Access Oxnard Death Records

Oxnard does not keep death records. Ventura County handles all vital records for Oxnard and every other city in the county. The Ventura County Clerk and Recorder office processes death certificate requests for events anywhere in Ventura County. Their main office is in Ventura, with offices also in Simi Valley and Camarillo. You can request certificates in person at any office during business hours, order online through VitalChek, or submit a mail application. Ventura County maintains records from the 1800s and charges $26 per certified copy.

Ventura County Maintains Oxnard Death Records

California law assigns vital records to county governments. Cities have no authority to issue death certificates.

All Oxnard death records come from Ventura County. The Clerk and Recorder office operates locations in Ventura at the Government Center, Simi Valley, and Camarillo. Office hours run Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. Walk in service is available at all three locations for immediate processing of recent records.

Ventura County has death records dating back to the 1800s when the county was established. All records for Oxnard and other county cities are in the same system. The county charges $26 per copy, which is the standard California fee. Online orders through VitalChek add processing and service fees.

The county also operates a Public Health Department that maintains recent death records through a separate office. Both the Clerk-Recorder and Health Department can issue certified copies for eligible individuals.

Three Ways to Order Death Certificates

Walk in. Order online. Mail a request.

Visit any Ventura County office with valid government issued photo ID and payment. Staff will search for the death record and print a certified copy if found. Recent records can usually be completed the same day. Older records may require retrieval from storage. Bring $26 per copy in cash, check, money order, or credit card. The nearest offices to Oxnard are in Ventura and Camarillo.

Online ordering uses VitalChek, an authorized third party vendor. Go to the Ventura County website and follow the link to VitalChek. Fill out the form with information about the deceased and your contact details. Pay by credit card and select delivery method. VitalChek charges the $26 county fee plus processing and service fees. Standard delivery takes two to three weeks. Expedited shipping costs extra but arrives faster.

Mail requests require downloading an application form from the Ventura County website. Complete it and have your signature notarized if you want an authorized copy. Send the form with a check or money order payable to Ventura County Clerk and Recorder. Mail to the address shown on the form. Processing takes three to four weeks from when the county receives your application.

Authorized vs Informational Certificates

California creates two types of death certificates. The type you can get depends on your relationship to the deceased.

Authorized copies require you to be an immediate family member or other qualified person under Health and Safety Code Section 103526. Eligible individuals include spouse, domestic partner, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, and grandchild. Court appointed representatives, estate attorneys, and government officials on official duty also qualify. You must submit a notarized sworn statement declaring your eligibility under penalty of perjury. Authorized copies have full legal validity.

Informational copies are available to the general public without relationship proof or notarization. These certificates display "INFORMATIONAL, NOT A VALID DOCUMENT TO ESTABLISH IDENTITY" printed across them. They work for genealogy research and personal records but cannot be used for legal matters like estates or insurance claims. The cost is the same $26 as an authorized copy.

Processing Times and Availability

How long it takes depends on your ordering method. Recent deaths need time to enter the system.

Death records become available approximately two weeks after the death occurs. The funeral home files paperwork, a physician certifies cause of death, and county staff process the record. Do not order before this waiting period or the county will not find it and you will still pay the search fee. Call the county office if you are unsure whether enough time has passed since the death.

Walk in requests at county offices may be completed the same day for recent records. Older records require pulling from archives, which takes additional time. Mail and online orders take three to four weeks to process. Expedited shipping options shorten delivery time but not processing time.

Old Death Records from Oxnard

Ventura County maintains death records from the 1800s. The exact start date varies based on when records were first filed after the county formed in 1873.

For deaths before July 1905, only the county has records. The state office in Sacramento does not maintain anything prior to that date. Contact Ventura County for all pre-1905 deaths in the Oxnard area. These historical records may be on microfilm or in paper form. Staff need extra time to locate and copy them, but the records remain accessible through the standard application process.

Many old Ventura County death records appear on genealogy websites like Ancestry and FamilySearch. These are informational copies only and are not certified. If you need a certified copy for legal use, you must order through the county office even if you found the record online.

What Information You Need

Gather these details before applying:

• Full name of deceased person
• Date of death or approximate year
• Place of death in Ventura County
• Your relationship to the deceased
• Your current mailing address

More specific information helps staff locate the record faster. If you lack the exact date, provide the month and year or a range of years. The county searches based on what you give them. The $26 fee is kept whether the record is found or not because it covers staff time to search indexes and files.

Ordering from the State Office

The California Department of Public Health maintains copies of all state death records from July 1905 to present. You can order from them instead of the county.

State processing takes much longer than county processing. The state office reports average processing times of five to seven weeks. Ventura County processes walk in requests the same day and mail requests in three to four weeks. The state charges $24 by mail or $26 through VitalChek plus service fees. The county charges $26 plus VitalChek fees if you order online.

For Oxnard deaths, using Ventura County is faster and more convenient. The county has local offices and provides quicker service. Use the state office only if you do not know which county the death occurred in or need certificates from multiple counties.

Other Ventura County Cities

Ventura County includes several cities. All use the same county office for death records.

Major cities: Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley

Other communities include Ventura, Camarillo, Moorpark, Santa Paula, Port Hueneme, and Fillmore. Contact Ventura County for death records from any city or unincorporated area in the county.