A birth certificate is needed for almost everything: a passport, school admission, national exams, SHA and insurance, and later a national ID or Maisha Card. Births are registered by the Civil Registration Services.

Registering the birth

  • In hospital, the hospital records the birth and notifies the civil registration office. You are given a birth notification.
  • At home, the birth should be reported to the local civil registration office or assistant chief.

Registration within six months of birth is the normal route and is simplest.

Applying for the certificate

  1. Log in to eCitizen and open Civil Registration Services.
  2. Choose to apply for a birth certificate.
  3. Enter the birth notification number and the parents’ details, and upload the documents requested (such as the notification and parents’ IDs).
  4. Pay the fee.
  5. Collect the certificate from the registration office or Huduma Centre you chose, when you get the SMS.

Late registration

If a birth was not registered within six months, it can still be registered, with more paperwork - for example a clinic card, baptism card, school records, and affidavits. Late registration takes longer, so do it before the child needs a passport or school place.

Lost or damaged certificates

Apply for a replacement (certified copy) on eCitizen, with the details from the original if you have them. A police abstract may be asked for if it was lost. See Reporting a crime and lost documents.

Corrections and adding a father’s name

Spelling mistakes and wrong details can be corrected through Civil Registration, with supporting documents. Adding a father’s name after registration has its own process and needs his consent or a court order.

Children of foreign parents

Children born in Kenya to foreign parents also get a Kenyan birth certificate, which records the birth. Their citizenship follows their parents’ nationality laws, so register the birth with your embassy too. See Giving birth in Nairobi.

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