Minnesota, county records
Find the right office in Dakota County. Court cases, deeds and parcels, sheriff and jail records, vital records and county filings, each linked to the office that keeps them.
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Every card below goes to the government office responsible for that record. Use the category buttons to narrow the list.
County court
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Minnesota keeps bankruptcy dockets and claims searchable through PACER, accepts electronic proofs of claim and runs a free bankruptcy advice clinic.
Open official site Minnesota Federal CasesProperty records
The Minnesota Department of Revenue publishes property tax data by year and location, including sales ratios and market values. Parcel records and tax statements come from each Minnesota county.
Open official site Minnesota Property RecordsVital records
Request birth and death certificates, marriage records and divorce filings in Minnesota.
Open official site Minnesota Vital RecordsState records
Find active and inactive corporations by name from the Minnesota Secretary of State.
Open official site Minnesota Business & Corporation SearchState records
Search property and claim status by individual name or business through the Minnesota Dept. of Commerce.
Open official site Minnesota Unclaimed PropertyLocal record guide
County profile
Sheriff & Law Enforcement. Dakota County Sheriff's Office is responsible for law enforcement services across Dakota County, particularly in unincorporated areas.
Police Departments. Dakota County is served by several law enforcement agencies, including Dakota County Sheriff's Office and municipal police departments such as the Eagan Police Department, Burnsville Police Department, and Apple Valley Police Department. Each city department is responsible for maintaining public safety within its jurisdiction, handling local crime, and coordinating with the Sheriff's Office on major investigations.
Law Enforcement & Arrests. Dakota County Sheriff's Office, headquartered at 1580 Highway 55 in Hastings, Minnesota, provides law enforcement services throughout Dakota County's unincorporated areas and contract services to several municipalities. Dakota County Adult Detention Facility, located adjacent to the Sheriff's Office at 1590 Highway 55 in Hastings, houses inmates for Dakota County. Arrest records and booking information in Dakota County are public records under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act (Minnesota Statutes Chapter 13), which governs access to government data.
Arrest Records. Arrest records in Dakota County are maintained by Dakota County Sheriff's Office and local police departments.
Mugshots & Booking Photos. Mugshots in Dakota County are taken and retained by Dakota County Sheriff's Office during the booking process. These booking photos are part of the public record and can be accessed through the Sheriff's Office website or by submitting a formal request.
Abandoned mine records
Where the workings are, and the office that holds the mine maps.
From the old mine records
The mine records hold 19 mine sites inside the county: 1 prospect or occurrence that was never worked, 11 sites producing when the record was made, 1 processing plant, which is not a working, 6 sites with no status in the record; the old survey maps add 225 holes drawn inside the county, 0 of them shafts or tunnels. The mineral the records name is Clay.
A point in either file is a location, not a property line: the sheet shows the opening on the surface, not the rooms under it. The record that shows what runs under a parcel is the mine map. The OSMRE National Mine Map Repository holds scanned underground mine maps and answers requests for a named mine or an area. Minnesota has no coal AML program; its underground mines are iron mines on the Mesabi Range.
Minnesota abandoned mine maps ranks every county and town in the state by the workings recorded inside it, names the office that holds the mine maps, and says what to do if the ground moves.
Disclaimer: The mine information here is for general information only. Old mine records can be incomplete, outdated or wrong, and finding nothing here does not mean there is nothing there. Check with the mine map office named here before you rely on it, and have a qualified engineer look at any ground you are worried about. PublicRecordCenter.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of this information.
Know before you ask
Each figure below was read on the official source linked beside it, October to November 2026. A fee or rule the source does not state is left out rather than guessed, and offices can change their schedules, so confirm on the source before you pay or travel.
Dakota property-recording instructions distinguish Abstract land from Torrens land with a certificate of title. The distinction changes which references matter in the research. In-person recording takes place at the Administration Center in Hastings, even though other locations can supply some copy services. A service center that can print an existing record should not be assumed to accept a new instrument for recording.
Recorded-document purchase instructions list $1 per page or $10 for a certified copy, with different charges for plats and registered-land surveys. Uncertified documents can be obtained at Hastings, West St. Paul or Apple Valley. Call for the page count and cost before mailing a written request to Property Taxation and Records, Attention Research. The office mailing-turnaround statement is not a guarantee of postal delivery.
