Now, orphans don’t need to provide birth certificate for passport

The difficulty in these children getting a passport had emerged as a major constraint for foreigners and Non Resident Indians (NRIs) who wished to adopt them.

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In 2011, Sandeep Kumble, who was brought up in an orphanage in Andheri, Mumbai, was denied a passport due to the lack of a birth certificate. Even though Kumble provided an affidavit attesting his birth date and birthplace and a letter from the orphanage stating he had been living there for nine years, the Passport Issuing Authority (PIA) had refused to issue him a passport citing the circular that made birth certificates compulsory.

In view of requests received by the Ministry of External Affairs for relaxing the statutory condition of production of birth certificate for passport in respect of such children the circular issued directs that the Passport Issuing Authorities (PIAs) while processing the case of orphan/abandoned children born on or after 26/0111989, may consider other documents produced by such an applicant as proof of date of birth to process their passport application.

These documents include Matriculation Certificate issued by duly recognized educational institution along with the bonafide certificate duly sworn by the Head of the Orphanage/Childcare Home (in case of minor) or by applicant himself (in case of major) before the First Class Judicial Magistrate/Executive Magistrate categorically stating his/her date of birth/place of birth; or Declaratory Court order issued by the court of competent jurisdiction recording the date of birth/place of birth of such an applicant in the order.

The exemption only stand for orphans and abandoned children. For others born after January 1989 it remains mandatory to provide a birth certificate issued by the Municipal Authority or the Registrar of Births & Deaths as proof of date of birth along with the passport application form.