Birth, Marriage and Death
How to register a birth, get married and deal with the formalities after a death in Ireland, and what Latvian citizens and their families need to do in Latvia.
1. Birth
A birth must be registered within 3 months. Registration is free.
You can register online (each parent needs a verified MyGovID) or in person at any civil registration service. Unmarried parents use a two-part process started by the mother. From 10 December 2025, an unmarried mother must give the father's details (exceptions by statutory declaration).
You need the Birth Notification ID (a letter sent to the mother), both parents' PPS numbers, your address at the time of birth, the mother's maiden name and the child's full name.
Your baby is given a PPS number automatically after registration.
A birth certificate costs €20. You can also order a free EU Multilingual Standard Form with it, which makes the certificate easier to use in another EU country.
St. Mary's Headquarters, Westport Road, Castlebar, Co. Mayo, F23 HP58. Phone: 094 902 3249.
Monday to Thursday 9am–1pm and 2pm–4pm, Friday 9.30am–1pm. Book an appointment for birth and death registration.
2. Marriage
You must give at least 3 months' notice, in person and together, at a civil registration service appointment. This also applies to religious and secular ceremonies. Fee: €200 (non-refundable).
If one of you is not an EU citizen, the registrar will hold an interview and you must show proof of your immigration status.
Each of you: a valid passport or EU national ID card (original and copy); birth certificate (original and copy); proof of address dated within the last 3 months (original and copy); PPS number.
If divorced or widowed: the divorce decree, or the previous marriage certificate and your late spouse's death certificate.
Ceremony details: type, venue, the solemniser's name, and the names and dates of birth of two witnesses aged 18 or over.
Documents not in English or Irish must be translated; EU documents can come with a Multilingual Standard Form. If you do not speak English, bring an interpreter from an independent, verifiable service, including to the ceremony.
- After the ceremony
The registrar gives you a Marriage Registration Form. After a religious or secular ceremony, return it to a civil registration service within 1 month; a civil marriage is registered by the registrar. A marriage certificate costs €20.
Marrying in Latvia with an Irish partner
Both partners apply together, in person, at any Latvian civil registry office (dzimtsarakstu nodaļa) with valid ID. The marriage takes place no earlier than 1 month and no later than 6 months after the application. The state fee is €14; a ceremony outside the registry office costs extra.
The Irish partner must provide a document on their marital status from Ireland: the Certificate of Freedom to Marry (Civil Letter of Freedom) from the Department of Foreign Affairs. Apply online at least 4 months before the wedding; the fee is €66 (plus €60 if you apply less than 28 days before the wedding). In Latvia it is valid for 6 months from issue and must still be valid on the wedding day.
Foreign documents need a notarised translation into Latvian; EU public documents do not need an apostille. The marriage registration is conducted in Latvian, without an interpreter.
After the marriage is registered, the Irish partner is given a Latvian personal code. In Latvian documents their name is rendered in Latvian form, so it will look different on the marriage certificate than in the Irish passport.
- After the wedding
A marriage entered on the Latvian civil register is recognised in Ireland. For Irish bodies (for example Revenue), you can use the Latvian marriage certificate with an EU Multilingual Standard Form in English, which you can request from the registry office.
3. Death
Step by step
The first hours
In hospital or a nursing home, a doctor certifies the death and the body stays in the mortuary until funeral arrangements are made.
At home, if the death was expected: call your GP (out of hours: Westdoc, 0818 360 000). At home, sudden or after an accident: call 112 or 999; the Gardaí and a doctor will attend and the death is referred to the coroner.
The doctor who certifies the death gives you a Death Notification Form, which you need to register the death.
Funeral director
A funeral director usually arranges almost everything: care of the deceased, coffin, death notice, ceremony, burial or cremation. Find one by county at iafd.ie (0818 935 000). Ask for a written estimate; the person who arranges the funeral is liable for the cost, which can be repaid from the estate.
Death notice
A death notice with the funeral details is usually published on RIP.ie, sometimes also in a newspaper. Your funeral director normally places it; since 2025 RIP.ie charges about €100–€125 per notice.
