Registering baby’s birth
WHEN your baby is born, the birth must be registered with the local authority — the Registrar General’s Department (RGD).
Your baby can either be born at home, at a public hospital, a private hospital or a birthing centre. Here is the process for registration, outlined by the RGD.
Registering a home birth
• When your baby is born you must visit the Local District Registrar (LDR) to register the birth.
• In the case where the parents are not married, the fathers must attend the LDR along with the mother to register the child in order to avoid the process of Addition of Father’s Particulars.
• If the parents are married, the LDR will complete the birth registration form with the particulars of both parents. Take along your marriage certificate.
• Both the mother and the father or the informant will be asked to sign the form. Make sure you check the information carefully before signing.
• Once the signing of the form is completed you will be given a Certificate of Registry or “Pink Slip”. This is not a birth certificate but has very valuable information such as the birth entry number, which is needed to apply for a birth certificate.
Registering births at public or private hospitals or birthing centres
The Registrar General’s Department, since January 2007, conducts bedside registration for each mother. Births in these facilities account for over 98 per cent of births in Jamaica.
• When your baby is born you must provide the birth details and other information to the registration officer who is conducting the registration.
• In the case where the parents are not married, the fathers must attend the LDR along with the mother to register the child in order to avoid the process of Addition of Father’s Particulars.
• If the parents are married, the registration officer will complete the birth registration form with the particulars of both parents. The couple is advised to have a copy of their marriage certificate available at the time of the baby’s birth registration, although it is not mandatory.
• Both the mother and the father or the informant will be asked to sign the form. Make sure you check the information carefully before signing.
Once the signing of the form is completed you will be given a Certificate of Registry or “Pink Slip”. This is not a birth certificate but has very valuable information such as the birth entry number, which is needed to apply for a birth certificate.
If your baby is named in hospital then the baby is entitled to a free birth certificate. If not, the addition of the name can be done by way of a Certificate of Naming.
