General Register Office
Werburgh Street, Dublin 2, D08 E277
This archive is often called GRO. The General Register Office (Oifig An Ard-Chláraitheora) is the central civil repository for records relating to births, stillbirths, deaths, marriages, civil partnerships and adoptions in Ireland. Before going there we would recommend you inspect the online index first. A lot of documents are available for download free of charge. If they are not, or you cannot find the record you are looking for, you will have to go to the archive. Note: for Northern Irish records, go to Groni; they hold transcripts of their records from 1922 and from 1845/1864 for areas now in Northern Ireland. This website works on a pay per view basis, so you will have to purchase credits.
It is open to the general public, on weekdays from 9.00 to 16.30. However last requests for copies need to be in by 16.00, although if you ask for the results to be posted or emailed, you can make a request until 16.15.
Indexes in relation to the following records of life events are available for inspection at the research facility:
- Births registered in the island of Ireland between 1st January, 1864 and 31 December, 1921 inclusive, and in Ireland (excluding the six north-eastern counties of Derry, Antrim, Down, Armagh, Fermanagh and Tyrone known as Northern Ireland) from 1922 onwards.
- Deaths registered in the island of Ireland between 1st January, 1864 and 31st December, 1921 inclusive and in Ireland (excluding Northern Ireland) from 1922 onwards.
- Non-Roman Catholic Marriages registered in the island of Ireland between 1st April, 1845 and 31st December, 1863 inclusive.
- Marriages registered in the island of Ireland between 1st January, 1864 and 31st December, 1921 inclusive and in Ireland (excluding Northern Ireland) from 1922 onwards.
- Domestic Adoptions registered in Ireland from 10th July, 1953 onwards.
However, there is a fee for searches and copies of records as well as volume limitations.
First, every specific search (containing a maximums of 5 years) costs €2. If you have a lot of searches to do, buy a “day-ticket” for €20 which last the day and allows to do check all indexes for up to 3 people.
Once you have found the record you are looking for, you can order a copy for €4. The number of copies you can order AND receive on any given day is 8. However, you can order more, these will then be emailed or posted to you.