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Arkansas birth certificates

Update your name
YesAfter your legal name change
Gender markerThe sex or gender field (M, F, or X) printed on an ID document or stored in an agency's record.
LimitedM or F with proof of surgery

If you were born in Arkansas, you can change the sex on your birth certificate only with a certified court order stating that your sex was changed by a surgical procedure. Only male or female are available. A name change needs a certified court order.

Main cost
$15
Apply
By mail or in person

Draft from official sources, September 24, 2026. Not yet checked by a person. How we verify

This applies only if you were born here. Birth certificates follow your birth state, not where you live now. Choose your birth state

On this page
  1. How it works
  2. Steps
  3. Costs and fee waivers
  4. Requirements
  5. After you finish
  6. Tips
  7. Laws and other guides
  8. Sources

How it works

The Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) Vital Records amends birth certificates for people born in Arkansas. For a sex change, ADH requires a certified court order that changes your name and states that "the sex is to be changed due to a surgical procedure." Once ADH has the order and the fee, it makes the amendment without any other form. ADH notes that an attorney is normally needed to get this kind of order.

Name only: send a certified copy of your circuit court name-change order. You can also ask the circuit clerk to forward your order to Vital Records.

Born in another state? Follow your birth state's rules. Arkansas's driver's license office accepts amended birth certificates from any state.

Steps

  1. Get a certified court order[1]

    Petition the circuit court (see the name change guide). For a sex change, the order must state your new name and that your sex is to be changed due to a surgical procedure. Consider asking a lawyer or Legal Aid of Arkansas for help with the wording.

  2. Send the order and fees to Vital Records[1][2][3]

    Mail or bring the certified order, a copy of your photo ID, and payment to: Arkansas Department of Health, Vital Records, 4815 West Markham, Slot 44, Little Rock, AR 72205. Pay the $15 amendment fee plus $12 for a certified copy of the new certificate. Checks and money orders go to "Arkansas Department of Health"; do not mail cash. Questions: 501-682-1214.

    Cost
    $15 amendment fee; $12 certified copy (first); $10 each additional copy ordered at the same time

Costs and fee waivers

WhatCostNotes
Amendment fee[2]$15
Certified copy (first)[3][2]$12
Each additional copy ordered at the same time[3]$10

More detail

RequirementsWhere you live, timeline
Where you live
You must have been born in Arkansas. Where you live now does not matter.[1][4]
Other
For a sex change, the court order must say the change is due to a surgical procedure.
How long it takes

ADH does not publish a time for amendments; ordinary mailed orders take 10 to 14 days plus mail time.

After you finishUse the amended certificate to change the marker on your Arkansas driver's license or ID (see that guide), then update your passport and…

Use the amended certificate to change the marker on your Arkansas driver's license or ID (see that guide), then update your passport and other records as needed.

Tips1 tip from people who have done this
  • Order several certified copies at once; extra copies cost less in the same order.
Laws and other guides1 law, 1 other guide

Laws and rules

Other trusted guides

Sources

4 sources. Numbers in the text, like [1], point here.Show all
  1. Change Sex and Name on a Birth RecordArkansas Department of Health, Official page. accessed
    “A court order is required in order to change one's sex and name on a birth certificate following a surgical procedure.”
  2. Change or amend a birth or death certificateArkansas Department of Health, Official page. accessed
    “Amendment fee $15.00”
  3. Order birth recordsArkansas Department of Health, Official page. accessed
    “First copy $12.00; additional copies ordered at the same time $10.00 each”
  4. Act 331 of 2023 (HB 1473), name change procedureArkansas General Assembly, Law. accessed
    “The clerk shall deliver the unredacted order to the ... Division of Vital Records, if requested by the petitioner.”