Clerk's office encourages parents to pick up copies of birth records for school registration

With the summer in full swing, Kane County Clerk John A. Cunningham encourages parents who will soon be registering children for school to come to the Kane County Clerk's Office, 719 S. Batavia Ave., Bldg. B, Geneva, to request certified copies of their child's birth records.

Cunningham said, "The next few weeks will be a busy time for school registration and I want to remind parents planning to register their children for school this fall to come to the Clerk's Office soon to request certified copies of the birth records needed for registration. Getting those records now, before registration begins, will allow you to avoid any potential lines that might occur due to the last minute rush during school registration."

The Kane County Clerk's Office maintains certified copies of birth records for individuals born in Kane County. Individuals born in other counties must contact the County Clerk's Office in those counties. Certified copies of birth records can be ordered either in person at the County Clerk's Office, by mail, or online.

Individuals requesting records at the clerk's office must bring valid photo identification in addition to payment. Information about valid identification is available at kanecountyclerk.org/VitalRecords/Pages/Valid-ID.aspx.

Fees for certified copies of birth records are $16 for the first copy and $6 for each additional copy of the same record. An additional $2.50 fee will be added to any transaction involving debit or credit cards. Cash, check or money orders should be payable to the Kane County Clerk.

Requests sent by mail must include: a completed certificate request form which is available at kanecountyclerk.org/VitalRecords/Documents/CertificateRequest.pdf, a photocopy of valid photo identification, and a check or money order payable to the Kane County Clerk.

Online requests are available at vitalchek.com through Vital Chek, the online vendor for the clerk's office. An additional fee is charged by Vital Chek for online orders.

Because of the confidential nature of these records, state law specifies that copies of birth records may be obtained only by a person whose name is on the record if 18 years of age or older, a parent or guardian, or other legal representative.

In person requests can be made at the office from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday. More information about how to request birth records is available at kanecountyclerk.org/VitalRecords/Pages/Birth-Certificates.aspx or by calling (630) 232-5950.

The Kane County Clerk's Office is responsible for issuing certified copies of birth records and other vital records in Kane County. The clerk performs several major functions, including custodian of county records, chief election official for Kane County, passport acceptance agency, and tax extension. The clerk's office provides information and resources to residents at www.kanecountyclerk.org, twitter.com/KaneCoILClerk and www.facebook.com/kanecountyclerk.