Search Honolulu County Death Index
The Honolulu County death index covers all deaths recorded on Oahu from 1909 to the present, with some historical entries dating back to the mid-1800s. Records are held by the Hawaii Department of Health and the State Archives, and this guide walks you through how to find, request, and use death index data for Honolulu County residents.
Honolulu County Overview
Where to Find Honolulu County Death Index Records
Honolulu County is unique in Hawaii because it is also the City and County of Honolulu, a merged city-county government. That means there is no separate county clerk's office issuing death certificates. All death records for Oahu go through a single state office: the Hawaii Department of Health, Office of Health Status Monitoring. This office handles certificates for deaths that took place anywhere on the island from July 1909 forward.
The main DOH vital records office is at 1250 Punchbowl Street, Room 103, Honolulu, HI 96813. It sits at the corner of Beretania and Punchbowl Streets. Parking is metered at $2 per hour, paid by cash or credit card, with entry from Punchbowl Street. The office is open Monday through Friday from 7:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Walk-in service is available, though appointments are strongly encouraged. The office closes on all state holidays.
The Hawaii DOH vital records page above gives an overview of certificate types, fees, and ordering options for Honolulu County and the rest of the state.
| Office | Hawaii DOH, Office of Health Status Monitoring |
|---|---|
| Address | 1250 Punchbowl Street, Room 103, Honolulu, HI 96813 |
| Phone | (808) 586-4539 |
| doh.issuanceQuery@doh.hawaii.gov | |
| Hours | Mon-Fri, 7:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. |
| Records covered | Deaths from July 1909 to present |
Note: The City and County of Honolulu does not have a separate county clerk that issues death certificates; all requests go directly to the Hawaii DOH office on Punchbowl Street.
How to Request a Honolulu County Death Certificate
There are three ways to get a certified death certificate for a Honolulu County death: online through the eHawaii portal, by mail to the DOH office, or in person at the Punchbowl Street location. The eHawaii portal at https://vitrec.ehawaii.gov/vitalrecords/ is the fastest starting point. You place the order, pay online, and can choose pickup or mail delivery. A $2.50 portal fee applies to all online orders on top of the certificate fees.
The fee for a death certificate is $10 for the first copy and $4 for each additional copy of the same certificate ordered at the same time. You must provide a government-issued photo ID and proof of your relationship to the person on the record. Not everyone can get a certified copy. Hawaii law limits access to close family members, legal representatives, and certain authorized parties. If you do not qualify for a certified copy, you may still be able to get index data such as name, date, type of death, and file number.
The resource above outlines county-by-county vital records contacts across Hawaii, including Honolulu County offices and ordering instructions.
Mail requests go to the same Punchbowl Street address. Include a completed application form, a copy of your ID, proof of relationship, and a check or money order payable to the State of Hawaii Department of Health. Mail-in orders can take 6 to 8 weeks to process. If you need the record quickly, in-person pickup after an online order is the fastest option. Appointments can be booked through the eHawaii portal when you place your order.
Note: Processing times for mailed requests can stretch beyond 8 weeks during busy periods, so plan ahead if you need the record for legal or estate purposes.
First Circuit Court and Honolulu County Probate Records
The First Circuit Court serves Honolulu County and handles probate cases that arise when someone dies. Probate records often contain death-related information not found in the death index itself, such as the names of heirs, estate assets, will contents, and the date and cause of death as stated by the executor. These records can help you confirm a death or learn more about a person's life and family when a death certificate alone is not enough.
The First Circuit Court is located at 777 Punchbowl Street, Honolulu, HI 96813, just a short walk from the DOH vital records office. Divorce records from January 2003 to the present are also held here. Divorce records from July 1951 through December 2002 were transferred to the Hawaii DOH and may be requested through the same eHawaii ordering system used for death certificates.
The Hawaii State Judiciary website gives access to First Circuit Court case information, including probate filings and historical case indexes related to the Honolulu County death index.
The Hawaii State Archives also holds two important collections from the First Circuit: the Deaths - Probates Index - First Circuit and the Deaths - Wills - First Circuit. These indexes cover historical records and include death dates, names of family members, and estate details that do not appear in the standard death index. Researchers working on older Honolulu County deaths should check both the probate index and the wills index at the Archives before concluding a search.
