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Delaware birth certificates

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  • Page changed: 16 Del. C. §§ 3131-3132 (2026-10-05) · #120
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.
YesM or F with a letter from a provider

If you were born in Delaware, you can get a new birth certificate showing M or F with your own notarized affidavit plus a notarized affidavit from a licensed healthcare provider. No court order or surgery is required. X is not available.

Main cost
$25
Apply
By mail or in person
Typical wait
Within 2 weeks

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. Forms
  5. Requirements
  6. Minors
  7. After you finish
  8. Tips
  9. Laws and other guides
  10. Sources

How it works

Delaware's Office of Vital Statistics changes the sex on a Delaware birth certificate when you send two notarized affidavits: yours, and one from a US-licensed healthcare provider. The provider can be a physician (MD or DO), doctoral-level psychologist, social worker (LMSW or LCSW), physician assistant, nurse practitioner, mental health counselor, or midwife. The provider confirms the change reflects your gender identity based on surgical, hormonal, psychological, or other treatment appropriate for you (or an intersex condition). "Psychological or other treatment" means surgery and hormones are not required.

Only M or F is available. You surrender your old certificate and get a new one, usually within two weeks. To change your name too, add a certified copy of your court order.

This only works if you were born in Delaware. If you were born elsewhere, follow the rules of your birth state.

Steps

  1. Get both affidavits notarized[2][3][4]

    Fill out the Requester's Affidavit and sign it before a notary. Ask your provider to complete and notarize the Healthcare Provider's Affidavit.

  2. Gather the rest of the packet[2][5]

    • A copy of your valid photo ID (for a minor, the parent's or guardian's ID)
    • Your original certified birth certificate, which must be surrendered before the new one is released. If you do not have one, include a $25 check or money order payable to the State of Delaware.
    • A certified copy of your court order if your name is changing
    • The application for extra copies, if you want them
    Cost
    $25 new certificate if you cannot surrender your original; $25 certified copy of a Delaware birth certificate (each)

  3. Mail or bring it to the Office of Vital Statistics[2][5][7]

    Mail to Office of Vital Statistics, Jesse Cooper Building, 417 Federal Street, Dover, DE 19901, or bring it in person to Dover, Newark (Chopin Building, 258 Chapman Rd.), or Georgetown (Adams State Service Center, 546 S. Bedford St.). Questions go to 302-744-4549.

    Time
    Within 2 weeks

Costs and fee waivers

No fee waiver is available for this step.[1]

No fee waiver for birth certificate amendments or copies was found on the Office of Vital Statistics pages.

WhatCostNotes
New certificate if you cannot surrender your original[2]$25
Certified copy of a Delaware birth certificate (each)[5][6]$25

More detail

Forms3 forms: Requester's Affidavit, Healthcare Provider's Affidavit, Birth Certificate Application

Open a form for tips on filling it out.

Forms everyone files (2)

Requester's AffidavitRequester's Affidavit for Sex Change on Birth CertificateRequired

How to fill it out

  • Print your full name as it appears at birth, and your current name if a court changed it.
  • Adults: complete the "18 or older" paragraph and check male or female. Parents or guardians use the "For minors" paragraph (guardians attach the guardianship order).
  • Enter your healthcare provider's full name.
  • Initial one line: treatment for gender transition ("surgical, hormonal, psychological or other") or intersex condition.
  • Sign only in front of a notary.

Open Requester's Affidavit[3]

Healthcare Provider's AffidavitHealthcare Provider's Affidavit for Sex Change on Birth CertificateRequired

How to fill it out

  • Your provider fills this in on letterhead or adds their address, phone, and email at the top.
  • They check their license type (MD/DO, doctoral psychologist, LMSW/LCSW, PA, NP, mental health counselor, or midwife) and give their license number and state.
  • They initial one basis: treatment for gender transition, or intersex condition.
  • It must be notarized. Ask the provider's office in advance whether they have a notary.

Open Healthcare Provider's Affidavit[4]

Forms only some people need (1)

Birth Certificate ApplicationApplication for a Certified Copy of a Delaware Birth CertificateSometimes required: Use it to order extra certified copies of the new certificate.

Use it to order extra certified copies of the new certificate. A4TE also lists it as part of the amendment packet.

Open Birth Certificate Application[5][7]

RequirementsWhere you live, age, timeline
Where you live
You must have been born in Delaware. You do not have to live in Delaware now; out-of-state residents can apply by mail, and a name change order from another state's court is accepted.[2][7]
Age
Adults 18 and older apply for themselves. For a minor, a parent, legal guardian, or legal representative applies.
How long it takes

The Office of Vital Statistics says processing is within two weeks, plus mailing time.

MinorsA parent, legal guardian, or legal representative signs the Requester's Affidavit for a child under 18 and provides their own photo ID;…

A parent, legal guardian, or legal representative signs the Requester's Affidavit for a child under 18 and provides their own photo ID; guardians attach the court guardianship papers. The child's provider completes the Healthcare Provider's Affidavit.

[2][3]
After you finishOrder a few extra certified copies.

Order a few extra certified copies. A new birth certificate helps with Social Security and school records, and some other states' DMVs accept it. The US passport sex field cannot currently be changed, but the name can.

Tips2 tips from people who have done this
  • Many clinicians will sign if you ask; the form lists seven license types, including nurse practitioners, counselors, and social workers, so you do not need a surgeon or psychiatrist.
  • Send certified copies of court orders, not photocopies, and keep your own copy of everything you mail.
Laws and other guides2 laws, 1 other guide

Laws and rules

Other trusted guides

Sources

7 sources. Numbers in the text, like [1], point here.Show all
  1. Office of Vital StatisticsDelaware Health and Social Services, Official page. accessed
  2. Gender Reassignment, required documents (effective 03/17/2022)Delaware Office of Vital Statistics, Official page. accessed
    “The original certified birth certificate must be surrendered to the Office of Vital Statistics before a new birth certificate will be released. If the registrant does not have an existing birth certificate, a $25 payment in check or money order is required. ... Processing time will be within two weeks.”
  3. Requester's Affidavit for Sex Change on Birth CertificateDelaware Office of Vital Statistics, Form. accessed
    “I officially request the sex on my birth certificate be changed to male or female in accordance with 16 DE Admin. Code 4205 Vital Statistics, subsection 10.7.1.1”
  4. Healthcare Provider's Affidavit for Sex Change on Birth CertificateDelaware Office of Vital Statistics, Form. accessed
    “The registrant has undergone surgical, hormonal, psychological or other treatment appropriate for the individual for the purpose of gender transition, based on contemporary medical standards.”
  5. Application for a Certified Copy of a Delaware Birth CertificateDelaware Office of Vital Statistics, Form. accessed
    “Cost: $25.00 per copy”
  6. 16 Del. C. §§ 3131-3132Delaware Code Online, Law. accessed
    “The State Registrar shall receive a fee not to exceed $25 for each certified or noncertified copy of a certificate or record”
  7. Delaware Identity DocumentsAdvocates for Trans Equality, Organization. accessed
    “The Delaware Vital Records Office will accept a certified copy of an order for name change signed by a court from your current state of residence.”