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Birth
Registration
Process
for
Non-Residents
(Expats)
in
Singapore
*Article
by Peter
Breitkreutz
(Father
of Jaime Zheng) |
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Having a
baby is
one of
the most
joyous
and
memorable
moments
that any
family
will
experience.
It is
also a
time when much
planning
is
required,
both in
the
preparation
for the
newest
addition,
as well
as
ensuring
all
required documentation
is
attended
to.
The population
of
Singapore
in July,
2008
will be
in
excess
of 4.6M
people.
More
than 20%
of these
people
will be non-residents
or
expats.
This
means
that the
number
of
non-resident
babies
born in
Singapore
will be increasing.
Contrary to
many
other
country's
laws,
any baby
born in
Singapore
will not
be a
citizen
of the
republic
if
neither of the
parents
are
Singapore
citizens
at the
time of
birth.
The following
article
outlines
the
'front
to back'
end
process
that we
undertook
upon the
birth of
Jaime Zheng Jiayang in
2007.
All
information
and
links
are
accurate
at the
time of
writing,
however
we
strongly
recommend that you
visit
the
relative
websites
for any
updated
information. |
|
At
the time
of
Jaime's
birth, I
was an
Australian
citizen
(on
Australian
passport)
and
working
and
living
in
Singapore on
a P1
Employment
pass
issued
by the
Singapore
Ministry
of
Manpower
(MoM).
As a result
of my
status,
the
process
to
register
the
birth,
and
subsequently
allow
for
Jaime to
legally
remain
in
Singapore can
be
broken
into
three(3)
distinct
steps:
■
Register
the
Birth
with
Singapore
Registry
of
Births &
Deaths
■
Attain
Australian
Citizenship
(by
descent)
&
Australian
Passport
■
Attain
Dependent's
Pass
from MoM
Completion of
all
three
steps
must
adhere
to a
very
strict
timeline
as
dictated
by the
Singapore
government,
Immigration
and MoM
(Ministry
of
Manpower).
Step 1:
Register
the
Birth
with
Singapore
Registry
of
Births &
Deaths
All births in
Singapore
must be
registered
within
14-days
from the
date of
birth.
Most
maternity
hospitals
in
Singapore
have a
registry
office,
hence we
took the
opportunity
to
register
Jaime
while he
and his
mother
were still
recovering
at Mt
Elizabeth
Hospital
after
the
birth.
The process
and
documentation
required
for
birth
registration
is as
follows:
Where To
Register
Births?
The Birth
Registration
Centres
available
are:
-
Registry
of
Births
&
Deaths
Citizen
Services
Centre
3rd
Storey,
ICA
Building
10
Kallang
Road
(Next
to
Lavender
MRT
station)
Singapore
208718
-
KK
Women's
&
Children's
Hospital
-
East
Shore
Hospital
-
Gleneagles
Hospital
-
Mt
Alvernia
Hospital
-
Mt
Elizabeth
Hospital
-
National
University
Hospital
-
Singapore
General
Hospital
-
Thomson
Medical
Centre
-
Raffles
Hospital
For
births
in other
hospitals,
please
register
at the
Citizen
Services
Centre.
Those
who are
not born
in
hospitals
(eg, at
home or
in
cars),
obtain
the
Notification
of Live
Birth
from the
doctors/midwife/
ambulance
staff
who
delivered
the
baby.
When To
Register
Births?
Births
should
be
registered
within
14 days
from the
date of
birth,
including
Sundays
and
public
holidays.
For
births
registered
after 14
days and
within
42 days,
it is
considered
delayed
registration.
However,
if
registration
is done
after 42
days, a
letter
of
explanation
stating
the
reason
for late
registration
must be
submitted
for the
Registrar/Registrar
General's
approval.
After
approval
has been
given,
the
birth
will be
registered
and the
birth
certificate
will be
issued.
Such
cases
can only
be
registered
at ICA.
