Ireland Vital Records: Civil Registration

Street scene, Dublin, Ireland
Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images

Government registration of births, marriages, and deaths in Ireland began January 1, 1864. Registration of marriages for non-Roman Catholics began in 1845. Many of the early years of civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths have been microfilmed by the Mormons and are available through Family History Centers worldwide. Check the Family History Library Catalog online for details on what is available.

  • Address:
    Office of the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths, and Marriages
    Government Offices
    Convent Road, Roscommon
    Phone: (011) (353) 1 6711000
    Fax: (011) +353(0) 90 6632999

Ireland Vital Records

The General Register Office of Ireland has records of birth, marriage, and death occurring in all of Ireland from 1864 to 31 December 1921 and records from the Republic of Ireland (excluding the six north-eastern counties of Derry, Antrim, Down, Armagh, Fermanagh, and Tyrone known as Northern Ireland) from 1 January 1922 on. The GRO also has records of non-Catholic marriages in Ireland from 1845. Indices are arranged in alphabetical order by name and include the registration district (also known as the 'Superintendent Registrar's District'), and the volume and page number in which the entry is recorded. Through 1877 indices were arranged alphabetically, by year. From 1878 onwards each year was divided into quarters, January-March, April-June, July-September and October-December. FamilySearch has the Ireland Civil Registration Indexes 1845-1958 available for free searching online.

Enclose the correct fee in Euros (check, International Money Order, cash, or Irish Postal Order, drawn on an Irish bank) made payable to The Civil Registration Service (GRO). The GRO also accepts credit card orders (the best method for international orders). Records are available by applying in person at the General Register Office, any local Superintendent Registrars Office, by postal mail, by fax (GRO only), or online. Please call or check the Web site before ordering to verify current fees and other information.

Ireland Birth Records

  • Dates: From 1864Cost of copy: €20.00 certificate
  • Comments: Be sure to request a "full certificate" or a photocopy of the original birth record, both of which contain the date and place of birth, given name, sex, father's name and occupation, mother's name, informant of birth, date of registration and the signature of the Registrar.

* Birth information prior to 1864 may be available from parish baptismal records which are kept at the National Library, Kildare Street, Dublin, 2.

Irish Death Records

  • Dates: From 1864
  • Cost of copy: €20.00 certificate (plus postage)
  • Comments: Be sure to request a "full certificate" or a photocopy of the original death record, both of which contain date and place of death, name of deceased, sex, age (sometimes approximate), occupation, cause of death, informant of death (not necessarily a relative), date of registration and Registrar's name. Even today, Irish death records do not usually include a maiden name for married women or date of birth for the deceased.

Irish Marriage Records

  • Dates: From 1845 (Protestant marriages), from 1864 (Roman Catholic marriages)
  • Cost of copy: €20.00 certificate (plus postage)
  • Comments: Marriage records in the GRO are cross-listed under the surname of both the bride and groom. Be sure to request a "full certificate" or a photocopy of the original marriage record, which contains the date and place of marriage, names of bride and groom, age, marital status (spinster, bachelor, widow, widower), occupation, place of residence at time of marriage, name, and occupation of father of bride and groom, witnesses to marriage and clergyman who performed the ceremony. After 1950, additional information provided on marriage records includes the dates of birth for the bride and groom, mother's names, and a future address.

* Marriage information prior to 1864 may be available from parish marriage registers which are kept at the National Library, Kildare Street, Dublin, 2.

Format
mla apa chicago
Your Citation
Powell, Kimberly. "Ireland Vital Records: Civil Registration." ThoughtCo, Aug. 27, 2020, thoughtco.com/ireland-vital-records-1422818. Powell, Kimberly. (2020, August 27). Ireland Vital Records: Civil Registration. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/ireland-vital-records-1422818 Powell, Kimberly. "Ireland Vital Records: Civil Registration." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/ireland-vital-records-1422818 (accessed March 19, 2024).