Arizona splits personal records across three kinds of offices: the state and county health registrars that hold birth and death records, the clerk of the superior court in each county that holds marriage licenses and court judgments, and the Secretary of State that certifies Arizona documents for use in other countries. This article explains what each office holds, who is allowed to get a copy, and which procedures require a court order rather than a form. It covers the vocabulary the procedure-specific articles assume, not the step-by-step detail of any one filing.
What Arizona counts as a personal record
The term covers documents that prove who someone is, what their legal status is, or what a court has ordered about them. In practice, Arizona readers are usually after one of six things: a certified birth or death certificate, a marriage license or certified marriage record, a court order changing a legal name, an order sealing an arrest or conviction record, a notarized or apostilled document for use abroad, or a vehicle title.
These documents are not interchangeable. A certified copy carries a raised seal or security print and is treated as equivalent to the original record; under A.R.S. § 36-324(B), a certified copy of a registered certificate “has the same status as the registered certificate.” An uncertified photocopy or an informational copy does not satisfy an agency that requires proof of identity or of a life event.
Arizona also treats some of these records as restricted rather than public. Birth records are closed to the general public and are released only to people who fit eligibility criteria set by rule. A name change judgment is ordinarily a public court record, but A.R.S. § 12-601(F) lets the court seal the application and judgment on request from a person protected by an order of protection or an injunction against harassment, or a victim of stalking.
Which office holds which record
Knowing the custodian saves a wasted trip, because Arizona does not run a single records counter.
Birth and death certificates. The state Office of Vital Records within the Department of Health Services is the state registrar. County health departments act as local registrars and issue certified copies over the counter. In Maricopa County, the Office of Vital Registration issues certified birth and death certificates for $20 per copy as of 2026, according to the county’s vital records page.
Marriage licenses. These come from the clerk of the superior court, not from a health department. A.R.S. § 25-121(A) requires a license from the clerk of the superior court in any Arizona county before a marriage is solemnized, and subsection (B) provides that the license expires one year from the date it is issued.
Court judgments and case records. Name change orders, sealing orders, and divorce decrees live in the case file maintained by the clerk of the superior court in the county where the case was filed. The clerk charges separately for certified copies of those documents. In Maricopa County, certification runs $35 per document plus $0.50 per page, per the clerk’s filing fee schedule.
Vehicle titles. The Motor Vehicle Division issues certificates of title. A.R.S. § 28-2055 describes what the certificate must contain and allows an owner to attach a transfer-on-death designation naming a beneficiary for the vehicle.
Certifications for foreign use. The Secretary of State issues apostilles and certificates of authentication. That office certifies the signature of an Arizona notary, court clerk, or document custodian, not the underlying document.
Who may obtain a certified copy
Arizona does not open vital records to anyone who asks. A.R.S. § 36-324(A) directs the state registrar or a local registrar to issue a certified copy on written request “to any person determined to be eligible to receive the certified copy pursuant to criteria prescribed by rules.” The statute delegates the eligibility list to administrative rule rather than spelling it out.
The eligible categories generally track close relationship or legal interest: the person named on the record if an adult, a parent named on the record, a legal guardian, a spouse, an adult child, a grandparent or sibling, and an attorney or other representative acting for one of them. An applicant presents government-issued photo identification and states the relationship on the application.
Two carve-outs in the statute are worth knowing. Licensed funeral directors and their designees can obtain certified copies of death certificates on written or in-person request, which is why families often receive their first set of death certificates through the funeral home. And under A.R.S. § 36-324(F), a child at least sixteen years old who has no residence address or who is in Department of Child Safety custody can receive a certified copy of their own birth certificate without a parent or guardian signature.
Each certified copy is priced individually rather than in a set. Ordering several at the time of a death or a name change is common, because banks, insurers, and pension administrators frequently keep the copy they are given.
Changing a name by court order
Arizona routes adult name changes through the superior court. A.R.S. § 12-601(A) allows a person who wants to adopt another name to file an application in the superior court of the county where they live, setting out the reasons and the name they want. The court may then enter judgment substituting the new name.
The application is signed under penalty of perjury and must disclose several things listed in A.R.S. § 12-601(C): any felony conviction, any pending felony charges involving false statements or misrepresentation of identity, whether the applicant is required to register as a sex offender, and an acknowledgment that the change does not release the applicant from existing obligations. An applicant with an Arizona conviction serves a copy of the application on the prosecuting agency in the county of conviction, and a prosecutor or victim has standing to contest the change until judgment and for up to one year after.
Marriage is the main exception. A person taking a spouse’s surname at marriage uses the marriage certificate as the name change document and does not file a court application, as the Maricopa County adult name change packet (CVNCA1) states directly.
Once the judgment is signed, the certified copy of the order is the document other agencies want. The Social Security Administration treats a name change as a request for a replacement card and mails the replacement in 5 to 10 business days after the request is processed. The Motor Vehicle Division, financial institutions, and employers each have their own update process, and most ask to see the certified order rather than a photocopy.
## Correcting or amending a birth certificate
An amendment changes the content of a registered certificate. It is a different procedure from ordering a copy, and it is handled by the state registrar rather than by a court in most cases.
