What Time Was I Born? How to Find Your Time of Birth

Where the time of birth is recorded

The model birth certificate that states build on, the U.S. Standard Certificate of Live Birth from the National Center for Health Statistics, includes a field for the time of birth. It is the second item on the form, right after the child's name, and it uses a 24-hour clock. States adopt their own versions, so the layout differs, but many ask for the same thing. Missouri's current certificate of live birth, for example, has a time of birth item with AM, PM and military time boxes and an option to mark the time as unknown.

So the information often exists on the record. The catch is that the copy you hold may not show it.

Why your copy may not show the time

Many states issue more than one kind of certified copy. A shorter version carries only the basics, and a longer version reproduces more of the original record. Illinois shows the difference clearly. Its lower-cost certified birth certificate lists the child's name, date of birth, sex, place of birth, parents' details, file date, date issued and state file number. Its higher-cost version includes information collected at the time of your birth, which the state notes has varied through the years.

If your certificate lists a date of birth but no time, ask the issuing office for the full or long-form copy of the original record. Our guide to long form versus short form birth certificates explains how to tell which one you have.

Step by step: how to find your time of birth

1. Check the certificate you already have. Look near your name and date of birth for a line marked time of birth or time. Some copies print it in 24-hour format.
2. Find the office that holds your record. Birth records are held by the state vital records office, and often by the county where you were born as well. The office for your birth state is the right one, even if you live somewhere else now.
3. Ask for the long-form or full copy. When you order, choose the version that includes all the details from the original record, and say you need the time of birth.
4. Prepare to show who you are. You will need to prove your identity and, if you are ordering for someone else, your eligibility. Rules differ by state.
5. Contact the hospital. If the state record has no time, ask the hospital's medical records or health information department whether it kept your birth records. Keep in mind that the Clark County health department in Washington notes that most private health care facilities typically destroy medical records about 10 years after the last patient visit, so older records may not exist.
6. Check family papers. Baby books, hospital bracelets, birth announcements and a parent's recollection can all help when official records are blank.

When the official record has no time at all

Some years simply do not have it. In Washington state, no times were reported on official birth records for people born between 1949 and 1967. Recording of the time of birth restarted in 1968. If you were born in that window in Washington, a certified copy will not show a time no matter which version you order, and the hospital is your best remaining lead if its records survive.

Other states have their own gaps and formats, which is why it is worth asking the vital records office directly what its records for your birth year contain.

Can the time of birth on a certificate be corrected?

If the record shows a time and you believe it is wrong, you would normally have to ask your birth state to amend the record. Each state has its own forms and evidence requirements, and the process often calls for documents created near the time of birth. Start with the state vital records office's page on corrections.