Births
A quick guide to registering births
Births in England and Wales must be registered within 42 days of the birth. This can often be done at the hospital or if not at the local register office. If the parents are married to each other, either parent can register the birth. If the parents are not married to each other, they should read Who should register? within the Registering a birth section and follow the Parental responsibility link for information on the implications of who goes to the register office.
If you wish to obtain a further copy of the birth certificate, this can be bought online, by post or telephone, or through the register office where the birth was registered.
This section of the website has detailed information on all these topics as well as what happens in cases where fertility treatment or surrogacy is involved, what you should do if the child is born abroad and what you need to do if you wish to change any of the details on the certificate at a later date. Information about obtaining a new birth certificate if you have changed your gender is also available. Please click on a link from the right hand side of the page to read about all these topics in greater detail.
