Registering a birth

Congratulations on your new baby! Registering a birth is one of the first thing you will do as a new parent.

All births in England, Wales and Northern Ireland must be registered within 42 days of the child being born  – that’s 6 weeks.

How to register a birth

For babies born in Sheffield, you can book an appointment to register the birth at Sheffield Town Hall or First Start Family Hub. 

Book an appointment to register a baby born in Sheffield

Do not ring. The only appointments available are those online.

To book online, choose a time and date for an appointment for you to attend to complete the entry.

You can still select the next available appointment if you have recently received a letter asking you to register your baby.

If the baby was not born in Sheffield, either contact the Register Office for the district where the birth took place or ask about registering by declaration.

Cost

Registration is free of charge.

Certified copies of the birth certificate are £11 each at the time of registration.

Copy birth certificates may be obtained at a later date for the standard fee of £12 each.

A standard birth certificate shows all the details recorded in the register. Please note, if you intend to apply for a passport for your child, the Passport Office will ask to see a standard birth certificate.

Who can register a birth and what information you need

GOV.UK provide a useful guide to registering a birth, including who can register a birth and what information/identification you will need to have for your appointment.

Re-register a birth

You may wish to re-register a birth to add the details of the natural father to a new record of the child’s birth, if those details were not given at the original registration or to make a new record of the child’s birth to show the child to be a child of the natural parents’ subsequent marriage.

Apply for re-registration

If the child was born in Sheffield, please contact us.

If the child was not born in Sheffield, either contact the Register Office for the district where the birth took place or telephone, or call into this office and ask about re-registering by declaration.

Don’t miss out on Child Benefit

You can claim Child Benefit 48 hours after you’ve registered the birth of your child. Child Benefit can be backdated for up to 3 months.

Watch this video to find out more about how to claim Child Benefit online.

 

Find out more about claiming Child Benefit at GOV.UK or call the Child Benefit helpline on 0300 200 3100

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