Spotted a mistake in your baby's birth certificate? 4 steps to correct this

Are there mistakes on your birth certificate or your baby's birth certificate? Here's how to change name in birth certificate Philippines. 

The birth certificate’s importance is paramount among government-issued documents. It's not only used for verifying and authenticating your identity.

Also, it is also used in all important transactions and processes you’ll make such as enrolling in school, applying for work, passport, and health care services.

But there are circumstances where some factors affect the process of filling up the birth certificate and cause some errors. Is your baby’s name spelled incorrectly?

Does their gender indicate female when they are male or vice versa? Is their first name missing and instead state “baby boy” or “baby girl”? Do you wonder how to change the name on PSA birth certificate?

We wrote this article to help you know all the information and steps on what to do if you experience any errors in your or your baby’s birth certificate.

How to change name in birth certificate Philippines: Qualified applicant in correcting mistakes or errors in the Birth Certificate

Correcting any errors on the Birth Certificates is, fortunately, easier now compared to before with the help of the recent amendments done.

The previous solutions to the errors require a court order. But now, processing and correcting the mistakes doesn’t need any court proceedings.

You should know that there are two types of correction in the Birth Certificate.

Correction of name in the birth certificate

1. Administrative correction

Here, real humans process the birth records resulting in clerical and typographical errors in the creation of birth certificates. The records are written and transcribed by people and examples of errors are the spelling of the name, date of birth, and gender.

These clerical or typographical errors can be fixed administratively where you don’t need to proceed to the court to correct them. An example of this is how people change names on PSA birth certificates.

Remember, all you need to do is file a petition to the local civil registrar's office. And they will evaluate and then process it. The four types of correction in the administrative correction are:

• First name correction

The first name your baby uses is different from what is on his/her birth certificate or the indicated first name is written as “Baby Boy” or “Baby Girl” (for children born in 1993 onwards).

• Wrong date of birth or gender

The date of birth (either day or month) is wrong or the wrong box for the gender is checked.

• Clerical error

1. Wrong spelling of name either in first name, middle name, or last name.
2. Blurred name
3. Your baby’s middle name is incorrect while your last name is correct and vice versa. Your last name is wrong but your baby’s middle name is incorrect.
4. The middle initial is the indicated last name
5. Middle name and last name got switched the wrong box for the gender is checked

• Supplemental details

Here, some information is not entered such as:

1. First name, second name, or last name
2. The indicated first name is written as “Baby Boy” or “Baby Girl” (for children born in 1993 onwards).
3. Your baby has no middle name (if they are acknowledged by their father)
4. They are missing suffixes on their name such as “Jr.”
5. The wrong box for the gender is checked or both are checked

Another encoding mistake that can happen is the interchanging letters in your baby’s name or missing syllables in the surname. Petition in this type of correction needed to be passed to the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of your province where your local civil registrar is at.

2. Judicial correction of name in the birth certificate

The court is involved when correcting the mistake. The cases involved in the judicial correction are:

1. Correcting and changing either or both the parent's name
2. Citizenship or nationality
3. Correcting the year of birth
4. Changing the name
5. Changing your child’s legitimacy when the parents got married or divorced.
6. The wrong middle name of the child and mother

Correction of a middle name in birth certificate in the Philippines

1. Middle names of the child and the mother on the birth certificate are wrong

A court petition must be submitted in order to modify the child's middle name and the mother's surname name on the birth certificate. Unless the error has previously been classified as clerical and can be handled administratively by R.A. 9048.

Who shall file:

• Whoever owns the record
• Any interested party may submit a verified petition for the revocation or rectification of any act, event, order, or decree pertaining to the civil status of individuals that have been registered in the civil register (Section 1, Rule 108 Rules of Court)

Where to file:

• Regional Trial Court ​​where the relevant civil registry is housed.

Requirements: 

• Any document(s) that the lawyer deems appropriate to provide throughout the petition to disclose the child's actual middle name

2. Different from the middle name entered in the birth certificate

On the following conditions:

• On the birth certificate, the mother's last name is listed correctly, but the child's middle name is erroneous.
• The child's middle name is correct, but the birth certificate's last name for the mother is not.
• A request for the correction of a clerical error in accordance with R.A. Form 9048 must be submitted in order to modify the middle name.

