Title 19 — Health
55 chapters · 745 sections in this title.
19 V.I.C. § 801 Definitions
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(1) The following terms, wherever used or referred to in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:(1) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Health for the Virgin Islands or any of his duly authorized represent…
19 V.I.C. § 802 Commissioner as Registrar; rules and regulations
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The Commissioner shall be the Registrar of Vital Statistics and shall have charge of the registration of births, deaths, and other vital statistics in the Virgin Islands. The Commissioner shall prepare the necessary instructions, forms, and blanks for obtaining and preserving suc…
19 V.I.C. § 803 Appointment of local registrar
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(1) The Governor may—(1) designate and define local registration districts in the Virgin Islands;(2) appoint local registrars or designate public officials to act as local registrars as may be necessary or desirable; and(3) similarly appoint or designate deputy local registrars. …
19 V.I.C. § 804 Maintenance of records
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(a) Unless supplied from other sources, the Commissioner shall prepare, print, and supply to all local registrars all blanks and forms used in registering, recording and preserving the returns, or in otherwise carrying out the purpose of this chapter; and shall prepare and issue …
19 V.I.C. § 805 Duties of local registrars
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(a) Each local registrar shall supply blank forms of certificates to such persons as require them. Each local registrar shall carefully examine each certificate of birth, foetal death or death when presented for record in order to ascertain whether or not it has been made out in …
19 V.I.C. § 806 Certified copies of records
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The registrar shall, upon request, supply to any applicant, who has a legitimate interest, a certified copy of the record of any birth, foetal death or death registered under provisions of this chapter, for the making and certification of which the applicant shall be charged a fe…
19 V.I.C. § 807 Records of hospitals and other institutions
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The director, superintendent, or other person in charge of each hospital, sanitarium, asylum, or other public or private institution in the Virgin Islands to which people report for treatment of diseases or for cases of maternity or are confined voluntarily or by process of law, …
19 V.I.C. § 808 Annual report
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The Commissioner shall include in his annual report to the Governor a report on the number of births, deaths, foetal deaths, marriages, divorces and annulments of marriages registered in the Virgin Islands during the preceding calendar year and such additional information about v…
19 V.I.C. § 831 Live births
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(a) The birth of each and every child born alive shall be registered as follows:(1) Within ten days after the date of each live birth, there shall be filed with the local registrar of the district in which the birth occurred a certificate of such live birth, as provided in subsec…
19 V.I.C. § 832 Child Born Out-Of-Wedlock
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In the case of a child born out-of-wedlock the name of the father or reputed father and information about the father shall be entered upon the birth certificate or birth record of such child only if a notarized affidavit of paternity, completed pursuant to Title 16, chapter 11, s…
19 V.I.C. § 833 Presumption of legitimacy
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(a) A child born to a mother who is legally married is considered legitimate unless evidence to the contrary is presented. It is presumed that the husband is the father of the child and should be so stated unless the mother gives information to the contrary or unless paternity ha…
19 V.I.C. § 834 Children of unknown parentage
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In the case of a newly-born, abandoned or exposed child of unknown parentage the child shall be brought to the Commissioner or his deputy, in the registration district where such newly-born, abandoned or exposed child of unknown parentage is found, who shall examine the child to …
19 V.I.C. § 835 Naming of child
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When any certificate of birth of a living child is presented without the statement of the given name, the local registrar shall make out and deliver to the parents of the child a special blank for the supplemental report of the given name of the child, which shall be filled out a…
19 V.I.C. § 836 Adopted children
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A certified decree of every adoption for every child born in the Virgin Islands shall be forwarded by the clerk of the court to the Registrar of Vital Statistics in the judicial division in which the adoption takes place. Upon receipt of the certified copy of the decree of adopti…
19 V.I.C. § 837 Delayed certificates of birth
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If at any time after the birth of a person a certified copy of the record of such birth should be required and after a search it appears that the birth was not registered, the Commissioner shall require the person responsible for making the declaration and presenting the certific…
19 V.I.C. § 861 Permit for burial or removal
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(a) The body of any person whose death occurs in the Virgin Islands, or which shall be found dead therein, shall not be interred, deposited in a vault or tomb, cremated or otherwise disposed of, or removed from or into any local registration district (or temporarily held pending …
19 V.I.C. § 862 Certificate of death
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(a) The certificate of death shall at least contain the items of the standard form approved by the Secretary of Health and Human Services of the United States. (b) The personal and statistical particulars shall be authenticated by the signature of the informant, who may be any co…
19 V.I.C. § 863 Death without medical attendance
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In case of death occurring without medical attendance the personal representative, neighbor or finder of the deceased shall notify the Commissioner, or the local police official in the district, for investigation and certification. If any person shall have reason to believe that …
19 V.I.C. § 864 Repealed. July 19, 1968, No. 2318, § 4, Sess. L. 1968, Pt. II, p. 300
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19 V.I.C. § 864 Statutes current through Act 9046 of the 2025 session of the 36th Legislature, including all code changes through October 25, 2025 Virgin Islands Code AnnotatedCopyright © 2026 All rights reserved.
