How to Find Your Immunization Records

The fastest starting point: your doctor's office

Call or message the clinic where you (or your child) receive routine care. Ask for a printout of your immunization history. Most modern electronic health record systems store every vaccine a provider entered, often going back many years. If you have seen more than one provider, records may be split across practices — it is worth calling each one you remember.

The CDC recommends keeping your own immunization record form that providers sign at each visit. If you do not have one, ask your provider to give you a signed copy of your vaccine history at your next visit 2Ref 2Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2024).Staying Up to Date with Your Vaccine Records.No national organization maintains vaccination records; adults should check personal documents, school or college health services, prior employers or military, their doctor, and state health department registries; re-vaccination is safe when prior records cannot be located; recommends keeping a personal immunization record with provider signatures.

Your state immunization registry

Every US state, territory, and tribal jurisdiction runs an Immunization Information System (IIS) — sometimes called a registry or immunization registry. Pharmacies, clinics, schools, and health departments report vaccines to it. You can typically request a copy through your state health department's website or by calling the immunization program directly.

The CDC maintains a directory of contact information — phone numbers, websites, and email addresses — for every state and territory registry at cdc.gov/iis/contacts-locate-records 1Ref 1Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2024).Contacts for IIS Immunization Records.CDC directory of all state, territory, and tribal immunization registry contacts; confirms that CDC does not hold vaccination records itself and patients must contact their state IIS; lists phone numbers, websites, and portals for every jurisdiction; last updated August 2024. Some states allow patients to access their own records online through a patient portal; others require a written request or a call to the health department.

Registry completeness varies — some states have robust records going back to the 1990s; others have gaps. If you have lived in multiple states, you may need to contact more than one 1Ref 1Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2024).Contacts for IIS Immunization Records.CDC directory of all state, territory, and tribal immunization registry contacts; confirms that CDC does not hold vaccination records itself and patients must contact their state IIS; lists phone numbers, websites, and portals for every jurisdiction; last updated August 2024.

Important: The CDC itself does not maintain vaccination records. There is no national database — records exist at the state and provider level 2Ref 2Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2024).Staying Up to Date with Your Vaccine Records.No national organization maintains vaccination records; adults should check personal documents, school or college health services, prior employers or military, their doctor, and state health department registries; re-vaccination is safe when prior records cannot be located; recommends keeping a personal immunization record with provider signatures.

Pharmacy records

If you received vaccines at a chain pharmacy (flu shot clinic, travel vaccines), the pharmacy keeps its own records and also reports to the state IIS. Log in to your pharmacy account online, call the store where you got the shot, or ask the pharmacist for a printout of your vaccine history on file.

School, employer, and military records

Schools often keep the immunization records submitted at enrollment — contact the registrar of the last school attended 2Ref 2Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2024).Staying Up to Date with Your Vaccine Records.No national organization maintains vaccination records; adults should check personal documents, school or college health services, prior employers or military, their doctor, and state health department registries; re-vaccination is safe when prior records cannot be located; recommends keeping a personal immunization record with provider signatures. Employers in health care and the military maintain occupational immunization records; contact HR or the medical records office. For US military veterans, the VA or the National Personnel Records Center may have vaccination history from service.

Note that schools and employers typically retain these records for a limited time — often one to two years after a student leaves or an employee departs — so earlier is better when searching.

What to do when records are genuinely lost

If no source can locate your records, a clinician can review your history, run titer blood tests to check immunity to specific diseases (such as measles or hepatitis B), and recommend re-vaccination if needed. The CDC notes that re-vaccinating when records are unavailable is generally considered safe — receiving an extra dose carries very low risk for the majority of vaccines 2Ref 2Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2024).Staying Up to Date with Your Vaccine Records.No national organization maintains vaccination records; adults should check personal documents, school or college health services, prior employers or military, their doctor, and state health department registries; re-vaccination is safe when prior records cannot be located; recommends keeping a personal immunization record with provider signatures.

A clinician can advise which vaccines are most important to confirm or repeat based on your age, health status, and lifestyle.