Tennessee requires a Certificate of Immunization at enrollment — a signed, provider-verified document listing each required vaccine dose. Under TCA §49-6-5001, that certificate must be on file before a student can attend. This page covers which records Tennessee law requires, how to retrieve your child's history from TennIIS, and the 7th-grade Tdap booster that catches many families mid-summer.
Last verified: September 8, 2026
Under TCA §49-6-5001 and rules adopted by the Tennessee Department of Health, every student must present a Certificate of Immunization before or upon enrollment in a Tennessee school. The certificate must be signed by a licensed healthcare provider and list each required vaccine with the month, day, and year of administration.
The required vaccine records for K–12 entry:
7th grade checkpoint:
TennIIS (Tennessee Immunization Information System) is the state's immunization registry. Tennessee healthcare providers report vaccinations to TennIIS, which stores each patient's complete dose history. Parents can request a TennIIS record printout through their child's pediatrician, local health department, or Tennessee Department of Health office — it shows every documented dose and identifies gaps in required series.
(Source: Tennessee Department of Health — TennIIS, accessed Aug 30, 2026)
Tennessee's Certificate of Immunization must be signed by a licensed healthcare provider. It lists each required vaccine with dose dates. Your pediatrician typically completes the Certificate at a well-child visit. Download the form from the Tennessee Department of Health or pick one up from your school district before the appointment — it must be on file at school before your child attends classes.
If your child received doses in another state, bring those records or request a printout from the prior state's registry. A Tennessee provider reviews the dose dates, enters them into TennIIS, and documents them on the Certificate of Immunization. Doses administered in any state count — the provider just needs to verify and sign off on them.
Tennessee requires a Tdap booster before 7th grade entry — a dose given on or after the student's 10th birthday. Many families complete this at the 11-year-old well-child visit, but students who haven't had a recent checkup may arrive at 7th grade without the booster documented. Confirm the Tdap dose is in TennIIS and on the Certificate of Immunization before the school year starts.
(Source: Tennessee Department of Health, accessed Aug 30, 2026)
Tennessee uses a named Certificate of Immunization — not just any provider-generated record — as the official enrollment document. The certificate must be signed by a licensed healthcare provider and submitted to the school before the student may attend. Schools are required to keep these certificates on file and report aggregate immunization rates to the Tennessee Department of Health annually.
(Source: TCA §49-6-5001, accessed Aug 30, 2026)
Every person gets one health story, and one private Family Stork email address every clinic already knows how to use. Give that address to your pediatrician, your local health department, or your school nurse — they send records to it, and the immunization history builds itself into one timeline.
When Tennessee schools ask for the Certificate of Immunization — at kindergarten, at 7th grade, or when you transfer into a new district — the dose dates, the Tdap booster, and the Hep A series are already organized. No calling TennIIS, no scrambling for the signed Certificate, no delays on the first day of school.
Family Stork gives every family member a private @families.familystork.com address. Providers send immunization records to it automatically. TennIIS data, Certificate of Immunization dose dates, and every checkpoint — organized in one place, ready for every Tennessee enrollment. $99/year — about $10/month.
Start your family's record — freeTennessee recognizes medical exemptions and religious exemptions from school immunization requirements under TCA §49-6-5001(b). Medical exemptions require a licensed physician's signed statement indicating that one or more vaccinations are medically contraindicated for the student. Religious exemptions require a written statement from the parent or guardian certifying a sincere religious belief against immunization. Tennessee does not recognize philosophical exemptions.
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