Shenasnameh Translation (Iranian Birth Certificate)

Shenasnameh translation for the Home Office: what you receive

The Shenasnameh is Iran's birth certificate and identity booklet. It is a record that grows over a lifetime: marriages, divorces, children and deaths are added to it. It is often called an Iranian birth certificate, but it holds much more than a birth record.

Your Iranian birth certificate translation includes:

1. A translation of every page with entries, labelled "Page 1", "Page 2" and so on, as in the booklet.
2. Each Solar Hijri date shown as written, followed by the Gregorian date in brackets.
3. The national code (shomareh-ye melli), serial number and issue place, copied exactly.
4. Descriptions of stamps, seals, photos and any handwritten notes.
5. A signed certification statement following GOV.UK's certifying a document (opens in a new tab) wording ("true and accurate translation of the original document", date, translator's full name and contact details), signed by a qualified translator. We are members of the ITI, CIOL and ATC.
6. A PDF by email and an optional hard copy.

Sample

Certified translation

Shenasnameh (Iranian birth certificate and ID booklet), page 1

Farsi → English

Full name

redacted

Father's name

redacted

Date of birth

15/06/1376 [6 September 1997]

Place of birth

redacted, redacted province

National code

redacted

Serial number

redacted

Place of issue

redacted civil registration office

• [Round stamp: civil registration office (Sabt-e Ahval)]
• [Photo of the holder]
• [Translator's note: Solar Hijri dates are shown as written, with the Gregorian date in brackets.]

Translator's statement

I confirm that this is a true and accurate translation of the original document.

Date

DD/MM/YYYY

Translator

Full name

Signature

Shenasnameh pages and entries

The Shenasnameh is issued by Iran's National Organization for Civil Registration (NOCR, "Sabt-e Ahval"), which sits under the Ministry of the Interior. According to the Norwegian country-of-origin service Landinfo, the current booklets come in two colours.

What we translate on each page

• Identity page: name, surname, father's name, mother's name, date and place of birth, national code and serial number.
• Marriage and divorce pages: spouse's name and national code, date of marriage or divorce, and the registry office number.
• Children's pages: each child's name, date of birth and national code.
• Death entry: added when the holder dies.
• Notes and stamps: changes of name, corrections, and election stamps where they appear.

Older Shenasnamehs, issued before the green and brown booklets, look different and often contain more handwriting. We translate these too, keeping any crossings-out and corrections visible, such as "[corrected by hand in original]".

Kart-e Melli smart card

The Kart-e Melli is Iran's national identity card. Landinfo reports that the smart card has been issued since 2012, that it is valid for seven years, and that only the electronic version is now issued in Iran.

Our kart e melli translation covers both sides: name, father's name, date of birth, national code, card expiry date and any text on the reverse. We make sure the national code on the card matches the one we have translated from the Shenasnameh, and we point out any difference to you rather than changing it.

Where your translated Shenasnameh is used

A certified Shenasnameh Farsi to English translation is often one of the first identity documents an Iranian claimant sends. It can support:

• Your asylum claim: identity, nationality, family members and marital status.
• Appeals: the Tribunal needs an English translation of any document not in English. See asylum appeal bundle translation.
• Family applications: proof of marriage and parentage. New refugee family reunion applications have been paused since 4 September 2025 and remained paused in March 2026, so check GOV.UK for the current position.
• Settlement, citizenship and passports: later in your case.

The Shenasnameh is one of the national IDs covered in our guide to ID card translation for asylum. We only translate; for advice on what to submit, speak to a solicitor or an IAA-regulated adviser.

Languages for Shenasnameh translation

The Shenasnameh and Kart-e Melli are printed and completed in Farsi (Persian). Our Farsi asylum document translation team reads Iranian official handwriting and stamps daily. For Kurdish, Azeri or Arabic names from border provinces, we check spellings with you before we finish.

Iranian claimants often need other papers translated too, such as court summons, school certificates or church letters. See our Iran document translation for asylum page for the full list.

Shenasnameh translation price and delivery time

We charge by the page with entries, not by every page of the booklet. A typical Shenasnameh has two to four pages to translate, from £18 per page. The Kart-e Melli is usually one page, from £15 per document.

• Standard delivery: 1 working day for a Kart-e Melli, 2–3 working days for a full Shenasnameh
• Urgent delivery: same day or within 24 hours, for an extra £10 per document (starting price)

Prices shown are starting prices and include VAT. We confirm your exact price in a written quote before any work starts. Our translation prices page explains how pages are counted. Files are uploaded through an encrypted link, handled under UK GDPR and deleted after delivery.