Registration in England and Wales dates back to 1837. Since then, there have been some changes in legislation which affect day-to-day practices, but the original approach to registration and the methodologies used remain relatively unchanged.

The registration of key life events such as birth, death, stillbirth, adoption, marriage and civil partnership is a legal requirement. These registrations are an integral part of identity documentation, providing a certificate to support further personal applications, for example, for passports and driving licences.

GRO administers this registration process throughout England and Wales, working in partnership with local authorities. Local registrars are responsible for keeping us updated with all events registered at district level. We maintain a national archive of all births, marriages and deaths since 1837, as well as adoptions from 1927 and civil partnerships from 2005. We deal with over 2 million applications for certificates a year.

We provide guidance on registration matters, including changes and corrections, and overseas events, to the public, registrars, local authorities, Ministers, MPs and government officials.

We may also be able to help you if you are an adopted person looking to find your birth relatives, or a relative who wants to make contact with an adopted person.

More on registering births, adoptions, deaths and marriages

Order a certificate online direct from GRO

Research family history with GRO