December 18 is the Day of Registry Office employees: history, traditions, congratulations

Every year on December 18 in Russia, registry office specialists celebrate their professional holiday, which helps citizens formalize the most significant stages of life — birth, starting a family and saying goodbye to loved ones. In 2025, the date falls on Thursday. Read about the history of this service and the traditions of the holiday in the Izvestia article.

Registry Office Workers' Day – 2025: the history of the profession

The holiday date is not officially fixed by a separate federal law or decree, however, employees of the registry office actually perceive it as their professional day. It is timed to coincide with the signing on December 18, 1917 of the decree "On civil marriage, on children and on the maintenance of books of deeds".

Before the October Revolution of 1917, the church was responsible for recording events in the lives of citizens. After the reforms of Peter the Great in 1721-1722, the entire Orthodox population was assigned to parishes, and information about births, weddings, and deaths began to be systematically recorded in metric books.

These records had the status of official documents and contained detailed information about believers — information about parents and godparents, place of residence, and sometimes social status. The accuracy and safety of such books was controlled by the diocesan administrations, and in case of loss of documents, it was the church that helped to restore the necessary information.

Over time, these books turned into a valuable historical and demographic resource, which later became the basis of the archival funds of the registry offices. Until 1917, the legal force of acts of civil status directly depended on church marriage and religious affiliation, which effectively deprived many unions that were mixed or did not comply with church canons of legal protection.

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The revolution of 1917 radically changed this model. Instead of the church accounting system, a secular one appeared. The Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR established civil registry offices independent of religious structures. On December 18, a decree "On civil marriage, on children and on maintaining books of state acts" was adopted, and on December 19, a document "On the dissolution of marriage" was adopted. With their entry into force, church weddings ceased to have legal force, and the only form of marriage recognized by the state became entries in the official books of acts of civil status.

Subsequently, an extensive network of district and local registry offices was built, the coordination of which was entrusted to the Central Registry Office of the NKVD of the RSFSR. His area of expertise included registration and dissolution of marriages, registration of births and deaths, registration of adoptions and making changes to names. At the same time, the registry office system became the center for the formation of official statistics on acts of civil status and turned into one of the key state mechanisms for population registration.

In addition to registration tasks, they were partially entrusted with an ideological function — strengthening the institution of the family, taking care of demographic policy. Marriage was seen as an important step encouraged by the State, while divorce was often a complex and multi-step procedure.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the registry offices retained the status of structural divisions of the executive authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. The regional authorities have received more authority in matters of work organization, but the basic functions of the service have remained unchanged.

In modern Russia, registry offices retain the role of a basic social institution documenting a person's civil status at all stages of his life - from birth to death registration. A significant part of their services has been converted to electronic format.

Traditions of celebrating the Day of Registry Office employees

Traditionally, on December 18, solemn meetings are held in regional offices and district departments of the registry Office, where the results of the year are summed up, the best employees are awarded with certificates of honor, commendations and departmental awards. Concerts and holiday programs are organized, where current employees, service veterans, as well as government representatives become guests. In many cities, symbolic actions are organized — solemn simultaneous registration of marriages or births, timed to coincide with a professional day.

Some registry offices organize open days — the service's specialists talk about their work, show old books of civil registration records, photographs and documents that allow you to see how the registration system has changed over the decades.

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This day also includes lectures on the legal culture of the family, consultations on civil registration, and charitable initiatives in support of families with children.

Congratulations on the Day of Registry Office workers

On December 18, congratulations are addressed to the specialists of the district and city registry offices, archival departments, and heads of regional departments, who daily deal with documents defining the legal status of citizens and accompany the most emotionally significant moments of human life. Izvestia has prepared several examples of warm wishes:

"Congratulations on the Day of Registry Office employees! You record not just facts, but people's fates. May your registers contain as many births and happy marriages as possible, and may your own life records be filled with health, well-being and human warmth!";

"Congratulations on your professional holiday! Thanks to your precision and attention, everyone gets a legally verified life story, and your work opens up new chapters in the lives of families. We wish that every working morning starts with good news, respect from citizens and confidence in the importance of your cause!";

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"Congratulations on the holiday, keepers of family chronicles! You accompany people in moments of joy and in moments of trials. We wish that the words "agree" and children's laughter were heard more often in your offices, and all difficult situations were solved calmly and fairly. Happy Registry Office Workers' Day!";

"Congratulations on the Day of Registry Office employees! Thank you for your patience, correctness and the ability to combine strict legal norms with human participation. May your work be appreciated, and every day brings a sense of professional pride!";

"Happy Registry Office Workers' Day! We wish you precision in your business and the support of your team. May you have as many reasons for celebration as possible, strong family traditions and confidence in the future; Happy professional holiday!"

Earlier, Izvestia told when and how Lawyer's Day is celebrated in Russia.