00 per page for copies of recorded documents (Union: 'Copy of any document – Each page $2.00'; Camden: 'Land/Business Records $2.00'); Camden self-service copies $0.05 letter / $0.07 legal2
Property recordsMunicipal tax assessor sets each property's value (assessments are local, per municipality)3—
Court recordsState judicial branch (not county government): Supreme Court, Superior Court of New Jersey (with county-based vicinages), municipal courts and the Administrative Office of the Courts; the Tax Court hears property-tax appeals. Court records are kept by the judiciary, not by the County Clerk.4—
Marriage recordsLocal Registrar of the municipality where the marriage took place, or the NJ Department of Health Office of Vital Statistics and Registry (Trenton). Licenses are issued by the local registrar of the municipality where either party lives.5$25 (search + one certified copy or certification or No Record Statement); $2 each additional copy of same record ordered at same time6
Divorce recordsSuperior Court of New Jersey (Family Part); certified copies of divorce judgments come from the Superior Court Records Center (609-421-6100), not from Vital Statistics7—
Birth certificatesLocal Registrar (vital records office) of the municipality where the birth occurred, or the NJ Department of Health, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry. The state holds the most recent 100 years; older records are at the NJ State Archives.5$25 search + one certified copy/certification/No Record Statement; $2 each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time6
Death certificatesLocal Registrar of the municipality where the death occurred, or the NJ DOH Office of Vital Statistics and Registry8$25 first; $2 each additional copy same order6
Probate and willsCounty Surrogate in each of the 21 counties. The Surrogate is elected for 5 years, serves as Judge of the Surrogate's Court and Deputy Clerk of the Superior Court, Chancery Division, Probate Part. Some matters, such as admitting a copy of a lost will, go to the Superior Court.9—

Public records law in New Jersey

Open Public Records Act (OPRA) (N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq. (P.L. 2001, c. 404, as amended by P.L. 2024, c.16, effective September 3, 2024)) Read the law10

This law covers records that agencies hold, such as a county office's correspondence or a property file. Recorded deeds, vital records and court files usually have their own rules, set out in each record section.

Who can ask
Anyone, including commercial and out-of-state requestors; anonymous requests allowed (except for victims' records), but anonymous requestors cannot file a GRC complaint4
Response time
7 business days after the custodian receives the request (day 1 = the business day after receipt); no response in time = deemed denial. Exceptions: 'immediate access' records (budgets, bills, vouchers, contracts, salary/overtime) immediately if 24 months old or less; commercial-purpose requests 14 business days (requestor must be told within 7); certain election records within 2 business days; time frames suspended during declared emergencies.4
Copy fees
$0.05 per letter-size page or smaller; $0.07 per legal-size page or larger (flat rate; 'actual cost' above this removed by P.L. 2024, c.16), unless another law or regulation sets a different fee. Records sent by e-mail or fax are free; actual cost of media (flash drive, CD, DVD) may be charged. A special service charge may apply for extensive technology use or labor (e.g., medium conversion).4
If a request is refused
Choose ONE: (1) Denial of Access Complaint with the Government Records Council within 45 calendar days of the denial (not available to anonymous requestors), or (2) action in Superior Court. GRC final decisions may be appealed to the Appellate Division within 45 calendar days; reconsideration may be requested from the GRC within 10 business days.4
What is exempt
nj.gov/… Nearly 40 exemptions, listed by the GRC. They include: personal information such as SSNs, credit/debit card and bank account numbers, month and day of birth, personal e-mail addresses, telephone numbers and driver's license numbers; trade secrets; attorney-client privileged records; personal firearms records; victims' records (to anonymous requestors); records of ongoing investigations where disclosure would harm the public interest; certain election records; Daniel's Law home-address protection for judges, police and prosecutors and their families11
Official guide
nj.gov/grc/public/citizens (Citizen's Guide to OPRA, Fifth Edition, October 2024; published by the Government Records Council in the Department of Community Affairs, not the Attorney General)12
More on the Open Public Records Act (OPRA)
Response time commercial
14 business days for commercial-purpose requests; custodian must notify the requestor of the extra time within 7 business days4
Response clock start
Clock starts the business day after the custodian receives the request form or complete written equivalent4
Immediate access
Budgets, bills, vouchers, contracts (incl. collective negotiations and employment contracts) and public employee salary/overtime information must ordinarily be released immediately; records older than 24 months are not subject to immediate access4
No answer in time
No response within the applicable time frame = request deemed denied4
Fees electronic
E-mail and fax delivery free; actual cost of supplies only4
Fees other law
Where another statute sets a fee (e.g., N.J.S.A. 22A:4-1a for certain records), that fee applies instead of the OPRA page rate; this is why county clerk recorded-document copies cost more than $0.05/page4
Request format
Must be in writing (hand-delivered, mailed, electronic); no verbal requests. Requestors should use the agency's official OPRA form, or a letter/e-mail containing all information required on that form, including the commercial-purpose and legal-proceeding certifications. Send to the agency that holds the records (GRC is not a central repository).4
Request format written
Written only4
Model form
nj.gov/… GRC model/official OPRA request form (fillable PDF, 2024-9-3)13
Appeal cannot do both
Requestor must pick Superior Court or the GRC, not both4
Appeal further
Appellate Division within 45 calendar days of a GRC final decision4
Who handles complaints
Government Records Council, 101 S. Broad Street, P.O. Box 819, Trenton, NJ 08625-0819; (609) 292-6830; toll-free (866) 850-0511; [email protected]4
Courts
Judicial branch (Supreme Court, Superior Court, municipal courts, Administrative Office of the Courts) is not subject to OPRA; courts have their own records-disclosure policies4
Other access routes
Common-law right of access and litigation discovery are separate from OPRA; challenges go to Superior Court, not the GRC4
Daniels law
Daniel's Law (P.L. 2020, c. 125) shields home addresses and unpublished phone numbers of 'covered persons' (active/retired judges, law-enforcement officers, prosecutors and their immediate families, and others defined by law). Registration with the NJ Office of Information Privacy (DCA) leads agencies, including county clerks, to redact the information.14

