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Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 2021

Registration of information - Births - Notification of births

13: Notification of birth in New Zealand must include name information

You could also call this:

"Telling officials about a birth in New Zealand requires giving a surname and other names for the child."

Illustration for Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 2021

When you notify a birth in New Zealand, you must give one surname and one or more other names for the child. You can give only one name if it is required by a parent's or guardian's religious or cultural beliefs, or if the birth is a stillbirth. The Registrar-General may decline to include a name if it does not meet certain rules, as outlined in section 18, and the Family Court has not agreed to include it.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM7273642.

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Topics:
Family and relationships > Children and parenting
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12: Parents must notify birth in New Zealand, or

"Tell the government when a baby is born in New Zealand"

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"Notifying the birth of an abandoned newborn in New Zealand"

Part 2Registration of information
Births: Notification of births

13Notification of birth in New Zealand must include name information

  1. A person notifying a birth under section 12 must specify 1 name as the child’s surname and 1 or more other names.

  2. However, the notification may include only 1 name for the child if—

  3. the religious or philosophical beliefs or the cultural traditions of a parent (whether living or dead) or living guardian of the child require the child to have only 1 name; or
    1. the birth is a stillbirth and the name included is to be registered as the child’s surname.

      1. A name or combination of names must be treated as if it had not been notified for the purposes of subsection (1) if—

      2. the Registrar-General declines to include the name or combination of names under section 18; and
        1. the Family Court has not determined that the name or combination of names should be included.

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