Romanian Birth Certificate Translation for UK Visa & Settlement

Romania has one of the largest diaspora communities in the UK. Recent estimates put the number at over 1.2 million Romanian nationals. Romanians and their non-EU family members often need a certified translation of a Romanian birth certificate. They need it for late EU Settlement Scheme applications, UK visas, ILR, and British citizenship.

Types of Romanian Birth Certificates

What a Romanian Birth Certificate Contains

A modern Romanian Certificat de naştere usually shows:

• Full name of the child
• Date of birth (day, month, year)
• Place of birth (municipality, county/judeţ, country)
• Sex of the child
• Father's full name, date of birth, and domicile
• Mother's full name, date of birth, and domicile
• Registration number and date
• Issuing officer's signature and official stamp
• CNP (Codul Numeric Personal — Romanian ID number)

EU Settlement Scheme Late Applications

The EU Settlement Scheme deadline was 30 June 2021. If you missed it, you can still apply as a "late applicant" when you have reasonable grounds. Romanians who apply late often need a birth certificate to prove who they are and how they are related to family members.

If you send your Romanian birth certificate as evidence, it needs a certified translation. Keep the translation reasonably recent, within the last few years. There is no strict expiry date on a translation itself.

Romanian Special Characters

Romanian uses special characters that English does not have: ă (a-breve), â (a-circumflex), î (i-circumflex), ș (s-comma-below), and ț (t-comma-below). Older documents may show ş and ţ (with cedillas) instead of ș and ț. Your certified translator must treat these the same way every time, above all in names.

Getting Romanian Documents and Apostille

Costs and Turnaround

Frequently Asked Questions

My Romanian birth certificate was issued before 1989 under communism. Is it still valid?

Yes. Romanian birth certificates from before 1989 are still legally valid. They may look different, be handwritten, or carry communist-era stamps and wording. Your certified translator will deal with all of that. Older documents can take a little longer because the layout is unusual.

I submitted a multilingual EU certificate to UKVI. Do I still need a certified translation?

UKVI guidance says it prefers a certified translation, even with a multilingual EU certificate. That certificate uses standard codes, and not every caseworker reads them at a glance. A certified translation removes all doubt. If you are unsure, send both: the multilingual certificate and a certified translation.

I need my birth certificate for both EU Settlement Scheme and for applying for British citizenship. Can I use the same translation?

Yes. You can use one certified translation of your Romanian birth certificate for several applications. Keep the translation somewhere safe, and ask for extra printed copies if you need them. Send a copy of the translation with each UKVI application.

My parents changed my name after my birth was registered. My birth certificate shows my original name. What do I do?

Send the birth certificate with its certified translation. Add the legal proof of the name change too: a deed poll, a court order, or a Romanian civil registry amendment. If the change is written on the birth certificate as a note in the margin, your translator will include it. If it was done on a separate document, send that document with its own certified translation.