Southampton certificates and other services - Terms and conditions of acceptance

Requests for certificates will be administered by the Council's Register Office, who will administer this under the provisions of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953.

We can only supply certificates for events that took place within the Southampton City boundary since 1837.

Offices that surround our boundaries are Hampshire, Portsmouth, Bournemouth and Isle of Wight. If the event took place in any of these areas, you would need to apply to the respective Register Office as we do not hold the records. 

Please note that although initially registered under Southampton, some records (including Eastleigh) were transferred to Hampshire, so you may need to check with us before applying.

Your application will need to include:

• A day-time contact number so that we may contact you if there is a problem with locating the record or your payment method
• As much information as possible about the certificate you require. If you are unsure of the date, a maximum of five years will be searched in our indexes around the year you specify.

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Birth certificates where the date of birth is less than 50 years prior to the date of application

If you are applying for a birth certificate where the date of birth is less than 50 years prior to the date of application, it is essential that you provide:

• The person’s forename and surname at birth
• Their date of birth
• Place of birth
• Father’s forename and surname (if stated on the birth entry)
• Mother’s forename surname and maiden name (if applicable)

If this information is not provided, we will not be able to issue the certificate.

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Death certificates where the age at death is less than 16 years and the death occurred less than 50 years prior to the application

If you are applying for a death certificate where the age at death is less than 16 years, and the death occurred less than 50 years prior to the application, we require the:

• Forename and surname of the deceased
• Date of death
• Age at death
• Place of death/last known address
• Father’s forename and surname (if stated on the death entry)
• Mother’s forename and surname.

If this information is not provided, we will not be able to issue the certificate.

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Fees and services

Please note that there is an additional charge of £10 for a search up to 10 years.

If we are unable to locate the entry, a refund for the certificate fee only will be made. Any fees paid for priority service and administration will be retained, as the application has still been processed. This includes applications received for events that took place outside our area.

An application cannot be processed before the full fee has been received.

It is a statutory requirement that all certificates are sent out by post to the applicant. Collection is no longer available.

Standard certificates are usually ready for posting out by second class post within 15 working days. If you need your certificate sooner, you should choose the priority service to ensure you receive your certificate in time.

Priority service certificates will be ready for posting out by first class post before the next working day. This does not mean you will receive your certificate the next day. Orders must be placed between the hours of 10am and 3pm for the priority service. This service is a higher fee for a quicker processing service. If we cannot find the record based on the information you have provided, or it is out of the city boundary, you will only receive a refund of the certificate fee (£11). This is because the service (search) you requested would have been provided.

Refunds for priority orders that are subsequently cancelled, will only be for the certificate as the service (search) you requested would have been provided.

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If your certificate does not arrive

Certificates are sent out via standard Royal Mail postage for free. We also offer ‘signed for’ and international postage.

If your certificate does not arrive, you should firstly email registrars@southampton.gov.uk to confirm that your certificate order has been received, completed and the certificate(s) posted out to you.

If the certificate goes missing in the post, you will need to pay for a new one.

You will need to use the standard Royal Mail compensation scheme for lost or damaged items. If you choose not to use the ‘signed for’ option, compensation from Royal Mail will not cover any losses.

Payment for certificates must be made at the time of the request. Refunds will not be issued if your certificate is lost in standard post or if the details do not match what you expect.

Southampton City Council will not be held liable for any loss, damage or expense as a result of delays or failure to provide certificates arising from circumstances beyond the Council's reasonable control. Certificates not received must be notified to this office within two months of the original order date.

This includes, without limitation, acts of God or any of the following acts of third parties:

• Bad weather conditions
• Civil commotion
• Earthquake
• Explosion
• Fire
• Flood
• Industrial action
• Lockouts
• Postal or courier services
• Power failure
• Strikes
• Technical failure
• Terrorist attack
• The incorrect postal address has been supplied
• War

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Your information

Southampton City Council will not use your information for any other purpose or share with any third parties unless it is required to do so by rule of law.

If you have any queries on how your information is used please contact Southampton Register Office: