Introduction to Hawaii Divorce Certificates

This article is designed to help you get a Hawaii Divorce certificate.  Divorce Certificates are a bit more difficult to obtain than Divorce Certificates and Death Certificates.  The main difficulty in obtaining Divorce Certificates is that states have not been registering Divorces for as long as other vital records.  There are some states that still do not register Divorces.  Due to this lack of centralization it is common to contact the county in which the Divorce took place.

Counter to common belief, not everything is a few clicks away on the Internet.  Divorce Certificates are one of the items that you can’t just click some links and get a copy of your Divorce Certificate; this is probably a good thing.  You do not want your Divorce certificate in the public domain, where it can be seen by anyone.  However, this does not mean that you can’t easily get your Divorce certificate by following the correct procedure. 
 

Hawaii Divorce certificates have been maintained by the Hawaii Office of Health Status Monitoring, a unit of the Department of Health for individuals divorced in the state of Hawaii since July 1951-December 2002. From January 2003, divorce records are available only through the county circuit court.

Hawaii Divorce Certificate Authorized Persons

By Hawaii state law, Hawaii Divorce certificates are confidential records and can only be obtained by the following authorized individuals:

• the registrant (the person whom the record is concerned with);
• the registrant’s spouse;the registrant’s parent(s);
• a descendant of the registrant (e.g., a child or grandchild);
• a person having a common ancestor with the registrant (e.g., a sibling, grandparent, aunt/uncle, or cousin);
• a legal guardian of the registrant;
• a person or agency acting on behalf of the registrant;
• a personal representative of the registrant’s estate;
• a person whose right to obtain a copy of the record is established by an order of a court of competent jurisdiction;
• adoptive parents who have filed a petition for adoption and need to determine the death of one or more of the prospective adopted child’s
• natural or legal parents;
• a person who needs to determine the marital status of a former spouse in order to determine the payment of alimony;
• a person who needs to determine the death of a nonrelated co-owner of property purchased under a joint tenancy agreement; and
• a person who needs a death certificate for the determination of payments under a credit insurance policy.

Hawaii Divorce Certificate for Genealogy Purpose

Anyone can obtain a Hawaii Divorce Certificate, 75 years or later from the date of the Divorce for genealogy or other reasons.  Also, because genealogy requests are not considered urgent, they are not processed as priority requests.

Hawaii Divorce Certificate Ordering

Options Option 1 – Order Hawaii Divorce Certificate Online

This option is the simplest and easiest way to get your Hawaii Divorce Certificate.  Order online and you will get your Hawaii Divorce Certificate usually in less than a week.  Many times you will have the option of receiving your vital record by next-day or second-day service.

Order Birth and Death Records Online!  

Option 2 – Order Hawaii Divorce Certificate through the Mail

Follow the instructions below, if you are not ordering your Hawaii Divorce certificate online.  It usually takes 2-3 weeks upon receipt of request to be sent to you:

Step 1: Download Mail-In Application

Step 2: Please provide as much of the following information as possible to locate the Hawaii Divorce certificate:

• Full name of husband on the Hawaii Divorce certificate
• Full maiden name of wife on the Hawaii Divorce certificate
• Date of Divorce on the Hawaii Divorce certificate
• County (or city) of Divorce on the Hawaii Divorce certificate
• Your name 
• Your signature 
• Your relationship to the person whose Hawaii Divorce certificate you are requesting 
• Address where the Hawaii Divorce certificate is to be mailed 
• Self addressed stamped envelope
• Your daytime phone number
• By Mail: Send the above information and the appropriate fee to:

State Department of Health

Office of Health Status Monitoring

Issuance/Vital Statistics Section

P.O. Box 3378

Honolulu, HI 96801

Option 3 – In Person

Walk-in service is available:

• Days - Monday through Friday (excluding holidays and furlough days)
• Hours - 7:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• Location - Room 103 (1st floor) of the Health Department building, 1250 Punchbowl Street (corner of Beretania and Punchbowl Streets)

When applying in person, the applicant must show a valid government-issued photo ID, such as a State ID, driver's license, etc.

Certified copies are usually not issued on the day the application is made. Same-Day service may be provided upon presentation of written documentation establishing the need for urgency. Certified copies will normally be available for pick-up about 10 working days after the request is approved. The pick-up time may be extended for records that are very old, because the search to locate the record may take longer, or in the process of being filed, because the official record is still being created.

Hawaii Divorce Certificate Ordering Cost

The fee to search for a Hawaii Divorce certificate is $10.00, which includes one certified copy of the Hawaii Divorce certificate or a "Certificate of Failure to Find." For each additional copy of the Hawaii Divorce certificate ordered at the same time, the fee is $4.00.  Money order, certified check, or cashier’s check - make money order and checks payable to the State Department of Health.   Please do not send cash or personal checks. Fees are not refundable. Additional fees are required for expedited service.