Foreign Birth Registration

[rickiclark]

Thanks for all the posts here, especially those who have been waiting since 2019. I first submitted my application/docs in 2018, had them returned for conflicting dates on my mothers birth certificate. Since then I resubmitted after a long search for documentation. I hope there is sufficient original docs to satisfy whatever 'team' that has my file! wish me luck please Most of you know how important this is to each of you, so I am wishing you all the luck in the world too! my timeline so far...

Application submitted (on line): 18 Apr 2018
Application and docs received in Dublin: 6 July 2018
Docs returned for additional info: 6 Sept 2018
Application re-submitted: 19 Sept 2019
Application and docs received in Dublin: 3 Oct 2019
Confirmation of postal address email: ...waiting...
Congratulations you are now an Irish citizen email:
Printing of FBR certificate:
Delivery of FBR certificate:

I feel encouraged every time someone posts anything that says they are working on our applications. Thanks!

[Kietan1997]

Hello my names Kietan, I live in Canada. I apologize if I’m posting this in the wrong place, but I’m not very tech savvy and can’t seem to figure out how to make my own post. My question is about the foreign births register. My grandma was born in Ireland but is now deceased. My mum was born in the UK and never got her Irish citizenship. Am I still entitled to file for mine through the foreign births register because my grandma was born there? Thanks for any help you guys can provide

[Legskinner]

Kietan,

You would be able to file for the Irish FBR based on your grandmothers birth in Ireland. You just need to follow the instructions. I would suggest reading through all the posts on this site because many questions are answered by forum members. You would also be eligible for automatic British citizenship based on a parent born in the UK. This is my situation. I’m an American but got a UK passport based on father born in UK. I Applied for FBR through grandparent which is a much slower and complicated route. I submitted my package to FBR IN January 2021 and know it arrived in Balbriggan but no confirmation yet due to COVID contingency. Best of luck to everyone on this forum!

[Kietan1997]

Kietan,

You would be able to file for the Irish FBR based on your grandmothers birth in Ireland. You just need to follow the instructions. I would suggest reading through all the posts on this site because many questions are answered by forum members. You would also be eligible for automatic British citizenship based on a parent born in the UK. This is my situation. I’m an American but got a UK passport based on father born in UK. I Applied for FBR through grandparent which is a much slower and complicated route. I submitted my package to FBR IN January 2021 and know it arrived in Balbriggan but no confirmation yet due to COVID contingency. Best of luck to everyone on this forum!

Hello, thanks a lot for your reply! I read through a lot of the forum and from my understanding my mum is automatically a Irish citizen by birth to my grandmother. I hope your stuff gets processed soon! Covid has really slowed down like everything in the world, it’s crazy. Thanks again for the clarification

[Adelesan]

Hi all - I submitted my documents and received an 'Application for Foreign Birth Registration Received' automated email on 7th October 2019. I have not received any correspondence since then including anything to confirm my address. Is anyone else on a similar timeline or having a similar experience? Many thanks!

Hi. I submitted at the end of August 2019 and received a confirmation of receipt email about a week later. I haven’t heard anything at all since then. It does seem as if some applications from that time period are starting to come through so fingers crossed!

[miles_from_anywhere]

Hi there, I have filled in the online application and paid my money but I stopped short of sending all the paperwork in, as there are many original documents and I wasn't sure if they would get lost.

What kind of confirmation did you get from your posting and where did you send it in to?

My online application was filled in May 2021 so I know I have a long wait!

Good luck with your application

Kietan,

You would be able to file for the Irish FBR based on your grandmothers birth in Ireland. You just need to follow the instructions. I would suggest reading through all the posts on this site because many questions are answered by forum members. You would also be eligible for automatic British citizenship based on a parent born in the UK. This is my situation. I’m an American but got a UK passport based on father born in UK. I Applied for FBR through grandparent which is a much slower and complicated route. I submitted my package to FBR IN January 2021 and know it arrived in Balbriggan but no confirmation yet due to COVID contingency. Best of luck to everyone on this forum!

[miles_from_anywhere]

Hi there, I have filled in the online application and paid my money but I stopped short of sending all the paperwork in, as there are many original documents and I wasn't sure if they would get lost.

What kind of confirmation did you get from your posting and where did you send it in to?

My online application was filled in May 2021 so I know I have a long wait!

Good luck with your application

Kietan,

You would be able to file for the Irish FBR based on your grandmothers birth in Ireland. You just need to follow the instructions. I would suggest reading through all the posts on this site because many questions are answered by forum members. You would also be eligible for automatic British citizenship based on a parent born in the UK. This is my situation. I’m an American but got a UK passport based on father born in UK. I Applied for FBR through grandparent which is a much slower and complicated route. I submitted my package to FBR IN January 2021 and know it arrived in Balbriggan but no confirmation yet due to COVID contingency. Best of luck to everyone on this forum!

