Adoptions

Wyoming VSS requires three (3) documents to file an adoption for a person born in Wyoming:

1. An original, court certified copy of the Wyoming Report of Adoption.
   • If the state in which the adoption was filed has a similar report or certificate of adoption that includes all of the information required in the Wyoming Report of Adoption, that state’s form would be acceptable in place of the Wyoming Report of Adoption.
2. An original, court certified copy of the Final Decree of Adoption.
   • If the final decree does not identify the child being adopted, an original certified copy of the Petition for Adoption will be required as well.
3. The Request for Birth Certificate Following Adoption.
   • This application requires a $55 payment and a photocopy of a current, valid, government issued photo identification (driver’s license, passport, etc.) for the requestor.

To file the adoption and receive one (1) updated birth certificate, please send the three (3) required documents (including all items required by the Request for Birth Certificate Following Adoption) to:

Vital Statistics Services
Attn: Adoption Specialist
Hathaway Building, Suite 175
2300 Capitol Avenue
Cheyenne, WY 82002

Each additional certificate requested costs $25 per certified copy. If you have a certified copy of the birth certificate issued for the adopted person prior to the filing of the adoption, we request you send the original certified copy of the birth certificate in to VSS with the request for adoption.  We will exchange it for an updated certified copy for an additional $15.00 Fee. (The Request form and $55 processing fee is still required to FILE the adoption.)  Once five (5) or more certificates are issued (lifetime) an Excessive Copies Form is required for all requests.

The Adoption Specialist will review your documents and complete the adoption filing within a week (on average) if no discrepancies are found. Please allow up to two (2) weeks processing time.  If discrepancies are found, the filing process may be delayed and you will likely be contacted to help clear up any issues found prior to processing.

Wyoming Vital Statistics Services requires four (4) documents to file an adoption for a person born in a Foreign Country:

1. An original, court certified copy of the Wyoming Report of Adoption.
   •  A certified court document, which includes all information required in the Wyoming Report of Adoption may be accepted.
2. An original court certified copy of the Final Decree of Adoption.
   • This must be a decree issued from a Wyoming District Court.
3. An original, certified copy of the Foreign Birth certificate.
   •  This document is retained by VSS following the evaluation of the evidence.  If this document is not available, other supporting documentation establishing the facts of birth may be used in place to complete the certificate of birth.
4. The Request for Foreign Born Birth Certificate Following Adoption.
   • This application requires a $55 payment and a photocopy of a current, valid, government issued photo identification (driver’s license, passport, etc.) for the requestor.

To file the adoption and receive one (1) updated birth certificate, please send the four (4) required documents (including all items required by the Request for Foreign Born Birth Certificate Following Adoption) to:

Vital Statistics Services
Attn: Adoption Specialist
Hathaway Building, Suite 175
2300 Capitol Avenue
Cheyenne, WY 82002

Each additional certificate requested costs $25 per certified copy. Once five (5) or more certificates are issued (lifetime) an Excessive Copies Form is required for all requests.

The Adoption Specialist will review your documents and complete the adoption filing within a week (on average) if no discrepancies are found. Please allow up to two (2) weeks processing time.  If discrepancies are found, the filing process may be delayed and you will likely be contacted to help clear up any issues found prior to processing.

A person’s birth record will always remain in the state in which they were born. If the adopted person was not born in Wyoming, please contact the Vital Records Office for the state in which the person was born.

Contact information for the Vital Records Office for other states and territories can be located on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) “Where to Write” web page.

Adoptions become confidential information once they are filed in the State of Wyoming.  In order to access the sealed information a court order stating specifically what documents shall be released (birth certificate, final decree, both) and to whom they shall be released must be issued from one of the following:

1. The court granting the adoption, OR
2. A Wyoming district court, OR
3. A federal court.

If you are interested in reconnecting with biological family members, Wyoming has a Confidential Intermediary Program run by the Department of Family Services that may be able to assist you.  You can get more information on this program under the Child & Juvenile Services section of their website using the Adoption option.

Once you obtain the court order an original certified copy of the court order must be submitted to our office along with an Application to Open a Sealed Adoption File, which includes a $50.00 fee in order to process the request to open a sealed file and issue copies of court approved documents.

Please allow at least two (2) weeks processing time for these requests.

Adoptions become confidential information once they are filed in the State of Wyoming.  In order to access the sealed information for Tribal Enrollment Purposes:

1. The applicant must first approach the court in which the adoption was decreed.
   1. Tribal affiliation information will be disclosed to the individual by the decreeing court, IAW 25 U.S.C. § 1917.
2. If the tribal enrollment office requires an original birth certificate prior to the adoption, an application form must be accompanied by an order of the court stating what documents may be released, and the name and address of the enrollment office the document(s) are to be mailed.

Once you obtain an order from the court , the original order must be submitted to our office along with an Application to Open a Sealed Adoption File – Tribal Enrollment, which includes a $50.00 fee in order to process the request to open a sealed file and issue copies of court approved documents.

Please allow at least two (2) weeks processing time for these requests.