Over 1,200 people have applied to the Adoption Authority of Ireland (AAI) to seek access to information regarding their birth under the new Birth Information and Tracing Act.
Since the launch of its new services under the Act last week, the authority has received 1,288 applications, 1,176 of which were from people living in Ireland.
There were also 48 applications received from people living in the UK (13 of which were living in the North) and 28 from the US, while the remainder came from countries including Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, France and Canada.
Of the Irish-based applicants, 419 were from Dublin, 162 were from Cork, 53 were from Kildare and 52 were from Meath.
Applications for information were made from each of the 26 counties in the Republic. Armagh was the only county in the North from which no application was received in the authority's first week.
The Act allows adoptees, people who were boarded out, people who had their birth illegally registered, and those who have questions surround their origins to access information on their birth and early life.
In addition to their birth certificates, applicants will also be able to gain access to information on their care and medical information.
In a case where the parent has died, the Act also allows the applicant to access the information of a relevant person, while the next-of-kin of a child who died in an institution are also included.
The services are provided free of charge by the AAI and Tusla, and applications may be made on the new dedicated website.
"There has been an incredible response to the launch of birth information and tracing services – with more than 1,200 people applying to the Adoption Authority in the first week, and many others also applying to our colleagues in Tusla," AAI chief executive Patricia Carey said.
"People who were adopted, boarded out or had their birth information illegally registered in Ireland have waited a very long time for this legislation, and trained staff in the Adoption Authority are working through all the applications we receive as quickly and professionally as possible to ensure that every applicant receives any information about their birth and earlier years that we hold."
