Births

How to register a birth

Download, complete and sign the Registration of Birth Form available from NI Direct at Birth registration form | nidirect
Contact the Registrar on 028 9127 8001/ 003 or 004 to make an appointment.
Ensure you bring the COMPLETED birth application form to your appointment

By law, all births in Northern Ireland must be registered. You must register your baby's birth within 42 days of the date of birth. You can register a birth in any registrar's office in Northern Ireland.

The Registrar's offices in Ards and North Down at the City Hall, The Castle, Bangor, BT20 4BT, telephone 028 9127 8003

Opening hours

Please note that the Registrar's Office operates an appointment-only system.
To make an appointment please ring 028 9127 8001 / 003 or 004

Registering a birth

To register a birth, you need to fill in a Birth registration form | nidirect

You also need certain information to fill in the form:

full name, surname and sex of the baby
date and place of birth
full names, addresses, dates of birth and occupations of the baby's mother and father

When registering a birth, it is important to give accurate information as a registration cannot be easily changed later.

Family members or other people who can register the birth

The following people can register a child's birth:

the mother or father of the baby - if you are a married couple
when a child is born outside marriage, the name of the father can only be recorded in the entry of birth if both parents attend and sign the registration together. If the baby's mother or father cannot attend together, contact the registrar for advice
maternal grandmother, grandfather, aunt or uncle of the baby who has knowledge of the birth
occupier of the premises where the baby was born
any person present at the birth
any person in charge of the child

Birth certificates

Once the birth is registered, you will receive one free, short birth certificate and an HS123 infant registration form. You'll need this form to register your child with a family doctor and obtain your child's medical card. You can buy full birth certificates at the point of registration. Each certificate costs £8.00. You can pay by credit/debit card, cheque or cash.

Additional certificates

You cannot buy additional birth certificates from the registrar's office at any time after registration. You can only buy these from the General Register Office in Belfast. An additional certificate costs £15.00.

General Register Office
NISRA
Colby House
Stranmillis Court
Belfast
BT9 5RR
Telephone: 0300 200 7890
General Register Office website

Privacy Notice

You can find out how any personal information you give to Ards and North Down Borough Council's Registrar's office is used and how it will be handled by viewing the General Register Office Northern Ireland (GRONI) privacy notice.