Malta Civil Registration

Europe Malta

Guide to Malta ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Records of births, marriages, civil unions, deaths, and adoptions are kept by the Public Registry. The Public Registry was organized in 1889 and holds records from as far back as 1863.

Address: Public Registry Evans Building, 1st Floor Merchants Street Valletta VLT 2000

The Registration Section records births, marriages, civil unions, and deaths, both local and foreign. Each act is assigned a number, starting with the first act recorded each year, through the end of the year. The Civil Status Section of the Public Registry issues certificates for births, marriages, civil unions, and deaths. These are issued by request directly, or through a website, http://www.certifikati.gov.mt. The Archives preserve all the records of births, marriages, and deaths.

The Marriage Registry receives requests for Publication of Banns for marriages and civil unions between three months and six weeks prior to the union. It also registers marriages of Maltese nationals abroad. It initiates the annotation of birth records when an illegitimate birth is subsequently legitimized by marriage.

Contents: Births – name; hour, day, month, year, and place of birth; sex; name; surname; name of father, profession, trade, or other status, age, place of birth and of residence of the father, name of mother, place of birth and of residence of the mother, and of the person making the declaration; if the mother of the child was a widow before her marriage to the father of the child, the name and surname of her former husband is also stated; name and surname of the father of each of the parents of the child stating whether each is alive or dead. Marriages – name of bride and of groom, date of marriage, and church, chapel or other place where the marriage took place; name, surname, profession, trade, or other status of each of the parents of the bride and of the groom, stating whether they are alive or dead; age, place of birth, residence, first or second marriage, occupation, citizenship, religion, names of witnesses; declaration as to the solemnization of the marriage signed by both groom and bride and by the parish priest or other clergyman by whom the marriage was solemnized. Deaths – name of the deceased, date of death, time, place of death, cause of death, residence, birthplace, age, occupation, religion, citizenship, marital status, spouses' name; name and surname of each of the parents of the deceased stating whether they are alive or dead; and the place where the deceased was or will be buried.

Location: Registration for the Island of Malta is at the Public Registry Office; 197 Merchants Street, Valletta, Malta. Registration for the Islands of Gozo and Comino are at the Public Registry Office in the city of Victoria on Gozo.

Population coverage: 80 to 99%