Delayed Registration of Birth Act of 2025

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE JUL 10 P4:38 REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES First Regular Session SENATE S. No. INTRODUCED BY SENATOR CHRISTOPHER LAWRENCE "BONG" T. GO AN ACT STRENGTHENING THE SYSTEM OF FILING OF DELAYED REGISTRATION OF BIRTHS IN THE COUNTRY, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE ACT NO. 3753 EXPLANATORY NOTE The 1987 Philippine Constitution upholds the inherent dignity and rights of every Filipino, mandating the State to respect human rights and provide special protection and assistance to children, including ensuring access to basic services. These principles highlight the critical role of civil registration as a fundamental mechanism for recognizing and safeguarding the identity and rights of individuals. In line with these constitutional values, Act No. 3753, also known as the Law on Registry of Civil Status, was enacted, and served as the cornerstone of civil registration rules, procedures, and activities in the Philippines for nearly a century. Over time, additional laws have been introduced to complement and enhance its provisions. The 1987 Philippine Constitution guarantees every Filipino the right to recognition and protection under the law. However, without a birth certificate, individuals are deprived of their legal identity, hindering their ability to fully access basic rights and essential public services. The passage of this Act ensures that every Filipino, especially

those who remain unregistered, will have the opportunity to obtain legal identity and, in turn, gain access to government-funded programs and services designed to support their welfare and development. However, despite this constitutional mandate and the presence of existing laws supporting civil registration, the Philippine Statistics Authority reports that approximately 3.7 million Filipinos remain unregistered at birth. This alarming figure underscores a persistent systemic gap that disproportionately affects the most vulnerable sectors of society such as Indigenous Peoples, Muslim communities, and children in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas ultimately depriving them of their fundamental rights to education, healthcare, and social protection. In view of the foregoing, the passage of this measure is earnestly sought.

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES First Regular Session 25 JUL 10 P4:38 SENATE S. No. . INTRODUCED BY SENATOR CHRISTOPHER LAWRENCE "BONG" T. GO STRENGTHENING THE SYSTEM OF NING OF DELAYED REGISTRATION OF BIRTHS IN THE COUNTRY, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE ACT NO. 3753 Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the " Delayed Registration

of Birth Act of 2025."

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to promote the

5 importance of civil registry documents to establish identity and civil status, support universal civil registration and to produce accurate, complete and update vital statistics.

Sec. 3. Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act:

(a) Certificate of Live Birth (COLB) refers to the source of vital information and provides legal proof of the identity of an individual; (b) Civil Registrar General refers to the head of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and the one who provides overall direction in the implementation of the Civil Registry Law and related issuances and exercise technical supervision over the local civil registrars;

(c) Delayed Registration of Birth refers to the registration of birth record after the reglementary period of thirty (30) days from the time of birth in the Office of the Local Civil Registrar of the place where it occurred; (d) Local Civil Registrar (LCR) or City/Municipal Civil Registrar refers to the person officially in-charge with the duty of implementing and enforcing the provisions of the Civil Registry Law and its Implementing Rules and Regulations and other laws related to civil registration; (e) Local Civil Registry Office (LCRO) refers to the department in the city or municipal government which is mandated to perform civil registration functions; (f) Negative Certification of Birth Record refers to the document issued by the PSA certifying that it has no record of the person's birth, marriage or death certificate in its electronic and paper archives; and (g) Registration of Birth refers to the permanent and official recording of a person's existence.

Sec. 4. Requirements on Filing Delayed Registration of Birth. - A Negative

Certification of Birth Record shall be a mandatory requirement for the application of Delayed Registration of Birth. In addition thereto, the following shall also be submitted: a) For a party seeking late registration of birth whose parents are both Filipino citizens: 1) If the person is less than eighteen (18) years old: i) Four (4) copies of the Certificate of Live Birth (COLB) duly accomplished and signed by the proper parties; ii) Accomplished Affidavit for Delayed Registration at the back of the COLB by the father, mother or guardian declaring therein, among other things, the following: • Name of child; • Date and place of birth; • Name of the father if the child is illegitimate and has been acknowledged by him; • If legitimate, the date and place of marriage of parents; and

• Reason for not registering the birth within thirty (30) days after the date of birth (I) Negative Certification of Birth Record from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA); iv) Certificate of marriage of the parents if the child is legitimate; and V) Birth Certificate of the parents. In case the party seeking late registration of birth of an illegitimate child is not the mother, the party in addition to the foregoing documents, shall submit the following: vi) Sworn statement stating the present whereabouts of the mother; vil) Any two (2) of the following documentary evidence which may show the name of the child, date and place of birth and name of the mother (and name of the father, if the child has been acknowledge): • Baptismal Certificate; • School records; • Income tax return; • Insurance policy; • Medical records; and • Others, such as barangay chairperson's certification viii) Affidavit of two (2) disinterested persons who might have witnessed or known the birth of the child 2) If the person is eighteen (18) years old or above, he/she shall apply for the late registration of his/her birth and the requirements shall be: i) All the requirements for a child who is less than eighteen (18) years old; and ii) Certificate of marriage, if married b) For a party seeking late registration of birth, wherein one of the parents is a foreigner: 1) Certificate of Marriage of the parents if the child is legitimate; 2) Birth certificate of the parents; 3) Passport of both parents;

