Latvia Civil Registration

Historical Background
Beginning in the late seventeenth-century, civil registration was the responsibility of the church. To learn about church records in Latvia, see the Latvia Church Records page.

In 1921, Latvijas Satversmes Sapulce (The Latvian Constitutional Assembly) passed a law on civil status registration that required that births, marriages, and deaths must also be recorded at a local civil registration office. Civil registration offices began to be established in 1922.

Under Soviet rule, civil registration was also required.

Accessing the Records
All records created after 1910 are available through the Registry Office Archives of the Ministry of Justice. If your ancestor was from the City of Riga, records after 1921 can be obtained from the Riga civil registration office.

Registry Office Archives of the Ministry of Justice
In some cases, you may need to work with the U.S. Embassy in Latvia to order records. Visit their website here.

Online Collections
If your ancestor was a British citizen, you may be able to find records in the 1850-1940 - Great Britain, Consulate (Riga, Latvia), Consulate register, 1850-1940

Information Recorded in Civil Records
Records could contain the following information:

Birth Records


 * Name and surname of the child
 * Date, time and place of birth
 * Names and surnames of child’s parents
 * Confession
 * Social status or occupation (in some cases place of origin)
 * Whether the child was born in wedlock
 * Names of godparents
 * Name and surname of person who performed the baptism
 * Place of baptism

Marriage Records


 * Names and surnames of groom and bride
 * Ages
 * Social status and occupation
 * Birth places and confession
 * Previous family status
 * Date of engagement
 * Date of marriage
 * Names and surnames of groom’s and bride’s parents
 * Whether alive or deceased
 * Social status and occupation
 * Information about the clergyman

Death registers


 * Name and surname of the deceased person
 * Place of birth
 * Age
 * Family status
 * Date and place of death
 * Cause of death
 * Date of funeral (in some cases also the place)