Register a birth in Ireland

You will need to register the birth of your child no later than three months after his or her birth. Registration is a legal requirement in Ireland, but you will also need a birth certificate to enrol your child in school, to apply for a passport and for many other purposes.

You can now register the birth of your child online at the Civil Registration Services.

A birth may be registered in any Civil Registration Office regardless of where it took place in the state.

Parents registering online must have their own verified MyGovIDand the birth notification ID provided by letter to the mother.

Where can I register a birth online?

If you had a baby recently, you may now be able to register the birth online at Civil Registration Services.

Any parent registering the birth must have a verified MyGovID account. Please update your details on MyGovID before starting the online birth registration.

Who can register a birth online?

If the parents are not married, each parent must complete the online birth registration in a two-part process. The mother of the child must start this process.

If the parents are married to one another and their marriage is on record in Ireland, only one parent is required to register the birth online. In this case, either the mother or father may start the process using your child’s birth notification ID and the second parent does not need a verified MyGovID account.

If there is no marriage on record, both parents will be directed to complete the two-part process online.

Both married parents can also choose to register the birth online in a two-part process.. This means they will each be listed on the register as informants of the child’s birth.

In the two-part online process, both parents must have their own verified MyGovID.

Can all births be registered online?

There are a small number of parents who will be unable to do an online registration at this time and we are working to fix this. Some registrations will require additional information and will need to be carried out at a Civil Registration Office. Examples of these include:

• Donor Assisted Human Reproduction (DAHR) births. Details of how to register a DAHR birth can be found here
• widowed, divorced or separated mothers
• if either parent is deceased
• stillbirths, this service is being developed and will be launched as soon as possible
• unmarried or married mothers who are not registering the father’s details

You can find details of your local Civil Registration Office here.

What do I need to register a birth online?

To register a birth online, you will need:

• the Birth Notification ID which is issued automatically by letter to the mother
• your personal details including your name, date of birth, Personal Public Service (PPS) number, address at the time of the birth, your mother’s maiden name, occupation and your civil status (some details will automatically populate)
• details for the other parent including their name, date of birth and PPS number
• your child’s full name including their surname. Advice on naming your child can be found here.

To register a birth online, please apply below.

A birth which has already been registered can be re-registered to include the name of the father or non-biological parent in donor conceived births.

The parents, mother, or second parent can apply to have the details of the father or non-biological parent recorded in the register of births.

For donor-conceived births, see how to re-register the birth of a donor-conceived child for more information.

Since 4 May 2020 you can record the details of the parent(s), including the non-biological parent, when registering the birth of a donor conceived child (also known as DAHR).

The DAHR procedure must have taken place after 4 May 2020 and must have been in a DAHR facility in the state.

To complete the registration, you will need:

• a certificate from the DAHR facility
• a statutory declaration, signed by the parent(s)

You can request a birth registration form and statutory declaration by emailing the GRO at dahr@welfare.ie

You can submit completed forms by:

• email to dahr@welfare.ie
• or post to DAHR Section, General Register Office, Government Offices, Convent Road, Roscommon Town, F42 VX53

The GRO will forward the paperwork to a civil registration office of your choice. The registrar will let you know when you can attend to sign the register.

Births of donor-conceived children (also known as DAHR), where the procedure was performed before 4 May 2020, must first be registered in the state as a non-DAHR birth. This applies to donor-conceived children born before or for a period after 4 May 2020.

After the birth has been registered, a court order naming another person as the parent of the child is required prior to a DAHR re-registration.

The parents can then apply for the birth to be re-registered as a DAHR birth using the application form below.

To apply, download the form and attach a certified copy of the Court Order.

You can send the completed form and Court Order by

• email to dahr@welfare.ie
• or post to DAHR Section, General Register Office, Government Offices, Convent Road, Roscommon Town, F42 VX53

The GRO will forward the paperwork to a civil registration office of your choice. The registrar will let you know when you can attend to sign the register.

One or more first names are chosen by the parents of the child at the time of registration. First name(s) cannot be changed after the birth has been registered by the parents as there is no provision in legislation to change them.

The name(s) you give your child gives them their identity for life. Following the registration of your child, the Department of Social Protection will allocate a unique Personal Public Service number (PPSN) associated with the birth registration.

When choosing your child’s first name you should consider its usage as your child grows up. The name on your child’s birth certificate will be used for your child’s passport and later will be used for school attendance and club membership. As an adult it will be used on your child’s driving licence, international travel documentation, job applications and in conducting legal affairs.

There is no provision in legislation which will allow for an amendment to a child’s surname once the birth has been registered and signed by both parents. The parents chose the surname of the child at the time of registration; it is not possible to have the surname changed except in certain exceptional cases.

The surname you choose for your child must meet the legal requirements of the Civil Registration Act 2004. This requires that the child’s surname is the surname on record for either or both parents or a linguistic modification of that surname.

If an alternative surname is chosen in either the online registration process or when registering a birth in a local Civil Registration Office, this will be reviewed by an officer before it is accepted.

If both parents do not agree to the surname for the child during the online registration process the surname will remain blank on the birth certificate. You can contact your local Civil Registration Office to update your child’s surname. This will incur a cost.

There is no fee charged for the registration of a birth, or for re-registration to include a parent's details.

There is a fee of €5 for insertion or alteration of a forename. Fees are charged for Birth Certificates.

A birth certificate is issued for social welfare purposes at a reduced cost. Evidence it is for social welfare purposes is required, such as a note from the department.

How to apply for certificates.

How to register a stillbirth.