Section 178 Certificates of birth.

Where the age of any person is required to be ascertained or proved for the purposes of this Act, any person shall, on presenting a written requisition in such form and containing such particulars as F1the Secretary of State or, as respects Scotland, the Secretary of State may by regulations prescribe and on payment of F2the appropriate fee in England and Wales or a fee of F3£10.00 F4in Scotland, be entitled to obtain a certified extract under the hand of a registrar or superintendent registrar of births and deaths of the entry in the register under the M1Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 or F5the M2Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act 1965 of the birth of that person.

A form of such a requisition shall on request be supplied without charge by every superintendent registrar and registrar of births and deaths.

In subsection (1), “the appropriate fee” means the fee payable to a registrar or superintendent registrar for a certified copy of an entry in the register concerned by virtue of section 38A of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953.