The process of applying for a birth certificate in France is straightforward. There are three ways that you can proceed with your application – you can apply online, by post or in person. However, if you’re French but born on foreign soil, then your application will only be limited to online or by post/mail. Furthermore, birth certificates in France can be obtained in three different forms which include the full copy containing all the required information, the filiation or extract which only contains the summary and the unbound extract where the summary will be presented without the names of the parents.
The following persons will be eligible to apply for a full copy or filiation of a birth certificate: the primary applicant or his/her legal representative; the wife, spouse or partner of the person concerned; the ascendant of the person concerned, such as the parent or grandparent; the descendant of the person concerned, such as the child or grandchild; and the lawful professional, such as a lawyer for a client.
However, if you’re applying for an unbound extract of the birth certificate, then the same can be obtained without having to justify who you are or for your application.
Additionally, birth certificates in France are provided free of cost and the timeline for delivery will depend on the type of application method you choose. For instance, if applying in person, then the birth certificate will be issued immediately. But, if the same is applied through the internet or by post/mail, then it can take a few days (or 10 days if you’re applying as a French-born on foreign soil).
Applying For a Birth Certificate in France Online
When applying for a birth certificate online, follow the below-mentioned steps.
- Head over to the official website for obtaining a birth certificate in France.
- Proceed to ‘Log In’ to your account and apply for the birth certificate by selecting the type of birth certificate you want and then filling up the required information.
- Provide any supporting documents that might be needed by the online portal for processing your application. The service will be free of cost.
- Submit your application and wait for email confirmation for the same. After that, the document will be mailed to you over the next few days.
Applying For a Birth Certificate In-Person
It should be known that only those who are born in France will be able to apply via this procedure. If you’re French but were born on foreign soil, then you’ll be ineligible.
To apply for a birth certificate in person, the following set of steps should be carried out.
- Firstly, head over to the town hall where the birth had originally taken place.
- For applying for a full copy or filiation of the birth certificate, you have to provide the name, place and date of birth of the person concerned. Additionally, the surnames of the parents should also have to be provided. If any or all of the above-mentioned information is unknown to you, then can present your ID card.
- On the other hand, if you’re applying for an unbound extract of the birth certificate, then you only have to provide the name and date of birth of the person concerned.
- Upon successful verification of the information and documents provided, the birth certificate will be provided.
Note that additional supporting documents may be asked if the registrar isn’t satisfied with the identity of the applicant.
Applying For a Birth Certificate By Post
To apply for a birth certificate by post/mail, all you have to do is to send a request for the same on a piece of paper to the town hall where the birth had originally taken place. The application should also include the name and date of birth of the person concerned. Moreover, if you’re applying for a full copy or filiation, then the parent names will also have to be provided.
Besides, the application request should also contain the applicant’s address, so that the registrar can send the birth certificate to the same address later on.
