deceased's name, address, educational level, date of birth, social security number, race, ethnicity, occupation, employer, parents’ names including mother's maiden name, dates and branch of service if a veteran, name and address of informant.

It also contains information about the death and its cause, which is completed by the deceased’s physician, the physician who pronounced the death (such as in a hospital or nursing home death) or the medical examiner in the case of an unexpected, accidental, or suspicious death. The funeral director will take care of all of this for you and will file the original death certificate with the state office of vital records. Because the cause of death is private information, you may want to inquire if your state offers a "short" form of the death certificate in which that information is omitted.

You will need certified copies of this to show proof of death when settling legal issues such as a will or the possession of assets (e.g. real estate, bank accounts, stocks, bonds, etc.) and life insurance claims, which are discussed below.  After determining how many copies you will need, your funeral director will also pick them up for you and add the cost to your bill. Although the current cost is $30 each in most of New York state, it usually ranges from $5-$10 in the rest of the country. Some financial institutions may make a copy of one of the certified copies to save you from having to order more.