The ground rules
- Originals. Send original certificates, not photocopies. They’re returned to you at the end. Photo ID works differently. For the Foreign Births Register, send a photocopy of your passport, driver’s license or ID card, certified by your witness, never the original. For a first passport from abroad, the Passport Service lists both originals and certified copies, depending on your case, so follow its current checklist. Copies are certified by a Garda, solicitor, notary or the authority that issued the ID.
- Translations. Documents that aren’t in English or Irish, including certificates and proof of name or address, need a translation into English or Irish.
- Full civil certificates. Birth certificates must be the full version that shows the parents’ names. Church records aren’t accepted, except a baptismal certificate for a grandparent born before 1864. Laminated certificates aren’t accepted either.
- Link any change of name. If a name changed, usually through marriage, include the marriage certificate or other document that shows it.
First passport: through a parent born in Ireland
- The identity verification form, signed by your witness
- Your full birth certificate, showing your parents’ names
- Your marriage certificate, if you’re applying in your married name
- One document proving your name and a different one proving your address, each dated within the last 12 months
- Photo ID, such as your foreign passport, national ID card or driver’s license. The Passport Service’s checklist says whether to send the original or a copy certified by a Garda, solicitor, notary or the issuing authority
- Your Irish-born parent’s full birth certificate, showing their own parents’ names
- If your parent’s name has changed, the documents that link the names, such as a marriage certificate
Foreign Births Register: through a grandparent
You
- The application form, completed, signed and witnessed
- Your full birth certificate
- Your marriage certificate, if your name has changed
- A copy of your passport, driver’s license or national ID card, certified by your witness
- Two separate original proofs of address
- Four color passport photos, two of them signed by your witness (don’t attach them to the form)
Your parent (the one with the Irish-born parent)
- Their full birth certificate
- Their marriage certificate, if their name has changed
- A certified copy of their current photo ID, or their death certificate if they have died
Your Irish-born grandparent
- Their full Irish birth certificate (or a baptismal certificate if born before 1864)
- Their marriage certificate, if their name has changed
- A certified copy of their current photo ID, or their death certificate if they have died
Photo ID for your parent and grandparent must be certified by someone from the witness list. If you’re claiming through a parent who became Irish another way, such as by naturalization or the Foreign Births Register, add their original certificate for that. Applications for children need extra items, including a letter confirming the child’s address and proof of guardianship where needed.
Where to order certificates
| Born, married or died in | Order from | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | General Register Office (GOV.UK). Add £3.50 if you don’t have the index reference. | £12.50 £38.50 priority |
| Scotland | ScotlandsPeople (National Records of Scotland), online | £12 £10 each extra copy; priority costs more |
| Northern Ireland | General Register Office for Northern Ireland (nidirect) | £15 £20 priority |
| Republic of Ireland (and Northern Ireland before 1922) | General Register Office Ireland (via the HSE) | €20 +€5 postage abroad |
| United States | The vital records office of the state where the event happened. The CDC keeps a list of every state office. | Varies |
Irish civil records start in 1864. For Northern Ireland births from 1864 to 1921, you can order from either Dublin or Belfast. From Dublin, order the full standard certificate. The cheaper research photocopies aren’t certified, so they won’t do.
Sources
- Department of Foreign Affairs: Registering a foreign birth (document lists for adults and children)
- Passport Service: documentary requirements, adult
- GOV.UK: Order a birth, death, marriage or civil partnership certificate (Open Government Licence v3.0)
- National Records of Scotland: order a copy of a certificate
- PRONI: Your family tree 24, General Register Office (GRONI fees)
- HSE: Order a birth certificate