General Register Office Contact Information
General Register Office (England and Wales)
Email:[email protected]
(add ‘GQ’ to the subject line)
Telephone: 0300 123 1837
Textphone: 18001 0300 123 1837
Monday to Friday: 8am to 8pm
Saturday: 9am to 4pm
Find out about call charges.
You can order certificates online from the General Register Office or you can also write to their registered address.
General Register Office
PO Box 2
Southport PR8 2JD
Note: The contact information is different for the National Records of Scotland and the General Register Office for Northern Ireland.
The National Records of Scotland
National Records of Scotland
New Register House
3 West Register Street
Edinburgh
Scotland EH1 3YT
Telephone: 0131 314 4411
Monday to Friday: 9am to 4:30pm
Note: The National Records of Scotland are also responsible for the Scottish national archives. The files contain government documents and public records.
Ordering a Copy of a Certificate
Get a Copy of Your Birth, Death, or Marriage Certificate
There are several reasons to order an official certificate from the General Register Office (GRO). You may need to get a copy or you may want to research your family tree.
First of all, you would need to register on the General Register Office website. Following this, you can order a copy of a birth, adoption, death, marriage or civil partnership certificate in England and Wales.
The current cost of a certificate is £11 (plus £3 if you need to conduct a search to find your GRO index reference number). As a rule, you should receive it within fourteen (14) working days.
Note: There is a priority service if you need the certificate faster. The charge is £35 and they will send it the next working day (if ordered before 4pm). The process for getting copies of certificates in Scotland and ordering life event certificates in Northern Ireland differs.
Births or Deaths Registered Abroad
As a rule, you would registered a birth or a death with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Overseas Registration Unit. If this is the case, you must wait until November of the following year get a copy certificate from the GRO.
There is a way to get a copy sooner. You would need to email the name of the registered person, along with the registration date and reference number, to:
- Email address for birth registrations: [email protected]
- Email address for death registrations: [email protected]
The staff will reply to your email enquiry and inform you how to get the copy. As a general rule, this service will cost £50 plus courier fees.
Order a Copy of a Certificate by Phone or Post
By Telephone
You can also order copies of certificates by phone. You would need to call the General Register Office.
General Register Office
Telephone: 0300 123 1837
Text relay: 18001 0300 123 1837
Monday to Friday: 8am to 8pm
Saturday: 9am to 4pm
By Postal Methods
You can order application forms for birth, adoption, death, marriage, or civil partnership certificates by post. Fill in the most relevant GRO certificate application and return it to the address written on the form.
Note: If you register on the GRO website you can order a commemorative marriage certificate online. They make an ideal gift or a keepsake to mark a silver, ruby, golden, or diamond wedding anniversary.
Local Register Offices
Births, deaths, and marriages also get registered at local register offices as well. You can use a postcode search to find a register office near to your location.