A new law in North Carolina now permits Registers of Deeds across the state to issue certified copies of adoptive birth certificates. Before this change, which took effect on January 1, 2026, adoptees could only obtain these documents through the North Carolina Office of Vital Records in Raleigh.
“In our office, we are always looking for ways to better serve our customers,” said Caldwell County Register of Deeds Wayne Rash. “This law allows our staff to meet the needs of adoptees and their families by providing timely, convenient access to certified records close to home, while still protecting sensitive information.”
The law specifies that certified copies may be provided to the adoptee, their children, adoptive parents, spouse, brothers, or sisters. However, original birth certificates issued before adoption and related adoption records will remain sealed and unavailable for inspection or release.
To support the implementation of this law, the North Carolina Office of Vital Records will offer Adoption Security training for Registers of Deeds and their staff statewide. The training will cover procedures for issuing records, privacy protections, secure handling requirements, confidentiality rules, and updated standards for electronic access and digitization.
In a related context about education in Caldwell County schools: In the 2022-23 school year, 17.9% of senior students and 19.6% of junior students who took the science portion of the ACT were considered ready for college according to data from https://www.dpi.nc.gov/. For reading readiness on the ACT during that same period, 29.2% of seniors and 25.6% of juniors met college-ready benchmarks as reported at https://www.dpi.nc.gov/. Math results showed that 14.5% of seniors and 15.4% of juniors reached college readiness standards on the ACT; more details can be found at https://www.dpi.nc.gov/.