4) Affidavit of Admission of Paternity and/or Affidavit to Use the Surname of the Father under Republic Act No. 9255, if the child is illegitimate and was acknowledged by the father; or 5) Affidavit of Acknowledgment in case of an illegitimate child born prior to 03 August 1988. 7 c) When the application for the delayed registration of birth is filed on behalf of another person, in addition to the abovementioned requirements of filing delayed registration of birth: 1) Special Power of Attorney (SPA) or Authorization Letter executed by the document owner, authorizing the applicant to file the delayed registration of birth; 2) Valid Identification Card of the document owner and the requester or applicant: and 3) Affidavit of the document owner or the registrant in case the document owner is already deceased stating the reasons why he/she cannot personally file the application.

Sec. 5. Procedures on Delayed Registration of Birth. - Birth registered later than

thirty (30) days after its occurrence is considered a delayed registration. It shall be registered at the Local Civil Registry Office (LCRO) of the place where the birth occurred. The delayed registration of birth shall undergo the following procedures: a) Upon receiving the application for delayed registration of birth, the City/Municipal Civil Registrar (C/MCR) shall examine the COLB presented whether it has been completely and correctly filled out. The C/MCR shall also evaluate the veracity of the statements made in the Affidavits and other submitted supporting documents through personal interview with the applicant and a field visit to the Office of the Punong Barangay where the child resides to confirm the statements made in the Affidavits and the genuineness of the supporting documents. b) Submission of a Negative Certificate of Live Birth issued by the PSA Civil Registry System Outlets or other authorized issuing centers, must be required

as a mandatory requirement for the application for delayed registration to ensure that there is no existing birth record registered anywhere in the country; c) A notice to the public on the pending application for delayed registration shall be posted for ten (10) consecutive days on a bulletin board outside the office of the local civil registrar located in a conspicuous place within the building and accessible to the general public, as well as in the official website, social media accounts and other official physical and digital media and channels of the local civil registrar and the PSA, subject to the provisions of Republic Act No. 10173, otherwise known as the Data Privacy Act of 2012; and d) If no one opposes the registration after ten (10) days, the C/MCR shall review the application and if convinced beyond doubt that the applicant for Delayed Registration was really born within his/her jurisdiction, the C/MCR shall accept and register the delayed registration of birth.

Sec. 6. Roles and Responsibilities of the LCRs and the PSA. - The LCROs of the

different cities and municipalities, through their Local Civil Registrars, shall facilitate the registration of birth within their territorial jurisdiction. They shall likewise see to it that the appropriate form is used, the form is properly and completely filled out, entries therein are cored and the proper attachments are submitted. In case the entries are found incomplete or incorrect, the Local Civil Registrars shall require the person concerned to fill out the document completely or to correct the entries, as the case may be. The PSA shall have full authority and oversight over LCRs in prescribing standards, criteria and procedures provided in this Act. Likewise, it has the duty to report any irregularities, negligence or incompetency of C/MCR in the performance of his/her functions under this Act to the concerned Mayor for the latter to take the proper disciplinary action.

Sec. 7. Collection of Fees, - Fees collected by LCROs shall be waived if the

document owner or applicant is found to be indigent as certified by the Punong Barangay where said document owner or applicant resides.

Sec. 8. False Statement. - Any person who shall knowingly make false statements

3 in the forms furnished and shall present the same for entry in the civil register, shall 4 be punished by imprisonment for not less than six (6) months and one (1) day but 5 not more than twelve (12) years and a fine of not less than One hundred thousand 6 pesos (P100,000.00) but not more than Two hundred fifty thousand pesos 7 (P250,000.00). In addition, if the person who violated the provisions of this Act is a public official, 10 he/she shall be dismissed from service and shall suffer perpetual absolute disqualification to hold public office.

Sec. 9. Separability Clause. - Should any provision of this Act or any part thereof

be declared invalid, the other provisions, so far as they are separable from the invalid ones, shall remain in force and effect.

Sec. 10. Repealing Clause. - Al laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and

regulations or parts thereof that are inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly.

Sec. 11. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect immediately upon its publication in

the Official Gazette or in any newspaper of general circulation. Approved,