Historical Death Records and Genealogy Research
For deaths that occurred before the modern state vital records system, the Hawaii State Archives is the main place to look. The Archives holds the Vital Statistics Collection for 1832 through 1929, a newspaper obituary index covering 1836 to 1950, and Oahu marriage records from 1832 to 1929. The Archives building is at 364 South King Street, Honolulu, HI 96813, on the Iolani Palace grounds. The phone number is (808) 586-0329. Free interpreter services are available by calling (808) 586-0400.
The Hawaii State Library's main branch at 478 South King Street in Honolulu holds a print Index to the Honolulu Advertiser and Honolulu Star-Bulletin covering 1929 to 1994. The newspaper obituary index for 1836 to 1950 is also available there on microfilm. More recent newspaper indexes from 1989 to the present can be searched online through the Hawaii Newspaper Index at http://ipac2.librarieshawaii.org.
FamilySearch has digitized a number of Honolulu County death records. Their Hawaii County genealogy wiki at https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Honolulu_County,_Hawaii_Genealogy lists available collections including Hawaii Deaths and Burials 1862-1919, a statewide obituaries index from about 1980 to the present, and a Hawaiian Islands newspaper obituaries collection covering 1900 through about 2010. These are free to search and can help narrow down dates before you request a certified death certificate.
The Ulukau digital library at http://ulukau.org/ holds digital versions of the Deaths - Probates Index - First Circuit and the Deaths - Wills - First Circuit. These are especially useful for researching Honolulu County deaths from the late 1800s and early 1900s. Under Hawaii Revised Statutes Section 338-18, death certificates that are 75 or more years old become fully public records and can be accessed by any researcher without proof of relationship. Certificates less than 75 years old require eligibility documentation. The full text of HRS 338-18 explains who qualifies and what index data the state may share publicly.
Note: The Digital Archives at https://digitalarchives.hawaii.gov/ also contains scanned historical records, some of which include early Honolulu County death and probate documents.
Local Obituary Resources for Honolulu County
Obituaries are not part of the official death index, but they are a practical first stop when you know little else about a death. They often give you the date of death, age, birthplace, names of surviving family members, and funeral home details. With that information, you can fill out a death certificate request accurately and avoid delays from wrong dates or misspelled names.
Valley of the Temples Memorial Park serves the Kailua, Kaneohe, and windward Oahu communities. Their obituary page at https://www.valley-of-the-temples.com/obituaries/ includes records for many individuals who passed in the windward area of Honolulu County. Each listing typically includes the full name, age at death, date of death, birthplace, surviving family members, and funeral arrangements.
The Valley of the Temples obituary listings shown above are searchable and can help confirm a death date or family connection before you order from the Honolulu County death index.
For Honolulu city and central Oahu, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser and local funeral home websites are good additional sources. The Hawaii State Library newspaper index and the FamilySearch obituary collection both include Oahu deaths and cover different time periods, so checking more than one source is worth the effort.
Legal Help and Resources in Honolulu County
Sometimes getting a death record requires legal help, especially if you are trying to establish an estate, settle a probate case, or access records for a deceased person when your relationship is not straightforward. Legal Aid Hawaii at https://www.legalaidhawaii.org/ provides free legal assistance to low-income Honolulu County residents. Their staff can give guidance on how to request vital records, what documents you need to prove eligibility, and how to navigate the DOH process if a request is denied or delayed.
Applications for Legal Aid Hawaii services can be submitted online. If your question is about how to use the eHawaii portal or what counts as proof of relationship, the DOH also has staff who can help by phone at (808) 586-4539 or by email at doh.issuanceQuery@doh.hawaii.gov. For questions about First Circuit probate cases, the court clerk at 777 Punchbowl Street can direct you to the right division. University of Hawaii Manoa's library also maintains a research guide at https://guides.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/c.php?g=980368&p=7089421 that covers Hawaii genealogy and vital records sources in detail.
Note: If you need a death record for immigration or benefits purposes, bring all supporting documents when you visit the DOH office in person so staff can confirm eligibility on the spot.
Cities in Honolulu County
The following communities on Oahu have individual death index resource pages.