Death records are filed at the health department in the county in which the death occurred, not the county in which the person lived. Certified copies can be obtained only by a relative of the deceased or by a representative of a funeral home. Local health departments have death records on file from 1963 to the present. Copies of DEATH records prior to 1963 and all BIRTH records are filed in Richmond and can be obtained by sending the completed request form to the following address: Office of Vital Records P.O. Box 1000 Richmond, Virginia 23218-1000.