As we move on from the Credit Report/Card Document file, I hope your task gets a bit easier. The second category in my file is Important Personal Documents. I will share what I have in this file.
Here is the checklist from the Protection Portfolio system by Suze Orman:
- Birth Certificates
- Adoption Certificates*
- Driver’s Licenses
- Passports
- Citizenship Paperwork / Green Card*
- Military Service Records*
- Marriage Certificate
- Agreements: Cohabitation, prenuptial, postnuptial, etc.*
- Domestic partner registration*
- Support: Child and Spousal*
- Divorce Decree*
- Death certificates*
Items with an (*) are additional records Suze Orman suggests for this category that I do not have in my file.
Some of these personal documents are needed to verify your identity. I am extremely careful to keep the information on these documents very confidential. In the wrong hands, you could be the victim of identity theft. Please be careful with these items.
The first set of documents in my file is birth certificates for each member of our family. When asked for your birth certificate, you will need to produce a record from the Office of Vital Statistics. We found this out the hard way.
Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images
When Paul and I moved back to South Carolina, we went to the DMV to get new Driver’s Licenses. After producing my personal records, I was sent to the next window. Paul presented his personal documents, and his birth record was not accepted. He had a certificate of birth from the hospital with the doctor’s signature. The DMV would not accept the certificate. We had to purchase a birth certificate from the Office of Vital Statistics in the state of his birth.
Once that document was obtained, then he was able to present the proper documentation to get his Driver’s License. The amazing part of the story is that a document ordered over the Internet by anyone was more authentic to the DMV than a certificate signed by the delivering doctor at the birth.
For more information about birth certificates, you can read this explanation from Wikipedia.
TYPES OF BIRTH CERTIFICATES
The two types of certificates are the Long and Short.
LONG: The long version includes parents’ names as well as the other pertinent information. It is also a larger certificate than the short version. The long version is now required for passport verification.
SHORT: The short version is a little larger than a credit card. It can be easily transported if necessary. I use the short version when I take a lap child on a flight. The airlines require proof of age for the child, and the short version of the birth certificate suffices.
OBTAINING YOUR BIRTH CERTIFCIATE
If you only have a certificate of birth or cannot find your birth certificate, then you can order one or more for a fee. To order your birth certificate, you can:
1. Use a search engine (Google, Swag Bucks, Yahoo!, etc.) and search for: “(your state of birth) Office of Vital Statistics.” If you were born in South Carolina, then search “South Carolina Office of Vital Statistics.”
2. Follow the prompts to place your order. Each state has a different application and fee process.
Having recently obtained my youngest daughter’s birth certificate, I ordered 4 long certificates and 4 short certificates. The first long certificate cost $12, and the 3 additional were $3 each. The first short certificate cost $12, and then $3 for the 3 additional short ones. I paid $42 for all 8 birth certificates.
I order multiple copies since the first copy includes a research fee. To save money later, I just order a few extra copies for the additional fee of $3. If I have to reorder, then I have to pay the research fee again. I would recommend having a minimum of 2 copies of the Long version, but I do order more for safe keeping.
After obtaining birth certificates from the Vital Statistic Offices in the states in which we were born, I paperclip them by individual, then use a huge paperclip to hold all our birth certificates together. I then place them in the fourth compartment of my file box under the heading of Important Personal Documents.
Do you have a copy of your birth certificate, or do you have a certificate of birth? Prior to our experience at the DMV, I did not realize there was difference. I trust you are better informed than we were regarding birth certificates. Happy organizing! Keep working. You are using your time wisely in getting these document files complete and organized. See you next week on a discussion of Driver’s Licenses. I promise it will be less time-consuming than standing in the DMV line.