Applying for government-issued ID or processing documents often require an applicant to secure essential requirements such as the birth certificate. However, a problem with your birth certificate can lengthen the process and may even deter you from having a smooth and hassle-free transaction. If you do not have an idea how to go about correcting errors, you will surely find the process daunting. One of the common problems that you may encounter is a missing first name on your birth certificate. In this case, you need to file a supplemental report to supply the missing entry.
Aside from the owner of the record, the following individuals are also allowed to file:
• Owner’s spouse
• Children
• Brothers
• Parents
• Sisters
• Grandparents
• Guardian
• Other person duly authorized by law or by the owner of the document sought to be corrected;
• In the event that the owner of the record is a minor or mentally or physically incapacitated, the spouse, or any of his parents, children, brothers; sisters; grandparents, guardians or duly authorized by law must file a petition.
The supplemental report shall be filed with the local civil registry office of the municipality or city where the birth is registered if born in the Philippines. If born abroad, the supplemental report shall be filed with the Philippine Consulate where the birth was report. However, if the person born abroad is already in the Philippines, the supporting documents required for filing a supplemental report must be coursed through the Department of Foreign Affairs, Office of Consular Affairs.
The missing entry will be supplied through an affidavit indicating the entry missed in the registration and the reasons there was a failure in supplying the required entry. It may also be necessary to supply any supporting documents that will show the first name of the child.
If the first name is misspelled in the birth certificate, it should be corrected by filing a petition to correct the clerical error under the provisions of Republic Act 9048. Filing a petition for wrongly spelled first name is almost the same as the process of supplying the missing first name except that the applicant must secure some supporting documents such as the certified machine copy of the birth record which contains the entry to be corrected, certificate of posting, not less than two private or public documents, filing fee and other documents which the civil registrar may require you to supply. You can also visit the official website of Philippine Statistics Authority for additional solutions to your problems with your birth certificate.