Who shall file:

• The owner of the document or any authorized representative
• PSA
• Owner’s spouse
• A separate person who has been legitimately authorized by the document's owner or by the law
• If the owner of the record is a minor or incapable of doing so, his spouse, any of his children, parents, siblings, grandparents, guardians, or other legally capable people may do it on his or her behalf.

Where to file:

• Civil registry office 
  • The person who wants to file a petition may do so with the civil registration office where that person is currently residing if moving to another area of the Philippines would make it impractical for that person to attend in person before the civil registrar of the place of birth.
• Philippine Consulate Office

Requirements: 

• For R.A. 9048
  • A certified electronic copy of the birth certificate containing the error;
  • Baptismal certificate, voters affidavit, employment record, GSIS/SSS record, medical record, business record, drivers' license, insurance, land titles, certificate of land transfer, bank passbook, NBI/police clearance, and civil registry records of ascendants are just a few examples of the private or public documents on which the correction shall be based.
  • Notice/Posting Certificate;
  • Payment of a filing fee of one thousand pesos (P1,000.00). A fee of $50.00 or its equivalent in local currency must be paid for petitions submitted abroad;
  • Additional documentation that the relevant civil registrar may demand

3. Interchanged middle and last name

According to R.A. 9048, a petition for clerical error repair must be submitted in order to correct the transposed middle and last name. 

Who shall file:

• The owner of the document or any authorized representative
• PSA
• Owner’s spouse
• A separate person who has been legitimately authorized by the document's owner or by the law
• If the owner of the record is a minor or incapable of doing so, his spouse, any of his children, parents, siblings, grandparents, guardians, or other legally capable people may do it on his or her behalf.

Where to file:

• Civil registry office 
  • The person who wants to file a petition may do so with the civil registration office where that person is currently residing if moving to another area of the Philippines would make it impractical for that person to attend in person before the civil registrar of the place of birth.
• Philippine Consulate Office

Requirements: 

• For R.A. 9048
• A certified electronic copy of the birth certificate containing the error;
• Baptismal certificate, voters affidavit, employment record, GSIS/SSS record, medical record, business record, drivers' license, insurance, land titles, certificate of land transfer, bank passbook, NBI/police clearance, and civil registry records of ascendants are just a few examples of the private or public documents on which the correction shall be based.
• Notice/Posting Certificate;
• Payment of a filing fee of one thousand pesos (P1,000.00). A fee of $50.00 or its equivalent in local currency must be paid for petitions submitted abroad;
• Additional documentation that the relevant civil registrar may demand

READ MORE: 

Step-by-step guide to getting a PSA birth certificate

How to get baptismal certificate in the Philippines

Late registration of birth certificate: 4 steps you need to follow

4. When the middle initial is entered in the birth certificate instead of the full middle name

A request for the clerical error to be corrected in accordance with R.A. 9048 must be filed in order to modify the entry.

Who shall file:

• The owner of the document or any authorized representative
• PSA
• Owner’s spouse
• A separate person who has been legitimately authorized by the document's owner or by the law
• If the owner of the record is a minor or incapable of doing so, his spouse, any of his children, parents, siblings, grandparents, guardians, or other legally capable people may do it on his or her behalf.

Where to file:

• Civil registry office 
  • The person who wants to file a petition may do so with the civil registration office where that person is currently residing, if moving to another area of the Philippines would make it impractical for that person to attend in person before the civil registrar of the place of birth.
• Philippine Consulate Office

Requirements: 

• For R.A. 9048
  • Certified electronic copy of the birth certificate containing the error;
  • Baptismal certificate, voters affidavit, employment record, GSIS/SSS record, medical record, business record, drivers' license, insurance, land titles, certificate of land transfer, bank passbook, NBI/police clearance, and civil registry records of ascendants are just a few examples of the private or public documents on which the correction shall be based.
  • Notice/Posting Certificate;
  • Payment of a filing fee of one thousand pesos (P1,000.00). A fee of $50.00 or its equivalent in local currency must be paid for petitions submitted abroad;
  • Additional documentation that the relevant civil registrar may demand

5. Compound middle names like Dela Cruz, Quintos Deles, Villa Roman

The middle initial should be the first letter of the middle name. "D"represents Dela Cruz as the middle initial. Quintos Deles represents "Q." V stands for Villa Roman.

