Registration Service Act 1953
Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
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The Registration Service Act 1953 (1 & 2 Eliz. 2. c. 37) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that consolidated enactments relating to the registration service in England and Wales.[1]
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Long titleAn Act to consolidate certain enactments relating to the registration service in England and Wales with corrections and improvements made under the Consolidation of Enactments (Procedure) Act 1949.
Citation1 & 2 Eliz. 2. c. 37
Territorial extentEngland and Wales[b]
Royal assent31 July 1953
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act to consolidate certain enactments relating to the registration service in England and Wales with corrections and improvements made under the Consolidation of Enactments (Procedure) Act 1949. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 1 & 2 Eliz. 2. c. 37 |
| Territorial extent | England and Wales[b] |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 31 July 1953 |
| Commencement | 1 October 1953[c] |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | See § Repealed enactments |
| Repeals/revokes | See § Repealed enactments |
| Amended by |
|
| Relates to | |
Status: Amended | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Text of the Registration Service Act 1953 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
Provisions
Repealed enactments
Section 23(2) of the act repealed 14 enactments, listed in the second schedule to the act.[2]
| Citation | Short title | Extent of repeal |
|---|---|---|
| 6 & 7 Will. 4. c. 85 | Marriage Act 1836 | The whole act. |
| 6 & 7 Will. 4. c. 86 | Births and Deaths Registration Act 1836 | Sections two, three, five to nine, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, twenty-nine, thirty-four and thirty-nine. |
| 7 Will. 4. & 1 Vict. c. 22 | Births and Deaths Registration Act 1837 | Sections nine to twelve, fourteen, fifteen, eighteen, twenty and twenty-two. |
| 3 & 4 Vict. c. 92 | Non-parochial Registers Act 1840 | Section three from the beginning to the word "and". |
| 15 & 16 Vict. c. 25 | General Register Office Act 1852 | The whole act. |
| 17 & 18 Vict. c. 94 | Public Revenue and Consolidated Fund Charges Act 1854 | In Schedule B, the words "salaries and contingencies of the General Register Office of Births, Deaths and Marriages, England—6 & 7 Will. 4. c. 86". |
| 19 & 20 Vict. c. 119 | Marriage and Registration Act 1856 | Sections fifteen and sixteen. |
| 37 & 38 Vict. c. 88 | Births and Deaths Registration Act 1874 | Sections twenty-one, twenty-four to twenty-seven, thirty-one, thirty-two and thirty-three. |
| 19 & 20 Geo. 5. c. 17 | Local Government Act 1929 | Sections twenty-one to twenty-five, twenty-seven and twenty-eight; in section one hundred and thirty-one, in proviso (b) to subsection (2), the words from "or a scheme" to "Minister" where next occurring; in the Tenth Schedule, paragraphs 6 and 7 and sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph 24. |
| 1 & 2 Geo. 6. c. 12 | Population (Statistics) Act 1938 | In section three, subsection (1) so far as it relates to England and Wales; and subsection (2). |
| 9 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 26 | Emergency Laws (Transitional Provisions) Act 1946 | In the Second Schedule, the entry relating to the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1874. |
| 12, 13 & 14 Geo. 6. c. 76 | Marriage Act 1949 | Subsection (6) of section fifty-seven; subsection (2) of section fifty-eight from "so" onwards; in section fifty-nine the words from "in accordance with section" onwards; subsection (4) of section sixty-five; and in paragraph (a) of section seventy-four the words "superintendent registrars, registrars and". |
| 14 Geo. 6. c. 26 | Adoption Act 1950 | Subsection (5) of section seventeen. |
| 1 & 2 Eliz. 2. c. 20 | Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 | Subsection (3) of section forty-three. |
Subsequent developments
The act has been amended on several occasions. The Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 restructured the role of the Registrar General and removed certain administrative provisions. The Immigration Act 2016 removed provisions relating to general fees. The Digital Economy Act 2017 inserted new provisions enabling disclosure of registration information to public authorities. The Data Protection Act 2018 and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 made further amendments.