General Register Office (GRO)
Keeps the birth, adoption, marriage, civil partnership and death records for England and Wales and issues certificates from them.
Home » Certificates and civil registration (BDM) » Register a stillbirth
Register a stillbirth
A stillbirth must be registered by law. You have 42 days in England and Wales, 21 days in Scotland and up to 1 year in Northern Ireland. You can give your baby a name in the register.
Official links
Show links for:
| Official source | Applies to |
|---|---|
| GOV.UK: register a stillbirth www.gov.uk/register-stillbirth | England, Wales |
| National Records of Scotland: registering a stillbirth www.nrscotland.gov.uk/registration/registering-a-stillbirth | Scotland |
| nidirect: registering a stillbirth www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/registering-stillbirth | Northern Ireland |
Who handles it
Handled by your local council This procedure is done with the council where you live. Find your council »
General Register Office for Northern Ireland (GRONI)
Registers births, deaths, marriages, civil partnerships and adoptions in Northern Ireland and issues certificates.
National Records of Scotland (NRS)
Keeps Scotland's birth, death, marriage and civil partnership records, runs the census and sells certificates through ScotlandsPeople.
Step by step
- Contact a register office. In Scotland and Northern Ireland you can go to any registration office in that nation.
- Bring the certificate or notification from the doctor or midwife who was present or examined the baby.
- Either parent can register if they are married or in a civil partnership; otherwise the mother registers, or the office explains how both can be named.
- If neither parent can do it, someone who was present or the occupier of the hospital or house can register.
- Keep the stillbirth certificate: you may need it to claim maternity, paternity or bereavement pay and leave.
What you need
- The certificate or notification of stillbirth from the doctor or midwife (the register office tells you exactly what to bring).
- The baby's name (if you choose one), sex, and the date and place of the stillbirth.
- Parents' full names, dates of birth, addresses and occupations.
Common mistakes
- Assuming the deadline is the same everywhere: Scotland allows only 21 days, Northern Ireland up to 1 year.
- An unmarried father registering alone without the mother's signed declaration.