Issuance of Birth and Marriage Certificate

Good Afternoon!

Gusto ko lang pong linawin kung puwede po pang mag issue ang NSO ng Authenticated Birth Cert/ Marriage Certificate kung walang Autorization Letter na manggagaling sa nag mamay ari ng dokumento? Ano po ba ang maaari kong gawin kung sakaling ganito ang naging sitwasyon ko.

Thank you and more power

Issuance of Birth Certificate is subject to the confidentiality clause of Child and Youth Welfare Code (P.D. 603). Under Section 7 of P.D. 603, the record of a person’s birth shall be released only upon the request of any of the following:

“(1) The person himself, or any person authorized by him;
(2) His spouse, his parent or parents, his direct descendants, or the guardian or institution legally in-charge of him if he is a minor;

(3) The court or proper public official whenever absolutely necessary in administrative, judicial or other official proceedings to determine the identity of the child's parents or other circumstances surrounding his birth; and

(4) In case of the person's death, the nearest of kin.”

Under the law, violation of Section 7 is a criminal offense. The last paragraph provides:

“Any person violating the prohibition shall suffer the penalty of imprisonment of at least two months or a fine in an amount not exceeding five hundred pesos, or both, in the discretion of the court.”

Therefore, you have the legal remedy to file a criminal case against the person/s responsible for the unauthorized release of the Birth Certificate.

With respect to Marriage Certificate, I believe that the NSO also considers the same as confidential so much so that it does not entertain requests for authenticated copies thereof unless the request comes from one of the spouses or his or her authorized representatives. For purposes of determining if a person is already married, the NSO does provide for a Certification stating that their records indicate that a certain person is married to another on such date.

Filing administrative case against the NSO officer/employee responsible for the unauthorized release is also an option.

Good morning po atty., sa ganitong kaso po, ang NSO officer lang po ba na nagrelease o nag-issue ng birth certificate ang pwede ireklamo? Yun pong unauthorized na tao na angreceive o nagrequest nun birth certificate, pwede din po ba un kasuhan ng article 7 ng p.d. 603?

to my mind, a requester cannot be penalized because the act punished is the issuance.