19 V.I.C. § 865 Post-mortem examination
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The Commissioner shall perform or cause to be performed a post-mortem examination in any case where the cause of death cannot otherwise be definitely determined or in cases where there are reasons to believe that death may have been due to a disease the knowledge of which gained …
19 V.I.C. § 866 Issuance of burial or removal permit
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(a) The local registrar, or his deputy, shall obtain personal and statistical particulars from the person best qualified to supply them, over the signature and address of his informant. He shall then see that the necessary medical certificate of the cause of death is properly acc…
19 V.I.C. § 867 Record of interment
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No person in charge of any premises on which interments are made shall inter or permit the interment or other disposition of any body unless it is accompanied by a burial permit, as provided in this subchapter. Such person shall endorse upon the permit the date of interment, over…
19 V.I.C. § 868 Foetal deaths
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For each foetal death a certificate of foetal death shall be filed with the local registrar in the usual form and manner. The certificate of foetal death shall be signed by the attending physician or midwife. The cause of foetal death if known and the period of uterogestation in …
19 V.I.C. § 869 Uniform Determination of death
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(a) This section may be cited as the Uniform Determination of Death Act. (b) An individual who has sustained either: (1) irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions or (2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem, i…
19 V.I.C. § 870 Pronouncement of death by registered nurses and certified registered nurse practitioners; conditions
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(a) As used in this section:(1) “Anticipated Death” means death that is, in the opinion of the attending physician, expected due to illness, infirmity, or disease.(2) “Attending Physician” means the physician who has primary responsibility for the treatment and care of the patien…
19 V.I.C. § 891 Furnishing copy of certificate of marriage to Commissioner
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(a) The clerk of the Superior Court shall, on or before the 15th day of each calendar month, forward to the Commissioner, free of cost, a certified copy of each certificate of marriage filed with him during the preceding calendar month. (b) The marriage certificate shall contain …
19 V.I.C. § 892 Information in marriage certificate confidential
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Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, information contained in certified copies of applications for marriage licenses shall be considered confidential and shall be used only for statistical purposes.
19 V.I.C. § 893 Furnishing record of decrees of divorce or annulment to Commissioner
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(a) The clerk of any court which issues a decree of divorce or annulment of marriage in the Virgin Islands shall forward to the Commissioner on or before the 15th day of each calendar month, free of cost, a certified copy of each decree of divorce or annulment of marriage ordered…
19 V.I.C. § 894 Information in decrees of divorce or annulment confidential
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Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, information contained in certified copies of decrees of divorce and annulment shall be considered confidential and shall be used only for statistical purposes.
19 V.I.C. § 911 Enforcement
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(a) The Commissioner is charged with the thorough and efficient execution of the provisions of this chapter in every part of the Virgin Islands, and is granted supervisory powers over local registrars and deputy local registrars, to the end that all its requirements shall be unif…
19 V.I.C. § 912 Penalties; revocation of licenses
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(a) Whoever for himself or as an agent, officer or employee of any other person, or of any corporation or partnership, or other association of any character—(1) inters, cremates, or otherwise finally disposes of the dead body of a human being, or permits the same to be done, or r…