Family - In Wales

This information applies to England and Wales and Northern Ireland

Registering a birth

Births must usually be registered within 42 days. 'Stillbirths' should also normally be registered within 42 days.

If the parents were married at the time of the birth or conception, either the mother or father of the child can register the birth on their own. If the father is not married to the mother but registers the birth jointly with her, he will ensure that he has parental responsibility.

For more information about parental responsibility, see under Children, in Living together and marriage: legal differences.

If neither the mother or the father are able to register the birth, this can be done by one of the following people:

• someone living in the house where the child was born
• any person present at the birth
• any person responsible for the child.

Notice of every birth in the UK must be given to the district medical officer of health, in writing, within 36 hours of the birth. This is usually done by the medical practitioner who was at the birth.

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How to register a birth

A birth must be registered with the Registrar of Births and Deaths in the district in which the birth occurred. The address is in the telephone directory.

There is no fee for registering a birth but there is a fee for an extra copy of the certificate.

Naming the child on a birth certificate

The mother of the child can give the child any first and surname she chooses. She may give the child the father’s surname if she wants and she does not need the father’s consent to do this. In Northern Ireland details about a father who is not married to the mother may only be entered in certain circumstances.

A man registered on the birth certificate as the father of the child has no right to insist that the child is given a particular name, for example, his surname.

A married couple can also choose any surname for their child. It does not have to be the name of either of the parents.

Births outside the UK

All births on British registered ships and hovercrafts, and births of British subjects on foreign registered ships with a point of arrival or departure in the UK, are registered by the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen in Cardiff.

All births on registered aircraft are registered by the Civil Aviation Authority.

Births of British citizens, British Dependent Territories citizens and British Overseas citizens can normally be registered in foreign countries at the British Consul or High Commission.

Births to members of the armed forces serving outside the UK may be registered by the Service Departments’ Registering Officer overseas.

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Types of birth certificates

There are two types of birth certificates:-

• the full certificate. This is a copy of the entry in the birth register, giving all the recorded details
• the short certificate. This only gives the child’s full name, sex, date and place of birth. It does not give the name and particulars of the mother or father. A short certificate is issued free of charge when a birth is first registered and is sufficient for most official purposes.

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What to do if a birth has not been registered

It is possible to apply to register a birth years after it occurred. You will need to give as many details as possible, such as the exact date and place of birth including your or the child’s full name and address. You should write to:-

GRO Corrections
PO Box 476
Southport
PR8 2WJ
Telephone: 0151 471 4806
Fax: 01633 652729
E-mail: corrections.&.re-reg.section@ons.gov.uk
Website: www.gro.gov.uk

In Northern Ireland, the Registrar General may be able to authorise the registration of the birth provided satisfactory evidence is supplied to support all the particulars shown in the entry. If you are registering the birth, complete form GRO 205 available from the General Register Office and submit at least two pieces of documentary evidence of the date and place of birth.

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Transsexual people

A transsexual person whose birth was registered in the UK, and who is granted a full gender recognition certificate by the Gender Recognition Panel, can get a new birth certificate reflecting their acquired gender. You will be able to get a short certificate free of charge. This will include the details of the date, place of birth and parentage on your original birth certificate, together with your acquired gender and new name. Someone looking at this certificate will not be able to tell that you have legally acquired a different gender.

There is also the option for the new birth certificate to show your birth surname, if this is different from the surname on your gender recognition certificate. You will also be able to buy an additional full birth certificate, if you want to.

Your original birth certificate will remain in existence, but will not be available for the public to see.

For more information about getting a gender recognition certificate, see Frequently asked questions about family matters.

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Obtaining copies of birth certificates

Certificates from England and Wales

You can get a copy of a birth certificate in one of the following ways and a fee will be charged:-

• by post or personal visit to the local register office where the birth was registered, or the local register office where the birth took place
  
  
• by post from the General Register Office. To pay the fee, enclose credit or debit card details, or a cheque payable to ONS. You can download an application form from the General Register Office website at www.gro.gov.uk

The address is:

PO Box 2
Southport
Merseyside
PR8 2JD

• by telephone/fax from the General Register Office but this service is only available to credit and debit card holders.
  
  Tel: 0845 603 7788
  Fax: 01704 550013
  
  
• online, if you have full details of the birth or know the GRO Index reference number. You can pay by credit or debit card.

For details of the fees for copies of birth certificates, see under heading Fees for copies of birth certificates.

You should provide as much information about the birth as possible. If you do not know your exact date of birth, a search will be made for one year either side of the year you give. If an entry cannot be traced, part of the fee paid will be kept and the balance returned, provided the balance is at least £2.

If you supply the index reference number of the entry, the fee will be lower than if you do not. The index reference number can be found by searching the indexes on microfiche or computer database at the Family Records Centre. Also, some large libraries and public record offices hold the indexes. Most of the indexes from 1837 until the early 20th century can be searched free of charge at: www.freebmd.org.uk. Some local register offices have made their own indexes available online: see www.ukbmd.org.uk. The contact details of the Family Records Centre are:

1 Myddelton Street
London
EC1R 1UW

Website: www.familyrecords.gov.uk/frc

You can get a certificate, for social security purposes only, from the local registrar where the birth was registered. If you obtain the copy soon after the birth is registered, you will be charged a lower fee. Once the register has been passed to the Superintendent Registrar, the full fee is charged. The certificate will be kept by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

Certificates from Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland

You can get a copy of a certificate of a birth which took place in Scotland, Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland, and details of the fees, from:-

Scotland

General Register Office for Scotland
New Register House
3 West Register Street Edinburgh
EH1 3YT
Tel: 0131 314 4411
Website: www.gro-scotland.gov.uk

Northern Ireland

The General Register Office
Oxford House
49-55 Chichester Street Belfast
BT1 4HL
Tel: 02890 252000
Website: www.groni.gov.uk

Republic of Ireland

General Register Office
Government Offices
Convent Road
Roscommon
Tel: 00 353 (0)90 6632900
Website: www.groireland.ie

Certificates after adoption

If you are aged 18 or over and have been adopted in England, Wales or Northern Ireland you can apply for a copy of your original birth certificate.

If all the birth details are known you should apply to the Superintendent Registrar in the district where your birth was registered. There is a fee for this.

If adopted before 12 November 1975, you will have to see an experienced counsellor before you can get information from the original birth certificate.

If adopted on or after 12 November 1975, you can choose whether or not you would like to see a counsellor before getting information about your birth certificate.

You can also obtain a copy of the adoption certificate issued after the adoption order was granted.

For more information about adoption, in England and Wales see Adopting a child in Family fact sheets. In Northern Ireland, see Young people and family.

Certificates from abroad

If you were born abroad, the birth may also have been registered in the UK. If so, a copy of the certificate can be obtained in the usual way - see above.

If the birth has not been registered in the UK, you may be able to get a copy of the birth certificate from the country where you were born. This can be done by contacting the relevant embassy in the UK. Alternatively, the Overseas Registration Department at the General Register Office can contact the embassy on your behalf - see under heading Obtaining copies of birth certificates for address.

If you are unable to obtain a copy of your birth certificate from abroad, the Consular Directorate of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office may be able to help. A fee is charged. The address is:-

Consular Directorate
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Old Admiralty Buildings
London SW1 2PA
Tel: 0207 008 1500
E-mail: consular@fco.gtnet.gov.uk

If you were baptised in the Indian sub-continent before 1947 you should check with the India Office Library (Tel: 020 7928 9531).

Fees for copies of birth certificates in England and Wales

Fees for Copies of birth certificates in Northern Ireland

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