Ordering copy certificates
You can order a copy of a birth, death, marriage or civil partnership certificate for an event registered in Scotland.
We process requests as quickly as possible and in the order we receive them. We aim to process requests within 14 days, although it may take longer during busy periods.
Please do not contact us to check the progress of your request unless more than 14 days have passed, allowing additional time for delivery by Royal Mail.
If you need a birth certificate for a passport, please wait until you receive the birth certificate before booking your passport appointment.
What you can order
We can provide certificates for events registered in South Lanarkshire and across Scotland, unless:
- the event happened in England or Wales contact General Register Office (GRO) for England and Wales
- the event happened in Northern Ireland contact General Register Office (GRO) for Northern Ireland
- the record is in the Adopted Children’s Register contact National Records of Scotland (NRS)
- the event was registered within the last two years outside South Lanarkshire
For these, you will need to contact the relevant national office.
Costs
- £10 if you request the certificate within one month of registration
- £15 if you request it after one month (this includes a £5 non-refundable search fee)
If we cannot issue a certificate, we will confirm that we have searched the records. If you order more than one copy of the same record, the £5 search fee only applies once.
Postage
- UK: £1.80 standard first class
- Outside the UK: £3.40 standard international
Apply or get help
You can order your certificate online. If you need more information, contact the Licensing and Registration office.