How to write a public records request

Court records in New Jersey

Court system
State judicial branch (not county government): Supreme Court, Superior Court of New Jersey (with county-based vicinages), municipal courts and the Administrative Office of the Courts; the Tax Court hears property-tax appeals. Court records are kept by the judiciary, not by the County Clerk.4
Not at county clerk
County Clerks redirect court and divorce record requests to the courts15
Not at county clerk (Essex)
Essex: court matters go to the Clerk of the Superior Court1
FOIA
Courts are outside OPRA; they have their own records rules4

How this works in other states: court records by state.

Divorce records in New Jersey

Who holds it
Superior Court of New Jersey (Family Part); certified copies of divorce judgments come from the Superior Court Records Center (609-421-6100), not from Vital Statistics7
Contact
Records Center phone 609-421-61007
Official how to
njcourts.gov/… (linked by NJ DOH)7

How this works in other states: divorce records by state.

How New Jersey organizes its records

  • Municipal local registrars hold vital records. Birth, death and marriage records are issued by the Local Registrar of the municipality (city/town/township) where the event occurred, as well as by the state office. Local fees vary.5
  • Essex County Register of Deeds and Mortgages. In Essex County, deeds and mortgages are recorded by a separate Register of Deeds and Mortgages, not the County Clerk.1
  • County Surrogate = probate court. Each county elects a Surrogate who probates wills and also serves as deputy clerk of the Superior Court's Probate Part.9
  • Three-layer property tax system. Municipal assessor (value) → County Board of Taxation (appeals, rates) → Tax Court of New Jersey; bills come from the municipality.16
  • Daniel's Law redactions. Home addresses of covered judges, police and prosecutors and their families are redacted from county records and state GIS/tax-list data. Owner names are redacted from all NJOGIS parcel data.17
  • Jersey City vital records. Jersey City's City Clerk Division of Vital Records issues birth certificates for Jersey City births after 1925.18
  • Courts outside OPRA. The judiciary is not subject to OPRA; court records are requested under court rules.4

