Frequently Asked Questions

Which certificates can be ordered online?

Birth, Free Status, Marriage, Civil Union, Cohabitation and Death certificates can be ordered online at https://certifikati.identita.gov.mt and you can have them delivered to an address of your choice. Records dating back to 1863 were drawn up by ecclesiastical authorities which can be obtained from the local parishes.

What type of certificates may be ordered online and how much do they cost?

Birth, Marriage, Civil Union, and Death certificates are issued in both extract and full format, whereas, Cohabitation certificates are only issued in full format. Free Status certificates can also be ordered online.

An extract certificate ordered online costs €2.50, whereas a full certificate costs €9.95. Free Status Certificates cost €5.15.

Do authorities of other Member States accept certificates which are not legalised or apostilled?

Public documents issued under EU Regulation 2016/1191 of the European Parliament and of the Council, such as birth, marriage, civil union, cohabitation, free status, and death certificates no longer need an apostille authentication and are now accepted by public authorities of another Member State. Citizens can request to attach a multilingual standard form to the public documents. For further information please contact the Public Registry at +356 2590 4200 or email [email protected].

Will I receive a scanned or hard copy of the certificate I have just ordered?

The Public Registry Office does not provide scanned images of the certificate but only issues hard copies which are signed and stamped.

Can I personally collect the certificates instead of having them delivered by mail?

Yes, you can either choose to personally collect your certificate from the Public Registry or send someone else to do so on your behalf. When collecting your certificate, you will need to provide the order number.

What happens if my order is delayed?

Orders are normally processed within six working days, however, if for some reason your order has been delayed, please contact the Public Registry at [email protected]. In such instances, you may wish to contact us to confirm that the order was processed and dispatched from our end.

If your order has been processed and dispatched, then you are advised to lodge an enquiry with MaltaPost on https://www.maltapost.com/how-to-lodge-an-enquiry.

How come I am inputting my ancestors’ correct details, and their certificates cannot be found?

Although your details may be correct, it could be that the records you are looking for were never registered at the Public Registry. Records held at the Public Registry date back to 1863, however, a considerable number of births, marriages and deaths which happened in Malta between the late 19th-Century and World War I (or even later) were never registered with the Public Registry but instead were registered only with the local Parish Church.

If my order was cancelled, will I be fully reimbursed?

The Public Registry will only charge your bank account once your order is processed, and the certificate is issued. If there are no records found, no fee will be deducted from your bank account. Once an order is annulled or rejected, no fees will be charged, however, the amount due will still show “on hold” for a couple of days. Once released, your bank account will be restored to the original balance and you will notice that no fees were deducted from your bank account.

Is it possible to order family tree searches from the Public Registry?

The Public Registry does not offer this service, but family tree searches are carried out by private genealogists.

Do I need to have an e-ID account to apply for a certificate?

Our website https://certifikati.identita.gov.mt allows for secure transactions to take place over the internet. Although it is highly recommended to login using your eID account, this is not compulsory. If you do not have an active eID account, you can still place an order by manually filling in all the required details.

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