Do You Have to Register a Stillbirth, and How?

Detailed Explanation

Most parents meet this process for the first time in the worst week of their lives. It helps to know that in most countries the hospital, midwife or bereavement team does much of the work, and that registration is usually quick and free. It also creates a permanent official record that the baby existed, which many parents later say matters to them.

Where the legal line falls

Every country draws a line between a miscarriage, which isn't registered, and a stillbirth, which is. The line is set in law, and it isn't the same everywhere:

• United Kingdom: 24 weeks of pregnancy. The Still-Birth (Definition) Act 1992 moved the threshold from 28 weeks to 24 in the registration laws for England and Wales and for Scotland. Northern Ireland has its own registration law; ask the General Register Office for Northern Ireland or the hospital if you're unsure how it applies.
• Australia: state and territory law generally sets it at 20 weeks' gestation or a birthweight of at least 400 grams.
• United States: each state decides. Most require a fetal death to be reported at 20 weeks or more and/or 350 grams, but the CDC notes that a minority of states require reporting at any stage of pregnancy.
• For international comparison, the World Health Organization counts a stillbirth as a baby who dies after 28 weeks of pregnancy, before or during birth. National registration laws use their own thresholds, so a baby can be registered as stillborn in one country but not counted in WHO statistics, or the other way round.

These thresholds decide paperwork, not how much a loss hurts.

How registration works

The steps are broadly similar across countries:

1. A doctor or midwife certifies the stillbirth. They complete a medical certificate confirming the baby was stillborn and, where known, the cause.
2. The birth is registered with the civil registry. In the UK, a parent (or in some cases another qualified person) registers with the local registrar: within 42 days in England and Wales, 21 days in Scotland, and within a year in Northern Ireland. In Australia, the hospital usually helps parents lodge the registration with the state or territory registry. In the US, a fetal death report is filed with the state under that state's rules, usually by the hospital or funeral director, and some states also let parents request a separate certificate recognising the stillbirth.
3. The parents receive a certificate. This is usually a stillbirth certificate or a certificate of registration rather than a standard birth or death certificate. Its name and format vary by country and by state.

In Scotland, for example, the registrar's certificate of registration of still-birth is what lets the funeral go ahead, and across the UK the certificate of stillbirth is used as evidence when claiming financial support.

Choices along the way

Parents are usually asked whether to name the baby, what kind of farewell they want, and whether they'd like photographs, hand and foot prints or other keepsakes. None of these decisions has to be rushed, although registration deadlines and hospital routines set some limits. Bereavement midwives and hospital social workers handle this regularly and can explain what's possible locally.

How it works where you are

• In Australia: How do you register a stillbirth in Australia?

Things to Consider

• Ask the hospital first. Midwives and bereavement teams know the local forms, deadlines and options, and can often start the process before you leave.
• Check the deadline, but don't panic about it. Time limits exist, but registrars deal with these situations sensitively. If you need more time, tell the registry.
• Keep the certificate safe. Beyond its official use, many families come to see it as an important keepsake.
• Support is available. Organisations such as Sands (in the UK and Australia), Tommy's (UK) and Red Nose Australia offer support specifically for stillbirth. In the US, the hospital's bereavement team can usually point to local groups. If you're struggling, talk to your GP or doctor.

Common Mistakes

• Assuming a stillbirth is registered like any other death. It usually follows its own process and produces a different certificate.
• Assuming naming isn't allowed, or is required. In most places it's optional and entirely the parents' choice.
• Applying another country's threshold. A loss at 22 weeks is a registrable stillbirth in Australia but not in England, Wales or Scotland. Go by the rules where the birth happened.
• Feeling a loss "doesn't count" because it fell below the line. Grief support applies whatever the legal classification.