Registering a birth in New Zealand

The legal requirement

Every baby born in New Zealand must be registered, and registration is a legal requirement rather than an optional formality. It should normally be done within 2 months of the birth. Registration is handled by Births, Deaths and Marriages (BDM), part of the Department of Internal Affairs.

Registering is free. So is applying for your baby's IRD number at the same time. The only thing you pay for is a copy of the birth certificate, and you do not have to order one immediately.

When you register, you must give your baby a legal name.

Who completes the registration

Both parents need to complete the birth registration. There are defined exceptions: you can register alone if the other parent is unknown, has died, is missing, is of unsound mind, cannot complete the form because of a medical condition, is overseas with no delivery address or contact details, or is a danger to you or your child.

If both parents can complete the form, or if the other parent is unknown, you can register online. If the other parent is known but falls into one of the exception categories, you cannot use the online service — you complete the paper form BDM 27, Notification of birth for registration of child born in New Zealand, and post it to BDM. An accessible text alternative to that form is published alongside it.

Naming the other parent

This decision has consequences beyond the certificate. If you were married or in a civil union at any point between conception and the birth, or living together in a de facto relationship when your baby was born, naming the other parent generally makes them a legal guardian. A legal guardian is entitled to contact with the child unless a court rules otherwise, to a say in how the child is raised, and to take over as main caregiver if something happens to you.

Naming the other parent also lets you apply for a child support assessment. If you know who the other parent is but do not name them, they may not have to pay child support unless parentage can be proved, for example by DNA test.

A biological parent who is not named can apply to the Family Court to be appointed a legal guardian, and may need to prove parentage. It is sometimes possible to add a parent to the certificate later — contact BDM.

Two specific situations are handled separately. If naming the other parent would put you in danger or cause you distress, use the paper form, include their details and an explanation, and you do not need their signature. If you want to name them but do not have their consent, complete their details on the paper form with evidence of parentage such as a DNA test or statutory declarations from family members, and BDM will attempt to contact them.

Naming your baby

The name must include a last name and one or more first names, unless your religious or cultural beliefs require your baby to have only one name. It must not be:

• offensive
• longer than 100 characters including spaces
• an official title or rank, or resemble one — Justice, King, Prince, Princess and Royal are all refused
• spelled with numbers or symbols, so no V8

What a birth certificate costs

Registration is free; the certificate is not. Current fees are:

• $35.00 for a standard certificate
• $37.00 for a decorative certificate
• $58.00 for a pack containing one standard and one decorative certificate

You can order a certificate at the same time as registering, or at any point afterwards. Certificates are sent by standard post or courier, whichever you choose.

What else you can do in the same transaction

Registration is the natural moment to deal with three other pieces of admin, and doing them together saves separate applications:

• Apply for an IRD number for your baby — free, and it arrives after about 15 working days.
• Add your baby to your Working for Families Tax Credits.
• Notify the Ministry of Social Development of the birth if you receive a benefit. MSD may then contact you about changes to it.

If you did not do these at registration, you can still apply for the IRD number and order a certificate separately later.

Special situations

Stillbirth or the death of your baby. The birth must still be registered. A dedicated online stillbirth registration form is hosted on Whetūrangitia, the government site supporting families experiencing the death of a baby. If you do not want to give your baby a first name you can enter a dash in that field; leaving it blank produces a certificate reading 'Not recorded'.

Donor conception. If you have a partner who is not the donor, you can name them as the baby's legal parent and register online. If you are not in a relationship, you are the baby's only legal parent and you leave the other parent's details blank.

Adoption and surrogacy. The birth parents register the birth, not the adoptive parents, and this can be done online. Once the adoption is legal, the adoptive parents are issued with a new birth certificate showing their details. The same applies to children born by IVF to a surrogate.

Born overseas. If you are a New Zealand citizen by birth or grant and your baby is born outside New Zealand, you register the birth and get a certificate in the country of birth. You then register your baby as a New Zealand citizen by descent and can apply for a New Zealand passport.

What happens next

You will not be contacted when the registration goes through unless BDM needs more information, which is worth knowing so that silence does not worry you. BDM publishes current service timeframes on its website, and those move, so check there rather than assuming a fixed turnaround.

Where to get help

The Department of Internal Affairs, through Births, Deaths and Marriages, is the governing authority for birth registration in New Zealand. Registration and certificate ordering are both done through the government's certificate service, and the Govt.nz guidance page is kept current — it was last updated on 18 June 2026. If your situation does not fit the online form, contact BDM directly before filling anything in; the paper route exists precisely for the cases the online service cannot handle, and starting in the wrong place costs weeks.