[maishun]

Hello, can someone tell me ~ why the FBR pregnancy team doesn't reply to my email?

[Nodrick]

My certificate arrived today and it turns out I was added to the register on the 15th December 2020!
Anyway it's done now so timeline below for those who are interested.


Application : 15 May 2019
Confirmation docs received: 29 May 2019
Confirmation of address email: 14 December 2020
2nd Confirmation of Address email 23 July 2021
Congratulations email : 11 August 2021
Cert received: 16 August 2021

[jgclancy]

Congrats Nodrick....looks like you beat me. Pints tonight. Hopefully, mine arrives this week too.Tanks for the update!
jgclancy

[Flatcap_Julius]

Hello, can someone tell me ~ why the FBR pregnancy team doesn't reply to my email?

Not sure, however if it has been 7 days since you emailed them and you have checked you junk / spam folder to ensure any reply has not gone in there I would advise getting in touch via the live chat facility. On the contact page keep pressing f5 repeatedly and as soon as it goes green and offers a chat, enter your deals quickly before it expires. Good luck!

[Nodrick]

Congrats Nodrick....looks like you beat me. Pints tonight. Hopefully, mine arrives this week too.Tanks for the update!
jgclancy

Hopefully yours will be with you sooner rather than later.

It will be interesting to see when you were registered.

[tom606]

Hello all, just submitted my application online today. Planning to send documents tomorrow.... maybe a silly question but can anyone recommend packaging / envelope that is sturdy enough as I am sending all original documents?

[duffy1867]

Hello all, just submitted my application online today. Planning to send documents tomorrow.... maybe a silly question but can anyone recommend packaging / envelope that is sturdy enough as I am sending all original documents?

Good question - I sent mine in one of those nice and sturdy bubble wrapped envelopes, I thought this was preferable to the standard paper ones (and they are fairly easy to pick up at the post office, in the UK at least)

[Oldsam]

Hi there, I have filled in the online application and paid my money but I stopped short of sending all the paperwork in, as there are many original documents and I wasn't sure if they would get lost.

What kind of confirmation did you get from your posting and where did you send it in to?

My online application was filled in May 2021 so I know I have a long wait!

Good luck with your application

Kietan,

You would be able to file for the Irish FBR based on your grandmothers birth in Ireland. You just need to follow the instructions. I would suggest reading through all the posts on this site because many questions are answered by forum members. You would also be eligible for automatic British citizenship based on a parent born in the UK. This is my situation. I’m an American but got a UK passport based on father born in UK. I Applied for FBR through grandparent which is a much slower and complicated route. I submitted my package to FBR IN January 2021 and know it arrived in Balbriggan but no confirmation yet due to COVID contingency. Best of luck to everyone on this forum!

Hi Miles,
I also made my online application last May. The only response has been an acknowledge of payment. Also, like you, I have not sent the paper documents because they are all originals and I don’t want them lost or stuck in a queue for years. I notice that one forum contributor plans to send in their documents even though the FBR website says don’t. Do other forum members agree or should I wait till FBR asks for them? Regards Oldsam.

[cdfly]

Hi there, I have filled in the online application and paid my money but I stopped short of sending all the paperwork in, as there are many original documents and I wasn't sure if they would get lost.

What kind of confirmation did you get from your posting and where did you send it in to?

My online application was filled in May 2021 so I know I have a long wait!

Good luck with your application

Kietan,

You would be able to file for the Irish FBR based on your grandmothers birth in Ireland. You just need to follow the instructions. I would suggest reading through all the posts on this site because many questions are answered by forum members. You would also be eligible for automatic British citizenship based on a parent born in the UK. This is my situation. I’m an American but got a UK passport based on father born in UK. I Applied for FBR through grandparent which is a much slower and complicated route. I submitted my package to FBR IN January 2021 and know it arrived in Balbriggan but no confirmation yet due to COVID contingency. Best of luck to everyone on this forum!

Hi Miles,
I also made my online application last May. The only response has been an acknowledge of payment. Also, like you, I have not sent the paper documents because they are all originals and I don’t want them lost or stuck in a queue for years. I notice that one forum contributor plans to send in their documents even though the FBR website says don’t. Do other forum members agree or should I wait till FBR asks for them? Regards Oldsam.

