Ireland Foreign Births Register document list
For the Foreign Births Register through an Irish-born grandparent you send documents for three people. For yourself: your original long-form civil birth certificate, your civil marriage certificate or name change document if your name changed, a certified copy of your photo ID, two original proofs of address, four photographs and the signed, witnessed application.
For your parent and for your grandparent: the original civil birth certificate showing parents, the civil marriage certificate or name change document where relevant, and a certified copy of photo ID, or the civil death certificate if they have died. Track each one free in your cases.
Who uses the register
If a parent was an Irish citizen born on the island of Ireland when you were born, you are Irish already and do not register. The register is for people born abroad with a grandparent born in Ireland, or with a parent who was an Irish citizen, but not born in Ireland, at the time of their birth. You become Irish on the day you are entered, and can then apply for a passport.
The register does not reach a great-grandparent. If a parent is not yet on the register when a child is born, that child is not entitled to Irish citizenship through that parent: children born after the parent's entry can apply, children born before it cannot. So a great-grandchild qualifies only when their parent was entered in the register before the great-grandchild's birth, and then applies through that parent, not through the great-grandparent. Rootdossier stops the register at the grandparent and warns when the chain goes further.
The documents, person by person
| Person | Documents |
|---|---|
| You | Original civil birth certificate showing parents; civil marriage certificate or name change document if applicable; certified copy of photo ID; two original proofs of address; four colour photographs, two witnessed; the signed and witnessed application. |
| Your parent | Original civil birth certificate showing parents; civil marriage certificate or name change document if applicable; certified copy of photo ID, or the civil death certificate. |
| Your Irish-born grandparent | Original civil birth certificate showing parents (a baptismal certificate if born before 1864); civil marriage certificate or name change document if applicable; certified copy of photo ID, or the civil death certificate. |
Unless the page says otherwise, originals are sent. A certified copy is one signed and dated as a true copy by the issuing body, a solicitor or barrister, a notary, a commissioner for oaths or the post office service. They print their name, add their occupation, address and telephone number, and attach a stamp or seal, a business card or their professional register number.
Worked example: the list for one family
In the invented Irish sample, Maeve's chain has three people and the register builds 11 documents from the rules above: five for Maeve, three for her father Thomas (he married, so his marriage certificate is on the list) and three for her grandmother Bridget. Because Bridget has died, her line reads "Photo ID or death certificate" and the death certificate answers it.
Part way through, the missing list shows 1 document checked, three received and waiting to be checked, one requested and still awaited, and six not yet requested. The costs so far total USD 104.00 and EUR 38.50, kept per currency and never converted.
Common mistakes
- Sending a short-form birth certificate. The register asks for the civil birth certificate showing parental details.
- Sending church records for a grandparent born after 1864. Baptismal certificates are accepted in place of a civil record only for births before civil registration began.
- Forgetting a name change. If a marriage changed your parent's or grandparent's surname, include the civil marriage certificate or another name change document.
- Having the wrong person certify ID copies. Use someone from the witness list on the official page.
- Mixing up the routes. If your Irish-born parent was a citizen when you were born, you are already Irish and apply for a passport instead.
Start your dossier
Pick your country and route, add the people in your line, and the register lists every document the route asks for, with the rule behind each one. Free for one case. Your family's records stay in this browser.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need an apostille for the Foreign Births Register?
The register's page we read asks for originals and certified copies, not apostilles. Check the current page before you order, because requirements can change.
Can I register through an Irish-born great-grandparent?
Not directly. The register reaches a grandparent born on the island of Ireland. A child born before the parent was entered in the register is not entitled through that parent, so the only way is through a parent who was registered before you were born.
Am I Irish from birth once I am registered?
No. Citizenship through the register starts on the day you are entered in it, not from your birth.
My grandparent was born before 1864. What replaces the birth certificate?
Irish civil birth registration began in 1864, so the register accepts a baptismal certificate for a grandparent born before then.
Sources
Last reviewed 28 September 2026 against:
- Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register), Irish government, foreign affairs service, undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Eligibility, every document per person, originals and certified copies, the 1864 exception, and when citizenship begins.
This guide is our own summary of the sources, not legal advice. Rules change: if it disagrees with the current official page, the official page wins, and the consulate or a lawyer should confirm your case. Rootdossier is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any government, consulate, embassy, ministry, court or law firm, including the German, Irish, Polish, Canadian and Italian authorities that decide citizenship cases.