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Tangible Interest |
Birth Certificate
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Death Certificate |
Marriage License |
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Who has Tangible Interest |
How to obtain a Certified Birth
Certificate |
How to obtain a Certified Death
Certificate |
Instructions for Completing
Marriage License Application |
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What is Tangible Interest |
What is a Non-Certified Copy |
What is a Non-Certified Copy |
Application to Request a Certified
Record of Marriage |
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Why Tangible Interest |
How to obtain a Non-Certified Copy |
How to obtain a Non-Certified Copy |
Search for a Minnesota Marriage
Certificate |
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Changing (amending) a Birth Record |
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How to request an amendment |
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Tangible Interest |
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What is the Tangible Interest Law
and when is it effective? |
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Minnesota Statutes, section 144.255, subdivision 7, restricts access to a
certified birth or death certificate to a person who has a tangible interest in
the requested certificate. This is a new law that is effective August 1, 2000. |
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Who has Tangible Interest? |
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You have tangible interest in a certificate: |
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if you are the subject of the
certificate; |
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if you are the child, grandchild,
spouse, parent, grandparent, legal custodian, or guardian of the subject;
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if you are a personal representative
of the estate of the subject; or |
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if you are the person who filed or a
representative of the organization that filed the birth or death information
with the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) or a local registrar. |
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You may also be issued
a certificate if a person who has tangible interest authorized you to receive
the certificate or if you can demonstrate to the state registrar that the
certificate is necessary for the determination or protection of a personal or
property right. |
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A local, state, or federal government agency may be issued a certificate if it
is necessary for the governmental agency to perform its authorized duties. |
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Why Tangible Interest? |
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Tangible interest is a fraud protection measure. The prevalence of fraud is on
the rise and most Minnesota birth and death records are public data. Tangible
interest helps protect people who are born in Minnesota and the families of
people who die in Minnesota by restricting access to the certificates that are
used for most legal purposes such as school registration, applying for a
passport or a social security number, or settling an estate. |
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Tangible interest does not change the classification of the data. Public data is
still public. Access to private or confidential data is still restricted. |
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For more information, contact the Office of the State Registrar at
(612)676-5120, by email at
chs1@health.state.mn.us or by mail to: |
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Minnesota Department of
Health, Office of the State Registrar, P. O. Box 9441, Minneapolis, MN
55440-9441. |
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Birth Certificate |
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How to obtain a Certified Birth
Certificate |
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In
Person:
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You may request a Certified Birth
Certificate from a local registrar at a county office or
from MDH. |
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If you request the certificate in person, you will be asked to complete and sign
an application stating that you have
tangible interest in the certificate. You
will be asked to show identification. |
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By Mail: |
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1. |
Print and
complete the
Birth Certificate Application Form |
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2. |
If you are ordering certificates for more than one birth
record, complete a separate application form for each
record. |
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3. |
Complete the
Birth Certificate Fee Worksheet to compute the charges for your order (see
below).
Applications without fees will not be processed.
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4. |
Access to some birth records is restricted. See
confidential birth information for more
information. A birth certificate cannot be mailed to you
unless you demonstrate
tangible interest. You demonstrate tangible interest by checking the appropriate
box on the application and by having your signature notarized on the
application.
Applications that are not notarized will not be processed. |
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5. |
Make your check or money order payable to Mower County
Auditor-Treasurer. Checks returned for nonpayment will be
charged a $30 fee according to Minnesota Statutes,
subdivision 2, and civil penalties may be imposed for
nonpayment. |
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6. |
Mail the completed form, birth
certificate fee worksheet, and payment to: |
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Mower County Auditor-Treasurer |
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201 1st
ST NE |
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Austin MN 55912 |
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Allow 1 week for processing
applications. |
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Non-certified copy of a birth record |
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What is a
non-certified copy of a birth record? |
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A
non-certified copy of a birth record is a plain paper copy of the birth record.
Changes made to the birth record after 2000 may not be reflected on the
non-certified copy if the birth took place before 2001. |
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A
non-certified copy is for information only and will not be accepted for any
legal purpose such as school enrollment or obtaining a drivers license or a
passport. If you need a copy for a legal purpose, see certified birth
certificate. |
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Demonstration
of tangible interest is not required to obtain a non-certified copy of a birth
record. However, release of non-certified copies of confidential birth records
is restricted so you will be required to have your signature notarized on the
application. |
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For births
that took place prior to 2001, the non-certified copy of the birth record will
not include any health information. For births that took place during 2001 and
later, the non-certified copy may be requested with or without health
information. Health information is classified as private data by
Minnesota Statutes, section 144.225, subdivision 2a.
