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Birth certificates are public records in most countries, but the location of the records varies. Knowing the subject’s name, place, and year of birth can help locate the correct agency. A list of possible birthplaces and family details can also aid in the search. Birth certificates can be used for personal or business reasons, but are not a unique form of identification.
Birth certificates are considered public records in nearly every country in the world, which makes searching for your birth certificate no more difficult than searching for land deeds, marriage certificates, or any other public record. The key is knowing where to look. In smaller countries, like many in Europe, birth records are handled by a national agency. In larger countries like the United States and Canada, however, records are kept at the state level or sometimes even at the county level. A successful birth certificate search in these larger countries usually requires some research into where the birth certificate subject was born.
A birth certificate search is easier when you know a lot of information on the subject. When you have the subject’s name, place of birth, and approximate year of birth, your search is well on its way to being completed. All you need to do is locate the government agency that has a copy of the birth certificate and submit a formal request. This sometimes requires a small fee.
Most government records offices and public records maintain websites describing the types of records they hold, and many also offer online searches. You can also locate the correct office by checking a telephone directory or calling a government agency helpline in your community. Operators should be able to direct you to the appropriate office.
It is important to remember that only the registry office of the community where the person was born will have a copy of the birth certificate. A birth certificate search of records held where someone lived or died does not usually return the birth certificate unless he or she was also born there. If you contacted the registry office and did not find any documents, you will need to broaden your search.
The best thing to do is compile a list of all the places where you think the subject may have been born and gather all the details you have about the person, including the names of the parents and any known siblings. These details can help piece together enough information for a registry office to help your birth certificate search be successful. Searching for and viewing a birth certificate is usually free, but agencies may charge fees for more complex searches and for printing.
Birth certificate searches can be conducted on anyone for any purpose. Most people who conduct birth certificate research do so as part of their family history research, to identify ancestors and build family trees. A birth certificate search can also be done for personal reasons: to replace a lost birth certificate, to find a birth certificate for a child, or to obtain an official copy of a birth certificate for personal or business security reasons , for example. A birth certificate can establish citizenship in many countries, but it is never a unique means of identification by itself. To prove identity, a person usually needs to have at least one photo ID in addition to a birth certificate.
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