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Ordering certificates from GRO, NRS, GRONI and the HSE

Last checked 30 October 2026 against the official DFA page. Rules and fees can change: always check the DFA page before you post.

Where to order each generation's certificates from the UK and Ireland, which version to ask for, and what each office charges.

In short

Order from the office where the birth, marriage or death was registered: GRO for England and Wales, Scotland's People for Scotland, GRONI for Northern Ireland, the HSE for the Republic of Ireland.
Ask for the full or long version that shows parents' details. The DFA needs certificates "showing parental details".
You send originals to the DFA, and they're returned at the end.

Which certificates you need

On the grandparent route you'll usually need, for each of you, your parent and your Irish-born grandparent:

a civil birth certificate showing parental details
a marriage certificate or other change of name document, where a name changed
for your parent and grandparent, a death certificate if they've died (instead of a certified copy of their photo ID)

The full list is in our documents checklist.

England and Wales: General Register Office (GRO)

Order online through GOV.UK. You need to register on the GRO website, and GOV.UK says it takes around 10 minutes.
£12.50 per certificate. GOV.UK says they're sent 4 days after you apply.
No GRO index reference number? It's £3.50 extra per search, and certificates are sent 15 working days after you apply.
Priority service: £38.50, sent the next working day if you order by 4pm.
You can also order by phone (0300 123 1837), by post, or from the local register office where the event was registered.

Scotland: Scotland's People (National Records of Scotland)

Order online from Scotland's People. Its certificates are official copies for legal use.
£12 per certificate; extra copies of the same certificate £10 each.
Standard dispatch within 15 working days; priority next-day dispatch is available at checkout.
You need the person's full name, date of birth and place. For some common surnames you may also need the parents' names or mother's maiden name.
You can also order from your local council; mygov.scot lists them and says the cost depends on the council.

Northern Ireland: GRONI

Order online from GRONI on nidirect. Birth certificates are available from 1864 to the present.
£15 per certificate, which includes a £7 search fee kept if the record isn't found. Extra copies ordered at the same time £8 each. Priority £20.
Ask for the long certificate. nidirect says it shows the registered parents and their occupations; a short certificate doesn't.
You'll need the full name, date and place of birth, the parents' names (including the mother's maiden name) and the mother's address at the time of birth.
Phone orders: 0300 200 7890. In person: GRONI, Colby House, Stranmillis Court, Belfast.

Republic of Ireland: HSE civil registration (certificates.ie)

certificates.ie takes you to the HSE's ordering pages.
Order the full standard (long-form) birth certificate, €20. The €5 uncertified copy is for research only.
Postage to Great Britain (including Northern Ireland) is €5.
You'll need the full birth name, date and place of birth, gender, mother's full birth name and father's full name if recorded.
The HSE holds births registered in the Republic from 1 January 1864, and in Northern Ireland from 1864 to 31 December 1921.

Practical tips

Our own tips, not DFA rules:

Grandparent born in what's now Northern Ireland before 1922? Both GRONI and the HSE cover those years. After 1921, order from GRONI.
Grandparent born before 1864? There's no civil birth record. The DFA accepts a baptismal certificate, usually from the parish.
Check every certificate when it arrives. Make sure names, dates and places line up from one generation to the next. If a surname changed through marriage, order the marriage certificate that links the two.
Don't send the only copy you care about. The DFA returns originals, but post can go missing. Keep photocopies, and consider ordering a spare of anything hard to replace.

Sources

Facts on this page come from the official pages above, checked on 30 October 2026. Where we give our own practical tips, we say so. This guide is not legal advice.