No. Arizona limits certified copies to people who meet eligibility criteria set by administrative rule, which Expungement in the strict sense is limited in Arizona, primarily to marijuana offenses. The general remedy for other records is sealing under Not usually. A decree of dissolution can restore a former name as part of the family court case, which avoids a separate civil filing. A person who did not request restoration in the decree files an application under One year. For births and deaths, yes. Arizona registers these events at the state level, so any county health department acting as a local registrar can issue a certified copy of an Arizona birth or death record regardless of the county of the event. Court records work the opposite way: they are held only by the clerk of the superior court in the county where the case was filed.A.R.S. § 36-337(A) lists what the state registrar acts on: an adoption certificate or court order for adoption, a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity under A.R.S. § 25-812, a written request supported by a physician’s written statement verifying a sex change operation or a chromosomal count, or a court order directing an amendment. The registrar changes the name of the father on a registered certificate when it receives an administrative or court order, or when paternity is established by voluntary acknowledgment.
Amendments leave a paper trail. Under A.R.S. § 36-337(G), the registrar seals the previously registered certificate and the evidentiary documents behind the amendment, and access to the sealed material is limited to what A.R.S. §§ 36-322 and 36-340 allow, a court order, or the administrative rules. An adoption amendment keeps the original city or county of birth and date of birth on the new certificate.
Counties charge more for an amendment than for a plain copy. Maricopa County lists $30 for corrections and major changes as of 2026 on its vital records page, compared with $20 for a certified copy.
## Sealing arrest, conviction, and sentencing records
Arizona does not use the word expungement for most criminal records. Since 2023 the operative procedure is sealing under A.R.S. § 13-911, which reaches three groups: people convicted who have completed every term of the sentence including restitution, people whose charges were dismissed or who were found not guilty, and people who were arrested but never charged.
The waiting period runs from the date the person completed the nonmonetary conditions of the sentence and was discharged. A.R.S. § 13-911(E) sets it at ten years for a class 2 or 3 felony, five years for a class 4, 5, or 6 felony, three years for a class 1 misdemeanor, and two years for a class 2 or 3 misdemeanor. Petty offenses and convictions vacated under A.R.S. § 13-909 have no waiting period. All fines, fees, and restitution ordered by the court must be paid before the petition is filed.
The petition goes to the court that handled the case, and the same statute gives the court a built-in pause: it may not grant or deny a petition until sixty calendar days after receiving it, unless both the prosecutor and any victim who requested postconviction notice state that they do not object. A denial carries its own clock, because the petitioner cannot file a new petition until three years after the denial date.
Sealing is not erasure. Some offenses are excluded outright, including dangerous offenses, dangerous crimes against children, and sex trafficking. A sealed record can still be used to enhance a later sentence, to impeach a witness, or as an element of a later offense, and it remains available to law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, courts, and the other entities listed in the statute.
## Notarization, apostilles, and documents used abroad
Most Arizona records procedures require a notarized signature at some point, and documents headed overseas need a second layer of certification.
An Arizona notary public is commissioned by the Secretary of State. Under A.R.S. § 41-269, an applicant must be at least eighteen, a citizen or permanent legal resident, an Arizona resident for income tax purposes, and able to read, write, and understand English. Before the commission issues, the applicant files an oath of office and an assurance in the form of a $5,000 surety bond. Commissions run for a term of four years.
A notarized document is valid inside the United States but is often not accepted by a foreign government on its own. The Secretary of State’s authentication and apostille service issues the certificate that foreign authorities look for. An apostille is used for countries that are party to the Hague Convention; an authentication certificate covers the rest. Either one certifies the Arizona notary, court clerk, or state document custodian whose signature appears on the document, not the accuracy of the document’s contents.
Requests sent by mail to that office must include return postage, and return shipping labels have to list the customer’s mailing address as both sender and recipient. Documents that originated with a court, such as a certified name change order, are certified by the clerk of the superior court first and then sent to the Secretary of State.
Frequently asked questions
Is an Arizona birth certificate a public record?
A.R.S. § 36-324(A) incorporates by reference. The categories generally cover the person named on the record, parents named on the record, legal guardians, spouses, adult children, and representatives acting for one of them. An applicant shows government-issued photo identification and states the relationship on the application form.What is the difference between expungement and sealing in Arizona?
A.R.S. § 13-911, which restricts who can see the record rather than destroying it. A person whose records are sealed may state in most contexts that they were never arrested for or convicted of the offense, subject to a list of exceptions in the statute covering fingerprint clearance cards, certain employment applications, and disclosures required by law.Do I need a court order to change my name after a divorce?
A.R.S. § 12-601 in the superior court of their county of residence instead.How long does an Arizona marriage license stay valid?
A.R.S. § 25-121(B) requires the license to state that it expires one year from the date of issuance. The license comes from the clerk of the superior court in any Arizona county, and the marriage can be solemnized anywhere in the state regardless of which county issued it.Can records be ordered from a county other than where the event happened?
Specific procedures and topics
Specific procedures and topics
Sources
- A.R.S. § 36-324 (Vital records; copies; access)
- A.R.S. § 36-337 (Amending birth certificates)
- A.R.S. § 12-601 (Change of name; application; venue; judgment; sealing of record)
- A.R.S. § 13-911 (Sealing of arrest, conviction and sentencing records)
- A.R.S. § 41-269 (Commission as notary public; qualifications; assurance)
- Maricopa County Office of Vital Registration: fees and locations
- Maricopa County Clerk of Superior Court: filing fees
- Arizona Secretary of State: apostille and certificate of authentication