If you do not indicate that you are the mother named on the birth record, the
health information will not be released. If you request health information, you
will be required to have your signature notarized on the application. |
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How to
obtain a non-certified copy of a birth record
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In
Person:
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You may request a Non-Certified Birth Certificate from a local registrar at
a county office or from MDH. |
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If you request the certificate in person, you will be asked to complete and sign
an application stating that you have
tangible interest in the certificate. You
will be asked to show identification. |
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By Mail: |
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1. |
Print and complete the
Birth Record Application - Non-certified Copy Form
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2. |
Complete a separate application form
for each birth record. |
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3. |
Follow the directions on the application to determine if you are required to
have your signature notarized.
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4. |
Compute the charges for your order. |
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Non-certified copy of a birth record
is $13. |
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Additional copies of the same record purchased in the same
order are $6. |
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Optional fees
include: |
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An Expedite fee is a per-record fee
that will place your request ahead of other requests.
Most expedited requests are processed within one
business day. An Expedite fee does NOT include
Federal Express or other special mailing fees. |
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Federal Express Mail Service for next
day delivery is $16 for most deliveries. Higher rates
apply to Saturday or international service and to
deliveries to Alaska and Hawaii. |
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VitalChek
Network User Fee if you fax your application and pay by credit card is $6.
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5. |
Make your check or money order
payable to Mower County Auditor-Treasurer. Checks returned
for nonpayment will be charged a $30 fee according to
Minnesota Statutes, section 604.113,
subdivision 2, and civil penalties may be imposed for nonpayment. |
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6. |
Mail
the completed form and payment to: |
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Mower County Auditor-Treasurer |
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201 1st
ST NE |
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Austin MN 55912 |
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Allow 1 week for processing
applications. |
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Changing (amending) a Birth
Record |
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If there is
incorrect or missing information on your birth record or on your child's birth
record, you may make a request for an amendment. A request for an amendment to a
birth record must be made by mail to MDH. |
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Are you sure you need to amend your birth record
or your child's birth record? |
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Amending a
birth record may not be easy because you must prove that the change you want to
make is accurate and justified. Before you decide to request an amendment, think
of the birth record as historical information about the birth. If information
about you or your child has changed since birth, you may not need to amend the
birth record. For example, an amendment to a birth record is not made if a woman
changes her name when she marries. |
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Special changes |
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Some changes
cannot be made as an amendment. If you want to
add a father
to the birth record, see
Adding the father's
name to the birth record when the parents are not married.
If the parents
were not married when the child was born, but married after the child was born,
you may change the
marital status
on the birth record.
See
Changing the parents'
marital status on a birth record
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Parents have
approximately 45 days from the birth to make corrections to their child's birth
record without documentation and at no charge. To help parents make these
corrections, a Parent Notice is mailed to the parents within 2-3 weeks of the
birth. If you have received a Parent Notice, review the information carefully
and, if there are changes, return the Parent Notice. If you do not receive a
Parent Notice within 2-3 weeks of your child's birth, contact the
local registrar in the county where the birth took
place. |
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How to request an
amendment to a Birth Record |
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There are two
important steps you must take to request an amendment to a birth record: |
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1. Collect
your documents |
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If you decide
to amend your birth record or your child's birth record, the first step is to
gather very specific documents that meet the requirements of
Minnesota Rules, part 4601.1100. Pay close attention
to the requirements.