In
addition,
for all
birth
registrations,
please
note the
following:
-
Child's
name
must
be
furnished
at
the
time
of
birth
registration.
-
Ethnic
characters
of
the
child's
name
in
Chinese/Jawi/Tamil
(optional)
can
be
included
in
the
birth
certificate
but
the
accuracy
of
the
ethnic
characters
must
be
ensured
by
the
parents/informants.
-
For
Chinese
children
who
have
been
given
a
name
in
full
Hanyu
Pinyin
version,
the
Chinese
characters
of
his
name
must
be
reflected
in
the
birth
certificate.
Procedure
(If
registering
at
Citizen
Services
Centre)
-
Proceed
to
Counter
1,
3rd
Storey
to
obtain
a
Q-number
and
Birth
Report
form.
-
Complete
the
Birth
Report
form
at
the
form
filling
counter
and
wait
to
be
called.
Registration
officer
will
verify
the
documents
produced
and
print
out
the
birth
certificate.
-
Informant
verifies
particulars
in
the
birth
certificate,
writes
Ethnic
characters
and
signs
on
the
birth
certificate.
-
Informant
waits
for
the
birth
certificate
to
be
laminated
and
issued.
Peak
Period
to Avoid
The
Registry
of
Births
and
Deaths
is
generally
at its
busiest
on
Mondays,
Fridays
and
Saturdays
and on
days
before
and
after
public
holidays.
The peak
hours
are
after 11
am on
weekdays
and
Saturdays.
While
every
effort
will be
made to
attend
to each
application
as
quickly
as
possible,
waiting
times
may be
longer
during
these
periods.
The
public
is
advised
to avoid
coming
to the
Registry
during
these
peak
periods,
if
possible.
Documents
Required
-
Notification
of
Live
Birth
issued
by
the
hospitals;
-
Both
parents'
identity
cards;
-
Original
marriage
certificate;
-
Both
parents'
passports,
entry
permit
and
Disembarkation/Embarkation
card
issued
by
ICA
(for
foreigners);
-
A
letter
of
authorisation
from
the
parents
of
the
child,
if
someone
else
registers
the
birth
on
behalf
of
the
parents.
Fees
S$18 is
charged
by ICA.
Some
hospitals
may
charge
an
administrative
fee for
the
service
provided
on top
of the
S$18.
Please
make
payment
by NETS.
Processing
Time
On the
spot.
Links
Immigration
&
Checkpoints
Authority
(for
Birth
Registration
process)
Step 2: Attain Australian
Citizenship
(by
descent)
and
Passport
People born
outside
Australia
after 26
January
1949 are
eligible
for
citizenship
by
descent,
if:
⢠at
least
one
parent
was an
Australian
citizen
at the
time of
the
personâs
birth;
and
⢠they
are of
good
character,
if aged
18 years
or over
at the
time of
application.
Click
here for
the full
process,
documentation
requirements
and
Application
Form
(118)
from
Australian
Immigration
Once citizenship by
descent
has been
effected,
and
citizenship
certificate
has been
issued,
continue
to the
Australian Department
of
Foreign
Affairs
and
Trade
for
passport
application.
Click
here for
online
portal
for
process,
documentation
requirements
and
application
forms
for
Passport
Applications
Step 3: Attain Dependent's Pass
from
Singapore
Ministry
of
Manpower
Employment
Pass
holders
(P1,
P2
and
Q1)
and
S
Pass
holders
(whose
fixed
monthly salary
is
more
than
$2,500)
may apply for
Dependant's
Passes
(DPs)
for
their:
-
Spouse;
or
-
Unmarried/legally
adopted
children
under
21
years
of
age,
including
new
borns*.
*For
babies born
in
Singapore,
the
parent
has to
report
to the
Immigration
and
Checkpoints
Authority
(ICA)
with
the
letter
issued
by the
hospital
to
obtain a
Social
Visit
Pass.
This
pass is
valid
for 42
days,
during
which,
an
application
for DP
can be
submitted.
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