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Order copy certificates

You can apply and pay online for copies of birth, death and marriage/civil partnership certificates. 

We can only provide copy certificates for events that took place in Barnsley. If the event was registered in another place you'll need to contact the register office for that district. You can find a register office on GOV.UK.

You can order copies of certificates dated from 1837 up to the present day. If you want a copy of an earlier record please get in touch with our archives service or call into the Experience Barnsley museum.

We can't provide copy certificates for people that were adopted or for stillborn babies. You can request copy certificates for people who are adopted or for stillborn babies from the General Register Office.

Costs and receiving your copy certificate

We offer a standard and priority copy certificate service. See our registration charges page for the cost of each of these.

You can choose whether you want to collect your certificate from the Register Office in the Town Hall or have it posted to you (postage fee applies).

Standard service

If you use our standard service your certificate will be ready for collection, or we'll post it, five working days after we've received your payment.

Priority service

If you use our priority service and pay for your certificate before 12pm on a working day:

  • you can collect it the same day between 2pm and 4pm; or

  • we'll post it to you the same day.

If you pay for your certificate after 12pm on a working day:

  • you can collect it the next working day between 2pm and 4pm; or

  • we'll post it to you the next working day.

Information we'll need

To help us to find the certificate you'll need to give us the information detailed below.

For a birth certificate

For a copy of a birth certificate you'll need to provide:

  • full name of the person

  • date of birth

  • place of birth (hospital or village)

  • name of the mother

  • name of the father (if it's recorded)

  • mother's maiden name (if you know it)

For a death certificate

For a copy of a death certificate you'll need to provide:

  • full name of the person who's died

  • date of death

  • place of death (hospital or village)

For a marriage/civil partnership certificate

For a copy of a marriage/civil partnership certificate you'll need to provide:

  • full name of each partner

  • surname at birth of each partner

  • date of the event

  • name of the church or venue where it took place​

  • name of the village or town (if you know it)

How to apply

Apply for a copy certificate using our online form below. You'll need to provide your contact details, including an email address.

When we've received your form we'll send you an email to confirm that we can provide the certificate, with a link to pay online by debit/credit card. You can't pay over the phone or in the Register Office for certificates ordered online. If you’re a solicitor applying on behalf of a client, the email will also include details of how to pay by BACS transfer.

We'll get back to you within:

  • two working days for our standard service 

  • two hours (up to 5pm) for our priority service

We'll email to ask you for more information if we can't find the certificate you've applied for.

We can't produce your copy certificate until you've paid for it. If you've used our priority service you should pay for your order as soon as you receive the email requesting this.