An amendment cannot be
made if you do not provide original or authenticated documents that are in good
condition and are the right age. We suggest that you print the
Requirements for Documents Submitted to Support the Amendment of a Birth Record
for reference. |
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Most amendments require two documents. The following are
special amendments that require only one document. |
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Adding missing information
- You may add information that is missing from a birth record by providing one
acceptable document. For example, if part of your name or your child's name is
missing on the birth record or if the birth record states "Baby Boy" or "Baby
Girl" or "Unknown" for the first or middle name, you may add the first or middle
name by providing one acceptable documents. |
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Court order - If you are having or have had information about yourself or your
child changed legally, you may be able to use that court order to change a birth
record. However, the court order must
specifically state that the birth record is to be changed and what specific
items on the birth record are to be changed. Submit a certified
copy of the court order. |
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2. Submit your documents for review |
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To request an amendment to your birth record or your child's birth
record by mail to MDH: |
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1. |
Collect your documents
that meet the requirements. Remember that most
amendments require two documents. |
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2. |
Complete the
Application to Amend a Birth Record |
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3. |
Have your signature on
the application notarized. |
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4. |
Include a $40 amendment
fee. |
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5. |
OPTIONAL: Complete the
Minnesota Birth Record Application - Certified Birth
Certificate and have your signature on the application
notarized. |
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The fee for a certified birth
certificate is $26. You
can reduce the fee you are required to pay if you return a birth certificate
that is in error. To determine the reduced fee, look at the date issued on the
bottom of the birth certificate. If the date issued is one year ago or less, you
may exchange that certificate for the amended certificate at
no charge. If the date issued is
more than one year ago, you may exchange that certificate for an amended
certificate for a $7
fee. |
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6. |
OPTIONAL: Include a $20
expedite fee. An expedite fee is a per-record fee that
will place your request ahead of other requests. Most
expedited amendment requests are processed within two
business days. An Expedite fee does NOT include Federal
Express or other special mailing fees. |
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Mail your documents,
the notarized application(s), and the fee(s) to: |
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Minnesota Department of Health |
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Office of the State Registrar - Amendments Program |
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P.O. Box 9441 |
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Minneapolis, Minnesota 55440-9441 |
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Your documents will be
returned to you |
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Death Certificate |
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How to obtain a
Certified Death Certificate |
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In
Person:
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You may request a Certified Death
Certificate from a local registrar at a county office or from MDH. |
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If you request the certificate in
person, you will be asked to complete and sign an
application stating that you have
tangible interest
in the certificate. You will be asked to show
identification. |
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By Mail: |
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1. |
Print and complete the
Death Certificate Application Form
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2. |
If you are ordering certificates for more than one death record, complete a
separate application for each record. |
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3. |
Complete the
Death Certificate Fee Worksheet
to compute the charges for your order. Applications without
fees will not be processed.
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4. |
A death certificate cannot be mailed to you unless you demonstrate
tangible interest. You demonstrate tangible interest by checking the
appropriate box on the application and by having your signature on the
application notarized. Applications that
are not notarized will not be processed. |
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5. |
Make your check or money order payable to Minnesota Department of Health.
Checks returned for nonpayment will be charged a $30 fee
according to
Minnesota Statutes, section 604.113, subdivision 2, and civil penalties may be imposed for nonpayment. |
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6. |
Mail the completed form, death certificate fee worksheet,
and payment to: |
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Mower County Auditor-Treasurer |
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201 1st
ST NE |
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Austin MN 55912 |
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Allow 1 week for processing
applications. |
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Non-certified copy of a death record |
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What is a
non-certified copy of a death record? |
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A non-certified copy of a death record is a plain paper copy of the
death record. Changes made to the death record after 2000 may not be reflected
on the non-certified copy if the death took place before 1997. |
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A non-certified copy is for information only and will not be
accepted for any legal purpose, such as settling an estate or applying for life
insurance benefits. If you need a copy for a legal purpose, see certified death
record. |
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Demonstration of tangible interest is not required to obtain a
non-certified copy of a death record. You may request a non certified copy of a
death record with or without cause of death information. |
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How to obtain a non-certified copy of a death record |
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In
Person:
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You may request a Non-Certified
Death Certificate from a local registrar at a county office or from MDH. |
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If you request the certificate in
person, you will be asked to complete and sign an
application stating that you have
tangible interest
in the certificate. You will be asked to show
identification. |
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By Mail: |
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1. |
Print and complete the
Death Record Application - Non-certified Copy Form
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2. |
Complete a separate application form for each death record. |
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3. |
Compute the charges for your order.
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The charge for a non-certified copy of a death record is $13.
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Additional copies of the same record purchased in the same order are $6. |
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Optional fees include: |
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An Expedite fee is a per-record fee that will place your request ahead of
other requests. Most expedited requests are
processed within one business day. An Expedite fee does
NOT include Federal Express or other special mailing
fees. |
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Federal Express Mail Service for next day delivery is approximately $16 - $20 for most deliveries.
Higher rates apply to Saturday or international service
and to deliveries to Alaska and Hawaii. |
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VitalChek Network User Fee if you fax your application and pay
by credit card is $6. |
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4. |
Make your check or money order payable to Minnesota Department of Health.
Checks returned for nonpayment will be charged a $30 fee
according to
Minnesota Statutes, section 604.113, subdivision 2, and civil penalties may be imposed for nonpayment. |
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5. |
Mail the completed form and payment to: |
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Mower County Auditor-Treasurer |
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201 1st
ST NE |
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Austin MN 55912 |
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Allow 1 week for processing
applications. |
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Marriage License |
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Instructions for Completing Marriage License Application (.pdf
file) |
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Application to Request a Certified Record of Marriage
(.pdf file) |
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Search for a Minnesota Marriage Certificate
(external site) |
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