Wake, removal and funeral
Many Irish funerals include a wake at home or in a funeral home, a removal to the church or venue, and the funeral a few days after the death. A private or non-religious funeral is equally the family's choice.
Burial or cremation
Burial: Mayo County Council runs 126 burial grounds; plots cannot be bought in advance. A single plot costs €600, a double plot €1,200 (Environment Section: 094 906 4000).
Cremation: the nearest crematoria to Mayo are in Collooney, Co. Sligo (opened 2025) and Shannon, Co. Clare.
Register the death and notify
Register the death at a civil registration service (details below). Notify the Department of Social Protection, Revenue, banks, insurers, the employer, landlord and utilities.
Money and the estate
Accounts in the deceased's sole name are usually frozen until the estate is sorted; joint accounts with a spouse usually pass to the survivor. To administer the estate you need a Grant of Representation (Probate, or Letters of Administration if there is no will). You are only responsible for debts you signed for or held jointly (MABS: 0818 07 2000).
What a funeral costs (approximately)
| Average funeral (2024 survey) | about €6,250 |
| Funeral and burial, excluding a gathering | up to €8,000 |
| Coffin | €1,900–€6,000 |
| Grave plot in Mayo (single / double) | €600 / €1,200 |
| Opening a grave | €450–€1,200 |
| Cremation | about €475 |
| Death notice: RIP.ie / newspaper | about €125 / €250 |
| Church offering | from €200 |
| Flowers | from €60 |
If you cannot afford the funeral: apply for an Additional Needs Payment (MyWelfare.ie, Intreo or Citizens Information). The Bereaved Parent Grant is a once-off €8,000 payment for a bereaved spouse, civil partner or qualified cohabitant caring for a child (other conditions apply).
More detail
The doctor issues a Death Notification Form with the Medical Certificate of the Cause of Death.
A relative or other qualified informant registers the death within 3 months, in person at a civil registration service. Registration is free; a death certificate costs €20 (a cheaper certificate is available for social welfare purposes).
A coroner is an independent official who establishes the cause of death when a death was sudden, unexpected, unexplained or violent. A coroner does not decide on blame. The death is usually reported by a doctor, hospital or the Gardaí.
The coroner decides whether the death can be certified, or whether a post-mortem (and sometimes an inquest) is needed. Family consent is not required for a post-mortem. The body is usually released soon after the post-mortem; wait for the coroner's guidance before arranging the funeral or repatriation.
The death is registered once the coroner issues a Coroner's Certificate. Meanwhile, the coroner can issue an Interim Death Certificate on request, accepted by the Department of Social Protection, banks, An Post and the Probate Office.
An inquest is a public hearing, sometimes with a jury; the family gets at least 14 days' notice and may attend but does not have to. Contact the coroner's office for the area where the person died (coroners.ie).
Citizens Information: 0818 07 4000 (Mon–Fri 9am–8pm). Irish Hospice Foundation: 1800 807 077. Samaritans: 116 123 (24/7). The Citizens Information Bereavement Guide (PDF) covers everything to do after a death.
4. For Latvian citizens and their families
A child is a Latvian citizen if at least one parent is a Latvian citizen at the time of birth. To register the child as a citizen and get a Latvian personal code, apply to the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (PMLP) by e-address, by email (pskn@pmlp.gov.lv, with a secure e-signature) or by post. You need an application, the Irish birth certificate with a Latvian translation and the parents' ID. A passport or eID card can then be issued at the Embassy in Dublin.
A Latvian partner can order a new Latvian birth certificate (state fee €7) with an EU Multilingual Standard Form in English, so it does not need translating. Within 30 days after the wedding, the marriage must be reported to PMLP.
The death of a Latvian citizen must be reported to PMLP within 30 days by the spouse or another family member. Repatriation of remains to Latvia is not paid by the state; insurance may cover it. Ministry of Foreign Affairs 24/7 consular duty officer: +371 26337711.
23 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2, D02 EK77. Phone: +353 1 478 0161. Email: consulate.ireland@mfa.gov.lv. Public documents issued in EU countries do not need an apostille in Latvia or Ireland (EU Regulation 2016/1191).
