Who Should Apply For Late Registration of Birth?
Who Should Apply For Late Registration of Birth?
Who Should Apply For Late Registration of Birth?
Sadly, a lot of Filipinos are in such a precarious situation. They request for their birth
certificates from the PSA only to be told that their birth records never existed in the first
place.
And because the birth certificate is a critical requirement whenever you’re applying for
a passport, enrolling in a school, getting insurance claims, or applying for a job, the
lack of it will prevent you from advancing further in life.
Fortunately, all hope is not lost. In this in-depth guide, we’ll teach you how to file for late
registration of birth and claim the birth certificate you’ve been deprived of.
Table of Contents
Who should apply for late registration of birth?
How to Apply for Late Registration of Birth Certificate in the Philippines: 3 Easy Steps.
o 1. Verify the absence of your birth records.
o 2. Know the requirements for late registration of birth.
a. If the applicant is a minor (less than 18 years old).
b. If the applicant is 18 years old or above.
c. If the applicant was born abroad.
o 3. Proceed to the office of the local civil registrar (for Philippine-born applicants) or to the
DFA Office of Consular Affairs (for foreign-born applicants).
a. Philippine-born applicants.
b. Foreign-born applicants.
About the Author.
Depending on where the baby was born, the responsibility of registering/reporting the
birth falls on either the attending physician/nurse/hospital administrator (if born in the
hospital) or the midwife/hilot (if born at home).
When the registration takes place beyond the required 30-day time frame, it is referred
to as delayed or late registration.
Late registration is a common issue among those who were born in the provinces
through a traditional midwife or hilot, someone who is often not aware, much less
trained, to process the required paperwork.
As a result, the baby enters adulthood only to discover that neither PSA nor the LCR
can retrieve his/her birth records.
Parents (one or both of whom must be Filipino citizens) must report the birth of their
child to the Philippine Embassy within 100 days from the date of birth. Otherwise, it will
be classified as late registration and no record of birth will be forwarded to the Office of
the Civil Registrar-General in Manila.
Unless the applicant files a late registration of birth, he/she won’t be able to apply for
Philippine passport and get the privileges given to Filipino citizens.
This guide is for all Filipinos who are aware of or just recently discovered their lack of
birth certificate, thus holding them back from doing anything that requires proof of one’s
identity.
At this point, I assume you already requested a copy of your birth certificate from the
PSA and received a Negative Intent or Negative Results Certification (NRC) which
means nothing came out of their database.
The next step should be going to the local civil registrar with jurisdiction over the place of your
birth and request for a copy of your birth records.
If they’re able to retrieve your records, it simply means the files haven’t been forwarded
to PSA yet. In this case, all you need to do is to file for an Endorsement and let the
local civil registrar expedite the transmission for you.
On the other hand, if none of your birth records exist both in PSA and the local civil
registrar, it means your birth wasn’t reported at all, in which case applying for delayed or
late registration of birth is the appropriate solution.
Take note, however, that fees and requirements may vary depending on the civil
registrar you’ll be transacting with. It’s recommended, therefore, to check your local civil
registrar’s website first to see the updated checklist of requirements.
If you’re using the Internet, simply enter the search string “late registration of birth certificate +
name of your city/municipality” into the Google search box and it will return either a page or a
PDF file with the complete list of requirements and procedures.
In general, here are the documentary requirements usually requested when you’re
applying for late registration of birth:
ii. Four (4) copies of the Certificate of Live Birth duly accomplished and signed by
the proper parties.
iii. Affidavit for Delayed Registration (at the back of Certificate of Live Birth) duly
accomplished by the father, mother, or guardian (must be in the presence of these
people), declaring the following:
In most civil registrars, this affidavit is only required when none of the aforementioned
requirements are available.
The “two disinterested persons” referred here could be neighbors or family friends who have
personal knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the applicant’s birth and will not benefit
directly by revealing such information (as opposed to relatives who may be motivated by
insurance claims, etc.)
The reporting should take place within 12 months from the time of birth. It is done so
that the baby will have a Report of Birth in the PSA database.
Having this Philippine equivalent of the foreign birth certificate enables the child to grow
up enjoying the privileges given to Filipino citizens.
In case you’re the parent/s who live abroad and were not able to report the birth of your child
with the Philippine Embassy, you may still do so, provided that you also submit a notarized
Affidavit of Delayed Registration of Birth.
