Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 section 282

Birth, marriage and death certificates

Section 282 sets out how to obtain certificates of birth, marriage or death needed to prove a person's age, marital status or death for social welfare purposes, including the fees payable and circumstances in which certificates are available free of charge.

• For most social welfare purposes, certified copies of birth, marriage or death register entries can be obtained for a fee of 89 cent each, on submission of a written request in the form directed by the Minister for Health and Children.
• For occupational injuries benefit purposes (Chapter 9 of Part 3), the same certified copies are available free of charge.
• Request forms are available without charge from any registrar of births and deaths, superintendent registrar or other person having custody of the register.
• The Minister for Health and Children, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, may alter the fees by regulations.