PACs Documents - Confusion over Birth Certifcate requirements

General Discussion
1

Hello. My partner (French) and I (British) are trying to register as PACs in Paris.

I could do with a little advice from anyone who’s been through the process.

I’ve been asked for:

Votre acte de naissance de moins de 6 mois : - en plurilingue - ou en copie intégrale en langue étrangère, le cas échéant apostillé ou légalisé (et traduit par un traducteur assermenté près d’une cour d’appel en France)

Translates as:
Your birth certificate, less than 6 months old: - in multiple languages ​​- or a full copy in a foreign language, apostilled or legalized if applicable (and translated by a sworn translator at a French court of appeal)

I have my original Birth certificate. So, my understanding is that I need to get it legalized in the UK (for it to be less than 6 months old). And then translated by an authorised translator here.

But, do I really need to get it apostilled in France too, and if so, does anyone know how? Because when I search online, I’m not really getting anywhere. Especially in regards to it being British.

Thanks in advance.

2

My son had to get a full sized UK birth certificate as all of us only ever had the short ones. He then got it done for the PACS via the local tribunal who got it translated and stamped and it was accepted. Nothing was ever done via the UK as he had been here since a small child, just the application for this long certificate only.

3

This is a common misconception with non-French documents. French birth certificates are “live” documents as they get annotated through the course of your life. So some struggle with concept of UK static documents.

Don’t hand over your original birth certificate to anyone! Too great a risk of not getting it back. Spend the €15 or so getting a new certified copy from the GRO in the UK and get that translated. No apostille needed as it is certified.

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