When you are a child, your parents or guardians take care of all your records, including the birth certificate. However, as soon as you are of adult age, this becomes your responsibility.
Sometimes records are lost permanently, which could prove to be a big problem in your everyday life. In the case of the birth certificate, if a person has lost or misplaced it irrevocably or otherwise doesn't have a birth certificate, they can have someone else furnish an Affidavit of Birth testifying to their birth details.
On the Affidavit of Birth, the affiant swears to have been born at a time and place as recorded. The affiant is usually one of the living parents, but any older relative who was of this earth at the time of the birth can attest to the birth details.
If not a relative, a medical staff member, such as a doctor or nurse, can also serve as the affiant.
Depending on your state, an Affidavit of Birth may also be known as:
By all accounts, an Affidavit of Birth can serve several self-same purposes as the birth certificate. You can use an Affidavit of Birth instead of your birth certificate whenever needed, though that is getting rarer and rarer today. You may need a birth certificate in certain jurisdictions to apply for a marriage license, but anything bearing your DOB should work, including your driver's license and passport.
Create your own documents by answering our easy-to-understand questionnaires to get exactly what you need out of your Affidavit of Birth.
Laws vary by location. Each document on 360 Legal Forms is customized for your state.
All you have to do is fill out a simple questionnaire, print, and sign. No printer? No worries. You and other parties can even sign online.
Are you wondering which details should you include in the Affidavit of Birth?
Let 360 Legal Forms help with our extensive library of attorney-vetted legal forms. The process is fast and easy. All you have to do is fill out our easy-to-understand questionnaire. Once complete, simply download your form as a PDF or Word document from your secure online account.
To create your document, please provide:
Before signing, the affiant should review and confirm the accuracy of the document. For the Affidavit of Birth to be valid, the affiant must sign it in front of a notary public.
After the Affidavit of Birth is notarized, you can use it to apply for a new birth certificate. If needed, you can also use it to apply for school admission, a marriage license, your passport, or driver's license.
The birth certificate is issued, often by a hospital, at the moment of (or very shortly after) the live birth of a human baby. The birth certificate is a vital record that you will want to hold on to. It holds more authority than any Affidavit of Birth. In the United States, someone who does not possess a birth certificate can use an Affidavit of Birth to apply for a new one.
The DS-11 form is used to apply for a United States Passport. The same form is used for the first passport and up, including renewals and replacements for loss or destruction. The United States Department of State is in charge of all passport matters (where the DS comes from) and Form DS-11 can be found on its official website. One of the required documents is the birth certificate, for which a notarized Affidavit of Birth is an acceptable substitute.
The delayed birth certificate describes any birth certificate that took more than a year to create post-birth. Not all counties adopted instantaneous birth records at the same time, so some older people might have a so-called delayed birth certificate, which works just as well as any birth certificate.
You will want to get it corrected as it could result in a perjury charge punishable by up to a good stretch of time behind bars. For an Affidavit of Birth, the affiant must be certain of the sworn facts regarding the applicant's birth. If the details are incorrect for any reason, errors or no errors, you can just not use the affidavit and no one will get in trouble. Make another one that is accurate to the last detail.
Living without a birth certificate can be complicated. If you were born in the United States, you should be able to research the data in your county of birth. However, someone born in a country with subpar recordkeeping may have problems getting an Affidavit of Birth, let alone a birth certificate. One cannot make one’s own Affidavit of Birth so if that is the case, it is best to address the issue with the local authority where you believe you were born.
Our exhaustive library of documents covers your personal, business, and real estate needs with all of your DIY legal forms.
Create professional documents for thousands of purposes.
Make unlimited documents and revisions. Sign online in seconds.
Our documents are vetted by lawyers and are applicable to all 50 states.
