Death certificates are a permanent, legal record of the death of an individual. Death certificates must be obtained from the Office of the Registrar General for purposes as:
- Settlement of estates
- Insurance
- Access to or termination of other government services (For example, health card services, pensions, voters list, etc.)
How to Register a Death
To register a death, a family member and the Funeral Director must complete a statement of Death with information about the deceased. The Physician or Coroner attending the death will complete the Medical Certificate of Death which will be given to the Funeral Director. Both forms are then forwarded to the Town's Division Registrar of the municipality where the death occurred. Once both documents are received and recorded by the Town, they will be forwarded to the Office of the Registrar General for registration.
How to Obtain a Death Certificate
Death Certificate application forms may be processed online through the Service Ontario Website or a hard-copy may be picked up at the Customer Service Department or at the Municipal Offices.
A Death Certificate Application for a death in Ontario and payment of the required fee (as stated on application form) may be:
- Mailed to the Office of the Registrar General
- P.O. Box 4600, 189 Red River Road, Thunder Bay, Ontario, P7B 6L8
- Telephone: 1-800-461-2156, Toronto Line: 416-325-5305
- Faxed to the Office of the Registrar General at 807-343-7459 with a payment made by credit card
Obtaining Old Death Records
The Office of the Registrar General holds records of deaths that happened in Ontario over the past 70 years. For more information on old records, please refer to the Archives of Ontario or call the Vital Statistics hotline at 416-327-1593.
