Orlando Obituary Lookup

Orlando obituary and death records are handled by the Orange County Department of Health vital records office. With about 335,000 residents, Orlando is the county seat of Orange County and sits in the heart of Central Florida. The main DOH office on W Church Street in downtown Orlando keeps death certificates from 2009 to the present. Orange County also runs branch locations at Clarcona-Ocoee and the Health Campus, giving Orlando area residents more than one place to go. Death record requests are processed on a walk-in basis at these offices during regular business hours.

Orange County DOH Vital Records

The Orange County Department of Health is the main office for death certificates in Orlando. The downtown location on W Church Street is easy to reach and sits near the Orange County courthouse. Walk-in visits are welcome. Staff process most death certificate requests the same day. Orange County charges $10 for a certified death certificate, which is one of the lower fees in Florida.

Orange County has branch offices that also handle vital records requests. The Clarcona-Ocoee location and the Health Campus location serve the western and northern parts of the Orlando metro area. If the downtown office is too far or too busy, these branches offer the same services. Call the main number at 407-858-1460 to check branch hours and availability before you make the trip for Orlando death records.

Getting Death Records in Orlando

There are three main ways to get death records in Orlando. You can go to the Orange County DOH office in person. You can mail in a request. Or you can order online. Each option has different costs and wait times, so pick the one that fits your situation best.

In-person visits are the fastest option for Orlando residents. Bring a valid photo ID to the W Church Street office, fill out the request form, and pay the $10 fee. Most requests take about 20 minutes to process. For deaths before 2009, the local office cannot help. Those records are at the state Bureau of Vital Statistics in Jacksonville. You can request older records by mail using Form DH727 from the Florida DOH.

The City of Orlando website links to various county and state services, though the city itself does not issue death certificates. It is a good starting point for finding the right office and forms. For online orders, VitalChek is the approved vendor. The fee is $15 for the first copy plus a $7 processing charge. Call 1-877-550-7330 to order by phone.

Orlando Obituary Search Tips

Obituaries in Orlando are most commonly found in the Orlando Sentinel, which has been the main local newspaper for over a century. The Orange County Library System keeps archives of the Sentinel and other local papers. Many branches have microfilm readers and digital newspaper databases you can use at no charge. Library staff can help you locate specific obituary notices by date or name in Orlando.

For historical records going back further, the Florida Memory project has digitized collections from the State Archives. These include vital records indexes, military service cards, and pension files. Some of these records reference deaths of Orlando area residents from the early 1900s and even earlier. The collection is searchable online, so you do not need to travel to the archives in Tallahassee.

Funeral homes in the Orlando area also hold records of services they have performed. If you know which funeral home handled the arrangements, a phone call or visit can turn up details that the official death certificate does not include. This is especially true for older deaths in Orlando where records may be incomplete or hard to track down through the DOH.

Who Can Get Orlando Death Records

Florida law splits death certificates into two types. The version without cause of death is public. Any person 18 or older can get it. No family connection is needed. This version is fine for most uses in Orlando, like settling estates, filing insurance claims, or researching family history. Just bring your ID and the fee to the Orange County DOH.

The cause-of-death version is confidential for 50 years from the date of death. Under Florida Statutes Chapter 382, only close family and legal representatives can get it. You must prove your relationship. A court order can also open up access to this version if you have a valid legal need. Most people requesting death records in Orlando will be fine with the public version.

The state's broad public records law under Chapter 119 makes sure the Orange County DOH must provide non-confidential records to anyone who pays the fee. You do not have to give a reason for wanting a death record in Orlando.

Orlando Death Certificate Fees

The fee schedule for death certificates in Orlando is set by Orange County. It is one of the more affordable counties in the state. Here is what you can expect to pay:

• Orange County DOH certified copy: $10
• State bureau search and one copy (mail): $5
• State bureau extra copies: $4 each
• State rush processing: $10
• VitalChek online: $15 plus $7 processing

At $10 per certified copy, the Orange County fee is among the lowest in Florida. For people who need many copies of the same Orlando death record, the state bureau route is even cheaper. The $5 search fee plus $4 per extra copy beats the local rate when you need three or more. For a quick single copy, though, the W Church Street office in Orlando is the fastest and simplest choice.

Orange County Obituary Records

Orlando is the county seat of Orange County, one of the fastest-growing counties in Florida. The county DOH handles all death records for Orlando and nearby communities. For more details on the county office, additional fee information, and resources for death record searches across all of Orange County, check the county page.

View Orange County Obituary Records

Nearby Cities

These cities near Orlando also have obituary and death record information. Each page covers the local DOH office and how to access records in that area.