For the complete procedure, please read this guide: How to Get Birth Certificate for
Newborn Babies Born Abroad.
Meanwhile, if you’re someone born abroad and now live in the Philippines, ask your
parents if they’re able to report your birth to the Philippines Embassy when you’re a
child.
If not, you can still acquire a birth certificate from PSA by applying for late registration of
birth at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) main office in Parañaque City.
The list below presents the documentary requirements you need to file for late
registration of birth. Ensure that you bring both the original copy of the document/s and
at least 5 photocopies of each. The forms mentioned below are available at the
Consular Records Window in DFA.
Print five forms in A4 paper and fill them out, making sure the answers are either
typewritten or printed legibly.
Item 20 in the form should be notarized by the notary public.
ii. Foreign birth certificate.
If not written in the English language, please submit an official English translation
(notarized and authenticated).
Must be authenticated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country of birth if the
applicant was born in the following places/countries: Shanghai, Norway, Austria,
France, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Netherlands, Iceland, India, and Middle Eastern
countries like UAE and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This also applies to those born
under the consular jurisdiction of the Philippine Embassy in Mexico.
If born in Japan, please submit original copies of Shussei Todoke No Kisai Jiko
Shomeisho (Birth Notification Report issued by the Japanese City Hall) or certified
true copy with stamps from City Hall; Boshi Techo (Maternity Record Book); and the
latest Koseki Tohon (Family Registry). In case the applicant was born inside a US
base in Japan, please also provide a copy of the birth certificate issued by the
hospital within the vicinity of that base and the Consular Report of Birth.
If the applicant was born under the consular jurisdiction of the Philippine Consulate
General in Los Angeles, submit PSA birth certificate of Filipino parent and Foreign
birth certificate of Foreign national parent.
If the applicant was born under the consular jurisdiction of the Philippine Consulate
General in Toronto, submit the original certified true copy of live birth (long form).
iii. First passport or travel document of the applicant.
iv. If parents are married, please submit their foreign marriage contract/Report of
Marriage (ROM)/authenticated marriage certificate issued by the Philippine Statistics
Authority (PSA).
If the applicant is using the surname of the father, please submit an Affidavit to Use
the Surname of the Father (AUSF) to be executed by the mother and Affidavit of
Acknowledgement of Paternity to be executed by the father. If the affidavits will be
executed in the Philippines, these should be registered first as Legal Instruments at
the Local Civil Registry Office of the place of execution and authenticated by the
DFA. If executed abroad, the affidavits should be registered first at the Foreign
Service Post (FSP) of the country of residence of the parent(s) or at the FSP nearest
the place of residence.
If the applicant is using the mother’s surname, please submit the Birth Certificate of
the mother and a notarized Affidavit of Illegitimacy.
vi. Passport of the applicant’s parents (valid at the time of the birth of the child)
and any current/valid passports of both parents.
3. Proceed to the office of the local civil registrar (for Philippine-born applicants) or
to the DFA Office of Consular Affairs (for foreign-born applicants).
a. Philippine-born applicants.
For applicants born in the Philippines, the late registration of birth must be filed at the
local civil registrar with jurisdiction over the place of your birth.
Again, the office of the LCR is usually located within the municipal or city hall.
Upon arrival, you will be asked to register in a logbook before giving you a queue or
priority number. Wait for your turn to submit the documentary requirements and forms
which will be assessed by the PSA.
The fee may vary as local civil registrars follow different tax codes. It also varies
depending on the age of the applicant. In Makati, for example, applicants below 2 years
old are charged Php 200 while those older than 2 years old are required to pay Php
500.
In case you’re now living in a town/province/city too far from your place of birth, you
don’t have to travel just to file the late registration.
The only downside is you have to pay an Endorsement fee of more or less Php 290 to
complete the out-of-town transaction.
b. Foreign-born applicants.
For those born abroad, proceed to the DFA Office of Consular Affairs located at Bradco
Avenue corner Macapagal Avenue, ASEANA Business Park, Parañaque City.
Get the required forms at the Consular Records Window. Fill them out and submit the
duly accomplished forms along with the rest of the requirements (see step 2) to the
Door 1, Window 1 at the Ground Floor.
The Consular Fee of USD 25 as well as the Translation Fee (if applicable) of USD 25
will be paid to the Cashier located at the 2nd floor of the DFA Office of Consular Affairs.