Death Record Application

The Office of Vital Records issues and maintains death records that took place within the Village of Hempstead. Facilities under the Village of Hempstead jurisdiction are: 

• Hempstead General Hospital 
• Nassau Extended Care Facility 1 Greenwich Street | Hempstead, NY 11550
• Mayfair Care Center 100 Baldwin Road | Hempstead, NY 11550
• Hempstead Park Nursing Home 800 Front Street | Hempstead, NY 11550
• Island Assisted Living 820 Front Street | Hempstead, NY 11550
• Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre (partial records maintained by Village of Hempstead from 1931 to 1941)

Request for vital records via fax or email are NOT accepted.

Death Certificates May Be Requested By The Following

• The surviving spouse (if listed on death certificate), parent, child or sibling of the deceased
• Other people who have a:
  • documented lawful right or claim
  • documented medical need
  • New York State Court Order issued on a showing of necessity for the confidential medical information
• To the lawful representative of the spouse, parent or child of the deceased
• To a municipal, state or federal agency when needed for official purposes 

If you are not the spouse, parent, child or sibling of the deceased you must document a lawful right or claim. For example, you may need a death certificate to claim a benefit. You would need an official letter from the agency saying you need the death record to process the claim.

Death Certificate Request by Attorneys

Attorney's must represent someone who is authorized to obtain the death certificate. Please submit all of the following to the Office of Vital Records:

1. An original letter from the attorney on the attorney's letterhead stating the reason for request.
2. Death Record Application (PDF) completed and signed by the attorney.
3. An original letter from the entitled party signed, dated and notarized granting the attorney permission to act on their behalf. 
4. A copy of the front and back of the entitled party’s valid, unexpired, photo-ID. 
5. Proof that you are an attorney licensed to practice, such as a printout of your attorney number from the New York Unified Court’ System’s Attorney Online Services – Search.
6. Entitled party's proof of relationship to the decedent (ex. Birth certificate, Marriage Certificate) (if applicable)
7. Appropriate fee: $10 Per Copy (Please see Payment of Fees for acceptable forms of payment)

In-person requests 

Applicants should bring the following to the Village of Hempstead Office of Vital Records: 

1. Completed Death Record Application (PDF) (must include hand written signature)
2. Proper identification (Valid photo-ID) (For more information see Types of Acceptable Identification)
3. Proof of relationship to the decedent (ex. Birth certificate, Marriage Certificate)
   1.  If you have assumed your spouse/civil union partner's last name or have had a legal name change, you must also provide a copy of your marriage/civil union certificate or court order to link the name on your current ID to the name on your birth certificate.   
4. Appropriate fee: $10 Per Copy (Cash and Credit payments are acceptable when requests are made in-person)

Mail Requests 

If requesting a death certificate by mail, applicants should provide the following:

1. Completed Death Record Application (PDF) (must include hand written signature)
2. Proper identification (Valid photo-ID) (For more information see Types of Acceptable Identification) 
3. Proof of relationship to the decedent (ex. Birth certificate, Marriage Certificate)
   1. If you have assumed your spouse/civil union partner's last name or have had a legal name change, you must also provide a copy of your marriage/civil union certificate or court order to link the name on your current ID to the name on your birth certificate.   
4. Appropriate fee: $10 Per Copy (Do Not Send Cash and/or Credit/Debit Card. Please send check or money order made payable to the Village of Hempstead. For more information see Payment of Fees Section)

Mail to: 

Incorporated Village of Hempstead

99 James A Garner Way

Hempstead, NY 11550

Attn: Vital Records

Third Party Pickup

We do not encourage third party pickups. If you are unable to come to our office yourself, we recommend that you order your certificate by mail. 

If you need to have your record picked up by a third party,  the following must be provided:

1.  An original signed, dated and notarized letter by you [the applicant] authorizing and granting the third party permission to obtain your record. (Must include your original signature)
2. Completed and signed  Death Record Application (PDF) (Must be completed and signed by you and not the third party).
3. Copy of your Proper identification (Valid photo-ID).
4. The person you authorized to pick up your record will need to provide his or her identity and the documents listed above (steps 1, 2 and 3).

Failure to provide proper documentation and the above requirements will result in the denial of the record being released to a third party. 

Important NOTE -- Please do not send documentation for Third Party Request  via fax. Request for vital records via fax and/or email are NOT accepted.

Types of Acceptable Identification

Group A. One of the following forms of valid photo-ID

• Driver’s License 
• State-issued, nondriver photo-ID card 
• Passport 
• U.S. Military-issued, photo-ID

                                                 OR

Group B. Two of the following showing the applicant's name and address (Use ONLY if you do not have any form of valid photo-id from Group A) :

• Utility (ex: Gas, Electric, Cable) or telephone bill
• Letter from a government agency dated within the last six months

Please do not send in original ID documents, only copies are required. Please make sure the copy is legible. 

Important Note -- Failure to include necessary identification will result in the denial of your application.

Payment of Fees 

Certified copies of Death Certificates are available for a fee of $10.00 per copy.

Acceptable forms of payment include:

• Personal Check or Certified Check
• Money Order 
• Cash 
• Credit/Debit 

If submitting check or money order, please make payable to the Incorporated Village of Hempstead or simply, Village of Hempstead.

Please Note -- Cash and Credit/Debit are only acceptable if applicant makes an in-person request at the Village Hall. 

Additional Information

This office ONLY maintains deaths that took place in the Village of Hempstead, NY. WE DO NOT keep records for deaths that took place at the following:

•  Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, NY (also known as NuHealth or NUMC) (Contact Town of Hempstead)
• Mount Sinai South Nassau in Oceanside, NY (Contact Town of Hempstead)
• LIJ Valley Stream (also known as Franklin Hospital Medical Center in North Valley Stream, NY) (Contact Town of Hempstead) 
•  Mitchel Air Force Base in Uniondale, NY (Contact Town of Hempstead) 
• NYU Langone Hospital - Long Island (formerly known as Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola, NY) (Contact the Town of North Hempstead)

Copies of Death Certificates may be ordered directly from the New York State Department of Health, Vital Records Section. You may contact New York State Vital Records by email at vr@health.ny.gov or by telephone, toll-free, at 1-855-322-1022.

New York City Records - New York County (Manhattan), Kings County (Brooklyn), Bronx County (The Bronx), Richmond County (Staten Island), and Queens County (Queens), contact: New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Death certificates are maintained by the municipality in which the event took place: the towns, cities, and the incorporated villages. To assist you in locating the appropriate village, town, or city responsible for maintaining your records please visit Nassau County Vital Records.

Questions and Comments

If you have questions or comments you may contact The Office of Vital Records at 516-478-6201 or 516-478-6436.

Freedom of Information (FOIL)

Please note that Death Certificates and the indexes related to Death Certificates are NOT subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) and are NOT open to public inspection. For more information, please visit the following links.

• Freedom of Information and access to Department Health records
• Subject Matter List