TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol (PIA) – Filipinos who were born without birth records can grab the opportunity of availing of late birth registration in time for the Civil Registration Month in February.
Most Local Civil Registrars (LCRs) offer waived payments of penalties for late registration of registrable documents and copies of the re-issuance of vital documents to support the application during February.
During the recent Kapihan sa PIA forum, Philippine Statistics Authority Registry Officers II of Bohol, Glenda Wahing and Eleazar Abes, disclosed that in February, local government units in Bohol offer various civil registration packages to encourage civil registration.
“Local government units waive some fees for certifications and offer packages for free mass wedding ceremonies with inclusions like free wedding cakes, bridal bouquets, wine, couple photos, wedding rings, and banquets, all to support the registration of marriages,” said Wahing.
Civil registration is the continuous, permanent and compulsory recording of vital events in the life of an individual such as birth, marriage, death as well as all decrees, legal instruments and judicial orders affecting the civil status of every citizen.
For births, civil registration should happen within 30 days upon birth, or the registration is considered late.
Late registration of births entail a lengthy process with documentary requirements that could be bulky if some are not waived.
Requirements needed for the late registration include provision of ID pictures, Baptismal Certificates of father and mother, marriage certificate of parents, barangay certifications as well as PSA issued negative certificates stating that the person has not been registered.
Abes said LCRs in Bohol also conduct mobile registration drives with waived fees.
“LCRs can take out the payments, leaving only the mandated PSA payments in the process for a much cheaper and more convenient registration,” he said.
The PSA, however, has a recent policy for late registration especially those who are 80, 85, 90, 95, and 100 years old.
This is in line with Republic Act 11982 or the act granting benefits to Filipino Octogenarian and nonagenarians, amending the Centenarians Act of 2016.
The amended Centenarians Act states that Filipinos turning 80, 85, 90, and 95 years old will receive a P10,000 cash gift while those turning 100 years old will get P100,000.
PSA mandates the LCRs to pre-screen the applicants for late registration based on their true identity and facts of birth, which would be submitted to the PSA Civil Registration System outlets for evaluation.
The evaluation includes counter-checking of the age and establishment of the identity of the registrants through verification in the Civil Registry System database using the information submitted, PSA said. (RAHC/PIA Bohol)
