Like any package, our existence on paper is confirmed with our delivery. The first document filed after birth is called a Certificate of Live Birth (CLB), which records the date and place of birth, the identity of the parents, health information about the baby, and the attending staff of the medical facility. Often, the attending will have the necessary forms on hand and fill out much of the information for the parents.
CLB (2003)
The CDC’s List of Guides to In-Facility Baby Delivery Paperwork
However, the CLB is only a hospital record and cannot be used as a government ID. Instead, it is forwarded through the local county clerk to the state’s Office of Vital Records. There, the data is stored and the Original Birth Certificate (OBC) is made. Because it is the fundamental legal document for verifying your identity, the OBC is indefinitely kept on file. Since everyone will have to use this document as proof of identity later in life, the Office of Vital Records issues to the parents a Certified Copy Birth Certificate (CCBC). This document is given the local authority’s official seal and provides the baby’s name, place and date of birth, sex, and parents’ names. Hospitals often bundle the CLB with an application for a CCBC, but those applications are also available online.
Requesting a Birth Certificate
Proof of Pregnancy
Not everyone is born in a hospital or facility. At home births or births abroad are both common and carry their own set of challenges. Often, medical professionals are still present and can help ease the paperwork involved. Without them, however, registering a birth requires evidence involving papers verifying pregnancy, witness testimony, and medical evaluation of the newborn. Once the evidence is accepted, it is reported to the country clerk’s office, which again forwards the information to the Office of Vital Records. Each state has its own standards, forms, and guides for registering births.