Other records: background checks, voters, businesses, maps

Criminal history checks

State repository
New Jersey State Police (state criminal history repository; fingerprint checks go through NJSP and the FBI)19
Who may order
Online Form 212A: only for checks required by a local police department or state agency for employment, licensing or local ordinances; the applicant must first get the agency's ORI number. The record is sent to the agency, not to the applicant, and the form cannot be used for a personal background check.20
Fee
$20.00 per online Form 212A submission (non-criminal-justice name check for licensing/employment requested through a local police department or state agency ORI). No refunds for rejected forms.20
How to request
Agency-required checks: online Form 212A at njportal.com/NJSP/CriminalRecords after getting the ORI number from the local police department or state licensing agency; pay $20 by card.20

Sex offender registry

Official registry
NJ State Police Sex Offender Internet Registry: njsp.org/sex-offender-registry/index.shtml (redirects to njsp.njoag.gov)21

Inmate and jail lookups

State prisons
NJ Department of Corrections Offender Search Engine: www-doc.state.nj.us/… (also escapees ?i=E)22
Removal policy
Offenders are removed from the DOC Offender Search one year after their custodial term ends (maximum sentence date or mandatory parole supervision date); people sentenced to Community Supervision for Life or Parole Supervision for Life are not removed.22

Voter records

Public or restricted
Voter registration lists can be purchased from county officials. Examples: Essex County Clerk, $0.25 per election district (lists show municipality, ward, district, party affiliation, voter name and street address); Camden County Clerk, election street list $0.25 per district.23
Fields (Essex)
Municipality, ward, district, party affiliation, voter name, street address23
Fee (Camden)
$0.25 per district street list24
Check your registration
'Am I Registered?' at voter.svrs.nj.gov/registration-check25
State agency
NJ Department of State, Division of Elections. Counties have a Superintendent of Elections/Commissioner of Registration, a County Clerk and a Board of Elections.26

Business names (DBA)

DBA at county
Sole proprietorships and general partnerships file a Trade Name Certificate with the County Clerk of the county where the business operates27
Fee (Union)
$54.00 trade name filing; $27.00 cancellation (Union)27
Fee (Camden)
$57.00 registration; $25.00 dissolution; $4.00 certified copy (Camden)24
Entities at state
Corporations, LLCs, LPs, LLPs and nonprofits are on file with the NJ Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services (DORES), Treasury, which also handles business entities' alternate names (status reports and standing certificates are searchable online)28
State search
njportal.com/DOR/businessrecords DORES Business Records Service (njportal.com/DOR/businessrecords): entity search, standing certificates, copies, trade/service mark status29

Liens and UCC filings

UCC central
njportal.com/UCC NJ Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services (State Treasurer is filing officer); filings must be electronic since July 1, 2015 unless exempt; online certified and non-certified searches at njportal.com/UCC30
UCC search
Certified Search and Non-Certified Search options on the DORES UCC portal31
Liens at the county
County recording office records federal tax liens, construction liens, lis pendens, tax sale certificates, and UCC financing statements. Camden: federal tax lien $25.00; construction lien $15.00; UCC filings and name searches $25.00.24
County UCC
Camden County Clerk UCC filings and searches $25.0024

GIS and parcel maps

State GIS portal
NJ Office of GIS: NJGIN (nj.gov/njgin) and NJGIN Open Data (njogis-newjersey.opendata.arcgis.com)32
Parcel data
Statewide parcel composite built from county data and aligned with Treasury MOD-IV tax list. Downloads: 'Parcels and MOD-IV Composite' and the Property Explorer app. Not survey data; owner names redacted (Daniel's Law).17
Owner redaction
Owner names redacted from all hosted parcel and tax-list data17
Not legal
Parcel polygons are not legal boundaries17
Property explorer
newjersey.maps.arcgis.com/… Property Explorer app17

Historical and genealogy records

State archives
New Jersey State Archives (Department of State), 225 West State Street, Trenton; open to the public free of charge, with fees for copies33
Vital holdings
Births May 1, 1848–Dec 31, 1925; marriages and deaths May 1, 1848–Dec 31, 1950. Later records are owned by NJ DOH.34
Deeds
Microfilm of all county deeds up to 1900 (originals stay with counties)34
Wills
Original wills and inventories 1670–1900; microfilm to 195234
Certified copy fee
$25.00 per document to certify an original record the Archives owns, plus copy and research fees35
More about historical and genealogy records
Indexes
wwwdnet-dos.nj.gov/… Searchable databases and request forms on the Archives database portal (wwwdnet-dos.nj.gov/DOS_ArchivesDBPortal)33
Pre1848births
No government birth records before 1848 except Records of Births of Slave Children filed with County Clerks from 180434
Vital records for genealogy
DOH Office of Vital Statistics holds the most recent 100 years; older records go to the State Archives36

Counties in New Jersey

20 counties with a full guide

Each guide lists the office for every record type, the official online searches, copy fees, phones and hours.

