To ask if you apply for a duplicate birth certificate

[stokieginge]

Is it a duplicate certificate or a scan of the original.

Does anyone know?

I seem to have 3 copies of mine, not scanned

The one I got was handwritten by the registrar.

Pretty certain it says "a certified copy" at the top, and is signed by a registrar. I had to get a copy of mine years ago and I'm pretty certain that's what it says.

When I requested mine I think they wrote it out there and than it was 14 years ago though?

@NannyR did you go to the local registry office then?

I've seen you can order them off the GOV website but I'm curious as what I'm ordering that way.

I need an exact copy (same as the original) and not a scan

I suppose it depends where you apply?

You cant get an exact copy or a scan of the original, you can only request a full certified copy which is printed and re signed by a registrar. That is just the same in legal terms.

Why would you need a scan of the original? What a weird thing for anyone to ask for.

All birth certificates ever given to you are certified copies of the entry in the birth register. So the one you order from the register office or the .gov.uk site will all be 'proper' printed certificates signed by an official.

The duplicates your order from the gov website are actual certificates and are accepted as certificates (and not copies) they are valid where you need to use your birth certificate. hope that helps.

Yes, I got it from the registry office. I've got historic ones from the gov website which are scans of the entry on the register, which say "certified copy of an entry of birth" but they are over 100 years old, not sure what the more recent ones are like.

I got a proper certified copy about ten years ago, its not an exact copy and it states the date it was done on

When I had a DBS done they gave more weight to a birth certificate dated in the first year of your life than to one with a later date, but for most purposes including applying for a driving licence, the certified copy was fine

If you can say why you need it people may be able to help with what kind of copy is acceptable

@CloserIAm2Fine we want to open a savings account for DSC and need a copy.

DH has parental responsibility

@Thewifipasswordis I don't want a scan - Im sure I'd read a post on here the other saying saying that someone had ordered one online and it appeared to be a scan.

Which is what's lead to me asking the question to gauge other people's experiences

It doesn't matter what you get as long as it's a certified copy issued by the GRO.

Its not a scan. Its a print. I worked in a registry office. The original is the entry in the register. Everything else is a printed copy. If it looks blurry its because the office had a crap printer.

There is no reason why the DBS team should give greater weighting to an old certificate. Very odd.

All British birth certificates (whether you get them at time of registration or apply later) are certified copies of the entry in the Register.

@WinnieTheW0rm I realise they are copies of the one in the registry.

I want to know if I order one will it be a written out one - much the same as the original that you take home with you.

Or will it be a scan of the page in the registry book.

I thought it was a simple query. Obviously not worded myself very clearly. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I would guess that as long as it says it's a certified copy and its on official paper it doesn't matter if it's printed or handwritten.

The certified copy I got wasn’t a scan, it was written out again and looked like the original except for the date of the certificate was when I was 20 years old rather than a few weeks old. I only know it’s not an exact copy as there’s something crossed out on one and not the other

A bank should certainly accept a new original certificate from the registrar if you know what I mean!

My dad applied for a copy for me and my sister (our mum took them when she left) and it was a new handwritten one. It's the one I've used for all official things.

It will be a newly made certificate. The layout and so on may be different from those you have previously had. The information will be the same.

It's still regarded as an 'original' document because it's physically produced by the relevant agency, rather than being a photocopy someone else has made.

If it's to open a savings account it can be the certified copy. I lost my children's originals when moving and so applied for new certificates. When opening the accounts they accepted the certified copies. Hope this helps

If you order it to be posted to you it will be a paper one as good in every way as the original.
You might be able to order an electronic online version too but the paper one is what you want.

Thank you every! I'll apply for one from Gov website then 😊