Registration of Unregistered Birth

When a birth has not been registered within three months of its occurrance, it is possible to register such birth as a late registration  (See Circular 8/2008)

For this purpose, a declaration form under Section 24 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act must be submitted to the Additional District Registrar of the Divisional Secretariat relevant to the place of birth. (The Additional District Registrar of the Divisional Secretariat can grant approval for a declaration form submitted for a period ranging from three months to one year.)

Persons who can submit the declaration form

• One  of the parents
• The guardian of the child
• Any interested party

The Fee for the declaration form  is Rs.60.00

The following documents must be submitted along with the declaration formpresented within one year of the birth.

• If the parents are married, a copy of their marriage certificate certified by the Divisional Secretariat
• One of the following documents proving the date and place of birth of the subject (the person relevant to the birth)
  • Hospital birth report or a certified copy
  • Grama Niladhari report or certified copy (B23)
  • Estate birth report or a certified copy
  • A certificate from the family Health Service officer 

If non of the above documents are available, one of the following documents in their place,

• Health Development Chart (CHDR)
• Certificate of Baptism 
• Certify copy of the School Admission Register / Student Record Book
• Report of the Estate Welfare Officer
• Horoscope or Birth Chart prepared close to the date of birth

If  none of these documents can be obtained, a declaration form containing known details and an affidavit.

The following documents must be submitted along with the declaration form presented after the lapse of one year from the date of birth.

• Certificate starting that the birth has not been  registered (Nil result)
• If the parents are married, a copy of their marriage certificate certifying by the Divisional Secetariat
• One of the following documents proving the date and place  of birth of the subject (the person relevant to the birth)
  • Hospital birth report or a certified copy
  • Grama Niladhari report or a certified copy (B23)
  • Estate birth report or a certified copy
  • A certificate from the Family Health Service Officer

If  none of the above documents are available, one of the following documents in their place 

• Health Development chart
• Certificate of Baptism
• Certify copy of the School Admission Register / Student Record Book 
• Report of the Estate Welfare Officer 
• Horoscope or Birth Chart prepared close to the date of birth

If none of these documents can be obtained, a declaration form containing known details and an affidavit. 

Any person who is unable to provide the proper information (documents capable of proving the birth, such as a hospital birth record or a Grama Niladhari report) to register a birth certificate can apply for a Certificate of Probable Age from the Divisional Secretariat relevant to their place of birth.

Required Documents

• Declaration Form
• Documents Search Result 
• Affidavits and Reports
• Grama Niladhari Reports
• Information capable of proving the birth 
• By submitting documents that can prove the date of birth, the date of birth can be recorded in the Certificates of Probable Age.

If further details are required regarding this, please meet the Additional District Registrar at the nearest Divisional Secretariat.

In a birth registration entry, the following can be amended,

• Details in Column 01 - Date and place of Birth 
• Details in Column 02, To insert a name in an instance where a name has not been entered, or two subsequently change a name included in a birth record.
• Details in Column 03 - Gender
• Details in Column 04 - To amend the father's details (excluding ethnicity)
• Details in Column 05 - All the details of the mother
• Details in Column 06 - Whether the parents are married /unmarried 
• Details in Column 07 - Grand father's details 
• Details in Column 09 - Informant's details 

The relevant declaration, form must be submitted to the Additional District Registrar of the Divisional Secretariat relevant to the place of birth.

The declaration form should be submitted by,

• The person to whom the birth certificate belongs
• The Father or mother
• The Legal guardian
• A person dissatisfied with any detail in the birth record 

The fee for the declaration form is Rs.60.00

A certified copy of the birth record expected to be amended must strictly to be attached to the declaration form. Written evidence must be submitted along side it to prove the genuineness of the request.

Some of the obtainable written evidence to prove the genuineness of the request made via the declaration form are llisted below for your convenience.

• A copy of the parents' marriage certificate certified by the Divisional Secretariat 
• The list of children / list of siblings 
• Copies of the father's and mother's birth certificates certified by the Divisional Secretariat   
• A Certified copy of the birth record of a child born after the registration of the parent's marriage  
• In the absence of a child born after the marriage registration, a certified copy of the birth record of an older or younger sibling of the subject child
• Certified copies of records from hospitals, maternity homes, or copies of the midwife's records
• Student record Book, and extract from the children's admission rregister
• A copy of the electoral register containing the names of the subject and the parents
• A certified copy of the father's dead certificate, in the event he is deceased 

The age of the child being adopted must not exceed 14 years

Requirements to be fulfilled by the applicant

• The applicant must be over 25 years of age 
• The minimum age gap between the applicant adopting the cihild and the relevant child must be at least 21 years.
• If the relevant child is a descendand of the applicant, a sibling of the applicant or their descendand, or a child of their married partner, the above condition does not apply.
If the age of the child being adopted is over 10 years, the child's consent is requirted

If the age of the child being adopted is over 10 years, the child's consent is requirted. 

Based on the submitted certificates and documents, and Adoption Order is issued by the District Court. 

Based on that order (Form No. 4), the certificate of Adoption (Form B143) is issued by the Registrar Generals' Department, through which the biirth of the adopted child can be re-registered. 

To re-register the birth, the following documents must be submitted to the Head Office of the Registrar General's Department:

• Application for the re-registration of a birth(B149)
• A copy of the parents' marriage certificate certified by the Divisional Secretariat
• Certified copies of the mother's and father's birth records 
• If a birth certificate has been  previously registered for the child, that certificate, or if not registered, a nil search result documents.

The application, submitted accurately with the above information for the re-registration of the birth, will be forwarded by the Registrar General's Department to the Divisional Secretariat belonging to the child's place of birth.