Births
Registering a birth
Introduction
After the arrival of a new baby, it is a legal requirement to register the birth within 42 days – this can often be done at hospital before the mother goes home, otherwise it needs a personal visit to a register office.
A birth which takes place in England can only be registered in English, but births in Wales may be registered bilingually in English and Welsh.
These pages explain what to do for a child born in England or Wales – please visit the registration websites for Scotland and Northern Ireland for information on how to register a birth that has taken place in one of these countries.
Please click on a link from the right hand side of the page to read about this area in greater detail.