For what it’s worth, your documents are quite safe in the queue. They’re gonna be stuck there for over a year regardless, so if you’re thinking you might be in need of a marriage or birth certificate in the meanwhile, it would be more efficient to just order another copy. I’d recommend to just send and make sure that your mail is registered so that you can have confirmation of delivery. I think it’s worth it to start your 12-18 months sooner than later

[maishun]

Has anyone called FBR?~~~~ Our Offices

Headquarters

Department of Foreign Affairs
Iveagh House
80 St Stephen’s Green
Dublin 2
D02 VY53
Tel: + 353 (0) 1 408 2000

[Flatcap_Julius]

Hello all, just submitted my application online today. Planning to send documents tomorrow.... maybe a silly question but can anyone recommend packaging / envelope that is sturdy enough as I am sending all original documents?

Heya Tom,

I used an A4 bubble envelope. I put all the documents inside a thing plastic A4 wallet and then put that inside the envelope. On each document I put one post-it note with my application reference, what the document was and any additional points about that document. I can tell you that your documents will be stored safely in Balbriggan - just be sure to send them via a recorded post and you'll be fine.

Cheers!

Flatcap

[Flatcap_Julius]

Has anyone called FBR?~~~~ Our Offices

Headquarters

Department of Foreign Affairs
Iveagh House
80 St Stephen’s Green
Dublin 2
D02 VY53
Tel: + 353 (0) 1 408 2000

Not recently. Called them in 2016 and then various things happened that took priority. If the Pregnancy Team haven't replied to you I'd go with the live chat option. It's hard to get through to them but you will if you persevere. They will help you if you're expecting a baby, so keep trying the live chat. Good luck!

Regards,

Flatcap

[dolewhip]

After 5+ weeks since the last milestone, excited to share one more update:

Application submitted online: 7th October 2019
Email acknowledging receipt of documentation Balbriggan: 24th October 2019
Confirmation of address email: 13th July 2021 (Team 1)
Congratulations email: 18th August 2021
Certificate received: pending

So almost 22 months since my documents were received, it's really happening!

[jgclancy]

After 5+ weeks since the last milestone, excited to share one more update:

Application submitted online: 7th October 2019
Email acknowledging receipt of documentation Balbriggan: 24th October 2019
Confirmation of address email: 13th July 2021 (Team 1)
Congratulations email: 18th August 2021
Certificate received: pending

So almost 22 months since my documents were received, it's really happening!

A pint for ya today, dolewhip! One step closer. I'm watching the mail for mine but told myself to expect it toarrive later rather than sooner LOL

Congrats again---jgclancy

[Fish Fry]

My certificate arrived today and it turns out I was added to the register on the 15th December 2020!
Anyway it's done now so timeline below for those who are interested.


Application : 15 May 2019
Confirmation docs received: 29 May 2019
Confirmation of address email: 14 December 2020
2nd Confirmation of Address email 23 July 2021
Congratulations email : 11 August 2021
Cert received: 16 August 2021

Congratulations. I thought my application was taking an inordinate amount of time, but my info is similar to yours. I got my congratulatory email just this morning. Here is my timeline:

Application : 26 May 2019
Confirmation docs received: 6 June 2019
Confirmation of address email: 18 August 2021
Congratulations email : ?
Cert received: ?

I had given up hope since I had filed about 27 months ago, so the congratulatory email this morning came out of the blue. Now on to getting a passport, after I get my Certificate!

[jgclancy]

Congrats Fish Fry.....looks like things are moving along in FBR world finally. Cheers and I'll wait til evening to have a pint for ya

jgclancy

[Lonza1878]

Hi All

A quick question for those who have had to get English marriage certificates. I can see that I can order them online via the General Register Office, and have got the necessary information to order them. However when ordering, the online form makes no mention of getting a certified copy.

Is it enough just to request copies via the GRO and will they be acceptable to the IFBR team?

Any advice will be greatly received

Thanks

[JT97]

Hi All

A quick question for those who have had to get English marriage certificates. I can see that I can order them online via the General Register Office, and have got the necessary information to order them. However when ordering, the online form makes no mention of getting a certified copy.

Is it enough just to request copies via the GRO and will they be acceptable to the IFBR team?

Any advice will be greatly received

Thanks

Yes GRO documents are perfectly fine. No experience using a marriage certificate from them. But, we got a death certificate from there and was fine for my mom and her siblings' Irish passports and my cousins' FBR applications. Legally, it's exactly the same certificate, just it is a copy of the GRO rather than your local council registry office. Being the GRO, it is the central registry so in theory would out-rank your local council registry office anyway. The only thing with marriages is that the GRO may not have the registration as marriage books are held at all licenced wedding venues and can take a while to get to the local council let alone the GRO. So, if it's for a recent marriage, or one in a small village church, you may want to just go straight to the council.