Births and Deaths Registration (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations, 2024 (No. 17)
Birth certificates are free for children six and under but US$5 for anyone older, death certificates US$2, an urgent certificate US$10, and a change of surname by notarial deed US$50.
The Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage has replaced the whole fee schedule for births and deaths registration, repealing the 2009 fee amendment (S.I. 138 of 2009).
The headline is the age split on birth certificates. An initial birth certificate is free for a person aged six or younger, but costs US$5 for anyone above six — so a late registration carries a charge that a timely one does not. An initial death certificate is US$2.
Other certificate charges: a certified copy of an entry of a birth or death certificate US$5, an extract from an entry US$2, a certificate not provided for elsewhere US$2, an urgent birth or death certificate US$10, an external birth certificate US$15, a non-citizen birth certificate US$10 initially and US$25 for a duplicate, authentication US$20 and re-registration for legitimacy purposes US$20.
Corrections split two ways. Altering a name in the register or correcting an error costs US$5, but correcting an error that originated from the Department is free. Changing a surname costs US$50 by notarial deed but only US$5 through the Registrar-General.
Searching records for any one year is US$1 and photocopying is 20 US cents a page. A footnote says the fees may be paid in Zimbabwe dollars at the prevailing interbank rate.
No commencement date is stated; the regulations were published in a Gazette Extraordinary on 30 January 2024. Note that the extracted text repeats the instrument twice — a duplication in the source PDF, not two different versions.
What changed
- Initial birth certificate free for persons aged six or younger, US$5 for anyone older
- Initial death certificate US$2; certified copy of a birth or death entry US$5
- Urgent birth or death certificate US$10; external birth certificate US$15
- Non-citizen birth certificate US$10 initially and US$25 for a duplicate
- Change of surname US$50 by notarial deed or US$5 through the Registrar-General
- Correcting a Department error is free; other name alterations and corrections cost US$5
- Record search US$1 per year searched, photocopies US$0.20 per page
- The 2009 fee amendment (S.I. 138 of 2009) is repealed
Who this affects
- parents registering births, especially late registrations for children over six
- families obtaining death certificates and burial orders
- people changing a surname or correcting a register entry
- non-citizens and Zimbabweans born outside the country
- Civil Registry offices
Plain-language summary — not legal advice. Always read the full instrument.