All 21 counties

Names in bold open our guide. Names with an arrow go to the county's own website, where the US Census Bureau lists one and it opened when we checked.37

Warnings from official sources

  • Property/deed fraud: free county Property Fraud Alert. Burlington explains how deed fraud works (scammers forge documents to take title) and urges owners to use the free alert and the free online search (Burlington County Clerk)38
  • Union County free Property Fraud Alert. Free alert program; seniors are often targeted (Union County Clerk)14
  • Essex RECORD ALERT (free). Free notification when documents are recorded under your name or block and lot (Essex County Register of Deeds and Mortgages)39

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 New Jersey office. How to tell an official record source from a paid look-alike.

Official directories

Lists that name the office in every county.

Sources

Every fact above links to the official page it comes from; all 41 sources were checked on November 4, 2026. Fees and rules change, so check the office's own page before you pay or travel.

  1. Essex County Clerk homeEssex County Clerk
  2. Fee SchedulesUnion County Clerk
  3. How Property is Valued for Property Tax PurposesNJ Division of Taxation
  4. A Citizen's Guide to the Open Public Records Act, Fifth EditionNJ Government Records Council (Dept. of Community Affairs)
  5. Vital Statistics Frequently Asked QuestionsNJ Department of Health
  6. Fees at a GlanceNJ Department of Health
  7. Divorce DecreesNJ Department of Health
  8. Frequently Asked QuestionsUnion County Surrogate
  9. About the SurrogateUnion County Surrogate
  10. Readable Version of OPRANJ Government Records Council
  11. OPRA's Exemptions from DisclosureNJ Government Records Council
  12. Citizen's Guide to OPRA (landing page)NJ Government Records Council
  13. Government Records Council homeNJ Government Records Council
  14. County ClerkUnion County Clerk
  15. County ClerkBurlington County
  16. Assessment and AppealsNJ Division of Taxation
  17. ParcelsNJ Office of GIS
  18. Jersey City/Hudson County Birth RecordsNJ Department of Health
  19. Office of Student Protection - Criminal History ReviewNJ Department of Education
  20. Request for a Criminal History Record Information for a Noncriminal Justice Purposes (NJSP)New Jersey State Police (via NJ official portal njportal.com)
  21. NJSP Sex Offender Registry redirect pageNJ State Police (nj.gov legacy page)
  22. DOC site script for Offender Search Engine linkNJ Department of Corrections
  23. Voter Registration ListsEssex County Clerk
  24. Registration of Deeds and Mortgages FeesCamden County Clerk
  25. NJ Voter Information PortalNJ Division of Elections
  26. County Election OfficialsNJ Division of Elections
  27. Business Trade NamesUnion County Clerk
  28. Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services homeNJ Treasury, DORES
  29. Business Records ServiceNJ Treasury, DORES (njportal.com)
  30. UCC Special Announcement (eMandate)NJ Treasury, DORES
  31. UCC Online ServicesNJ Treasury, DORES (njportal.com)
  32. NJ Geographic Information NetworkNJ Office of GIS
  33. New Jersey State Archives homeNJ Department of State, State Archives
  34. Genealogical CollectionsNJ State Archives
  35. Reproduction ServicesNJ State Archives
  36. Getting Copies of Genealogical RecordsNJ Department of Health
  37. Government Units List 2026US Census Bureau
  38. Property Fraud ProtectionBurlington County Clerk
  39. Records & IndexingEssex County Register of Deeds and Mortgages
  40. County Boards of Taxation contactsNJ Division of Taxation
  41. County and Municipal Web SitesState of New Jersey (NJ.gov)