Dakota certified-birth instructions describe statewide issuance from January 1, 1935 and direct older Dakota births to the Administration Center. The state product inventory describes a broader statewide date boundary. Because those published descriptions differ, confirm older out-of-county requests with Vital Records before travelling. The county fee is $26 for the first certified birth record and $19 for additional copies issued together.
The county birth-certificate overview distinguishes certified copies for legal purposes from noncertified information copies and lists the service and license centers that offer them. A request for more historical detail may require an informational product as well as the certified certificate. Keep the purpose of each copy clear and check the application instructions for signatures and identification rather than submitting the wrong form.
Minnesota court-copy guidance distinguishes free uncertified copies from generally $14 certified copies and separate exemplified products. Court administration does not issue birth, death, marriage or real-estate records. If the evidence needed is a divorce judgment or other court order, supply its case number and document title to the court rather than asking the county vital-record counter to locate it.
Court copy-request methods explain that off-site storage can prevent same-day service. A nonparty using electronic filing should contact court administration for the appropriate administrative file number instead of filing into someone else's case without instructions. The Minnesota records guide connects these local services with state searches while keeping the land instrument, certificate and judicial file distinct.
Where to go
Each office below was read on its own site. A field the office does not publish is left out rather than filled in from a directory.
Recorded instruments and copy estimates.
Office page: dakotacountymn.gov
Eligible birth-record requests, including the county's older local records.
Office page: dakotacountymn.gov
Labor Department file
The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division closed 210 investigations in Dakota County since fiscal 2005 and recorded $2,481,664 in back wages agreed for 3,312 workers. The county is the one the Census Bureau puts each employer's ZIP code in. Snapshot of April 22, 2026; a case here is a finding by the Division, not a court judgment.
The 25 employers with the most back wages agreed, of 187 on the Dakota County record; 60 employers have a page of their own and open from the table, the rest show their whole record here. The 162 more with smaller records are on the Minnesota wage theft records page, whose search answers for every employer in the state.
Straight answers
Open only the answer you need.
Booking photos are kept by the agency that made the arrest, such as the Dakota County Sheriff or a city police department in Dakota County. Ask that agency for its record. Under Minnesota Statutes 13.82, subdivision 26, a booking photograph is public data; a law enforcement agency may withhold it for a time if access would hurt an active investigation.
The Minnesota criminal history record comes from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA). Free name search of public criminal history (convictions public for 15 years after the sentence ends) online; for your own full record, send the BCA a notarized personal request form by mail or in person. Fee: Free online public search; $8.00 for a Minnesota only check on yourself, plus $10.00 per card for fingerprinting service.
Search the Minnesota Department of Corrections Public Registrant Search, or every state at once on the National Sex Offender Public Website run by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Register with the county auditor or through the Minnesota Secretary of State. You can also register online with the state online registration. Same day registration: yes, in person at your polling place on Election Day with proof of residence; registration ahead of time closes 20 days before a regularly scheduled election (Minnesota Statutes 201.061).
Deeds and other recorded land documents in Dakota County are kept by the Dakota County recorder. Property values are set by the county assessor, and tax bills come from the county treasurer. Source: official state page.
Certified birth and death certificates for Minnesota come from the Minnesota Department of Health, Office of Vital Records. Any Minnesota county vital records office sells birth and death certificates, and for fastest service MDH points you to a county office, where most of the time you get the order while you wait. In person at a county vital records office, or from MDH by mail to PO Box 64499, St. Paul, MN 55164-0499 or by fax to 866-416-1357 (credit card only) with the application form. Fee: $26 for a birth certificate ($19 for each added copy of the same one); $13 for a death certificate ($6 for each added copy).
Business entity filings are searched with the Minnesota Secretary of State, Business Services. Minnesota DEED says many local governments require licenses for certain kinds of businesses, and in some cases cities and counties require a general business license.
No. The county identifies the Hastings Administration Center as the in-person recording location.
The purchase instructions list a $10 certified copy separately from $1-per-page ordinary copies.
Confirm first. The county date range differs from the broader state product description.
The county lists $19 for an additional copy of the same record issued at the same time.
No. The county describes it as an informational product.
No. State court guidance excludes vital certificates from court-administration records.
No. Off-site files may require retrieval before copies can be supplied.
State instructions tell nonparties to contact court administration for the appropriate administrative filing number.
Same county
Use the city page when a record was created by a municipal police department or city office; use the county page for courts, deeds, vital records and jail custody.