Requirements for correction of Birth Certificate

Before you go to your local civil registry office, in order to smoothen the process, you should prepare the following requirements, such as:

I. For the first name correction you need:

• A notarized petition for change of name in birth certificate issued by your local civil registrar office
• PSA Birth Certificate (that has the mistake)
• Any two (2) valid IDs or documents such as baptismal certificate, voter’s ID, medical certificate, school record, company ID, etc.
• Fee depends on your local civil registrar office.
  • At least 1200 pesos.
  • Excluding the notarized fee.

II. For the wrong date of birth or gender you need:

• A notarized petition to correct gender or date of birth issued by your local civil registrar office
• PSA Birth Certificate (that has the mistake)
• Baptismal certificate issued by church
• Certificate of Employment or Affidavit of Non-Employment
• Medical record from the place(hospital, etc.) the applicant is born
• Any two (2) valid IDs or document
• Medical certification authenticating the true gender of applicant

• Fee depends on your local civil registrar office.
  • At least 1200 pesos.
  • Excluding the notarized fee.

III. For the correction of clerical error you need:

• PSA Birth Certificate (that has the mistake)
• Any two valid IDs or document
• Fee depends on your local civil registrar office.
  • At least 1000 pesos.
  • Excluding the notarized fee.
• Your local civil registrar office might request other documents

IV. For the correction supplemental details you need:

• PSA Birth Certificate (that has the mistake)
• Any two valid IDs or document
• Affidavit specifying the missing detail and reason why it is missing and not specified
• Fee depends on your local civil registrar office. It usually costs at least PHP 1000 excluding the notarized fee and other documents needed.
• Your local civil registrar office might request other documents

V. For the judicial correction you need:

Finally, you'll need to bring the documents that support your petition authenticating and verifying your statement in the evaluation at Regional Trial Court (RTC).

The fee depends on court fees that include other documents and fees. 

How to change name in birth certificate Philippines: Steps in correcting birth certification correction Philippines

1. Compiling of requirements

First, Make sure that all requirements are ready and complete. Compiling and organizing all the needed documents at once lessens the time you consume and speeds up your process. Refer to the list of requirements we listed above for easier and faster work.

2. Proceed to your local civil registry office

Secondly, after compiling and preparing the required documents, go to your local civil registry office where the applicant (which is your baby) is born. This office is usually near or located at a municipal hall or the city. Please be reminded that your child must be present on the day of the filing.

The nearest civil registry office is where you should file your petition if you have already moved to a different place. Kindly note that this process is more costly than when you file your petition to your local civil registry office where your child is born.

If your family resides in a foreign country, you must file your petition at the Philippine Embassy or Consulate where your child’s birth was reported.

3. Submit the required documents

Thirdly, after heading to the local civil registry office, submit all the required documents (which are appropriate to your case) along with the notarized petition you filed.

Pay all the fees and wait for the indicated date on your receipt to return and claim the approved petition.

You can send it back to your local civil registrar's office where they will certify and forward it to the PSA office to issue the annotated birth certificate.

If it is a clerical correction, they will notify you that your certificate of finality is ready. Next is to mail this certificate along with other documents specified by your local registrar office. Send this back to the Office of the Civil Registrar General in Manila.

If your child’s case is under judicial correction, complete all the required documents and hire a lawyer that will draft their petition. File the petition and pass the documents needed to the Regional Trial Court. 

4. Claim the amended document

Finally, you can claim a changed and correct birth certificate. The waiting period depends on what type of correction your case has. It can take up to a month or as long as a year and a half. 

Additional information from Margaux Dolores