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Mississippi birth certificates

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  • Page changed: Vital Records (2026-10-12) · #260
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.
UnclearNo written policy; see details

Mississippi has no written rule for changing the sex on a birth certificate. Advocates report that the health department has amended it with a certified court order and a doctor's letter, as a note in the margin, but a 2024 law defines sex as fixed at birth and current practice is not confirmed. Name changes are available with a court order and Form 1126 ($28).

Main cost
$28
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. Forms
  5. Requirements
  6. After you finish
  7. Tips
  8. Laws and other guides
  9. Sources

How it works

Birth certificates for people born in Mississippi are kept by the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH), Office of Vital Records, in Ridgeland. If you were born in another state, follow that state's rules.

Miss. Code § 41-57-21 lets the State Registrar correct an "incorrect first name, middle name, or sex" on the affidavit of two people with personal knowledge, at the registrar's discretion; all other changes require a court order under § 41-57-23. According to Advocates for Trans Equality (December 2025), MSDH has processed gender-marker changes with a certified chancery court order changing your gender marker plus a physician's letter. MSDH does not issue a new certificate: the new name and sex are noted in the margin of the original, and only M or F is available.

Since 2024, state law defines sex as "the biological indication of male and female as observed or clinically verified at birth" (SAFER Act). Bills to explicitly ban birth certificate sex changes failed in 2024, 2025, and 2026, but call MSDH before you pay for a court case.

Steps

  1. Call Vital Records first[3][4]

    Call the MSDH Amendments Unit at 601-206-8200 or email VRInfo@msdh.ms.gov and ask exactly what it currently requires to change the sex on a birth certificate, and whether it is accepting these requests. Write down the date and the name of the person you spoke with.

  2. Get a certified chancery court order[6][7][8]

    For a name change, use your name change order. For a sex change, you need an order that directs the change of your gender marker; the ACLU of Mississippi's forms include an "Adult Gender Marker Change" petition. The chancellor decides whether to grant it.

    Cost
    $148 chancery court filing fee for a birth certificate correction or name change petition

  3. Get a physician's letter (sex change only)[6]

    A4TE reports MSDH also wants a letter from a physician. Ask MSDH what the letter must say.

  4. Send Form 1126, the order, and the fee[1][2][5]

    Mail or bring the notarized Form 1126, the certified court order, any physician's letter, a copy of your photo ID, and $28 (money order or cashier's check to Mississippi Vital Records) to MSDH Vital Records, P.O. Box 1700, Jackson, MS 39215-1700, or in person at 222 Marketridge Drive, Ridgeland (8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday to Friday).

    Cost
    $28 amendment (includes one certified copy of the amended record); $6 each additional copy ordered at the same time

Costs and fee waivers

WhatCostNotes
Amendment (includes one certified copy of the amended record)[1]$28
Each additional copy ordered at the same time[1][3]$6
Certified birth certificate (first copy, ordered separately)[3][2]$17
Chancery court filing fee for a birth certificate correction or name change petition[8]$148Can be waivedVaries by county

More detail

Forms2 forms

Open a form for tips on filling it out.

Forms everyone files (1)

Affidavit to Amend Mississippi Certificate of Live Birth (Form 1126)Required

How to fill it out

  • "Full name at birth" and date and county of birth exactly as on the current certificate.
  • In the table, list each item to change (first name, middle name, last name, sex), the current entry, and the new entry.
  • Sign in front of a notary; original signatures only. Attach the certified court order (and physician's letter for a sex change).

Open the form[1]

Forms only some people need (1)

Application for Certified Mississippi Birth Certificate (Form 522)Optional

To order extra certified copies of your birth certificate (for example, for your court petition).

Open the formOfficial Spanish version[2]

RequirementsWhere you live, timeline
Where you live
You must have been born in Mississippi. You do not need to live in Mississippi now.[3][9][10]
Other
No written MSDH policy; the SAFER Act (2024) defines sex as fixed at birth, and bills to ban changes outright have failed so far.
How long it takes

Amendment timing is not published; allow several weeks after MSDH receives a complete request.

After you finishAn amended Mississippi birth certificate will show the change as a margin note.

An amended Mississippi birth certificate will show the change as a margin note. Because of SB 2322 (2026), an amended birth certificate no longer changes the sex on a Mississippi driver's license. It can still support a name update elsewhere.

Tips1 tip from people who have done this
  • If you were born in Mississippi but live in another state, you still file with Mississippi MSDH, but a court order from your current state may be accepted; ask MSDH.
Laws and other guides2 laws, 1 other guide

Laws and rules

Other trusted guides

Sources

10 sources. Numbers in the text, like [1], point here.Show all
  1. Form 1126, Affidavit to Amend Mississippi Certificate of Live Birth (rev. 12/13/18)Mississippi State Department of Health, Form. accessed
    “Fee is $28.00, includes one certified copy of the amended record. Additional copies of the amended record are $6.00 each when ordered at the same time for the same person.”
  2. Form 522, Application for Certified Mississippi Birth Certificate (rev. 02/2026)Mississippi State Department of Health, Form. accessed
    “Processing time is generally 7-10 business days after receipt of request.”
  3. Birth CertificatesMississippi State Department of Health, Official page. accessed
    “Changes or Corrections: Call our Vital Records office at 601-206-8200 or send e-mail to VRInfo@msdh.ms.gov.”
  4. Vital Records Questions and AnswersMississippi State Department of Health, Official page. accessed
    “contact the Amendments Unit for detailed instructions at 601-206-8200”
  5. Vital RecordsMississippi State Department of Health, Official page. accessed
  6. Mississippi Identity DocumentsAdvocates for Trans Equality, Organization. accessed
    “A certified copy of a court order for a change of gender marker and physician's letter are required to make this amendment.”
  7. Identity Document ResourcesACLU of Mississippi, Organization. accessed
  8. Madison County Chancery Court Civil Case Filing Fees (effective January 1, 2020)Madison County Chancery Clerk, Official page. accessed
    “Birth Certificate Correction, total 148.00”
  9. SB 2753 (2024), SAFER ActMississippi Legislature, Law. accessed
    “"Sex," when used to classify a natural person, means the biological indication of male and female as observed or clinically verified at birth”
  10. HB 1154 (2026), birth certificate sex designation bill (died in committee Feb. 3, 2026)Mississippi Legislature, Law. accessed
    “such certificate contains an incorrect first name, middle name, or sex, then the State Registrar of Vital Records may, in his discretion, correct such certificate upon affidavit of at least two (2) reputable persons”