Dear Editor,
As a nation-builder, I know the importance of having a birth certificate — aside from just merely having it as proof that you were born on a particular date, to parents John Tom and Jane Doe. However, the Registrar General's Department (RGD) has made it difficult for many — especially those who are without birth certificates — to acquire one.
One, if you are not a newborn, and you are without a birth certificate, a fee of $250 is required to conduct a search — which is understandable. However, the part which is hard to swallow is the additional fee of $12,000 to conduct a form search in the event that the first search was futile. It is also important to note, too, that this fee is generated based on the parish in which you live. Hence, it can be more or less.
After paying this $12,000, if no record is located for the person for whom the search was conducted, he or she will be required to pay another $8,000 or $12,000 for late registration. While I can agree that parents need to register their children on time and apply for their birth certificates, I still believe that the RGD can do better, in terms of their fees, to help those who have never been registered to acquire birth certificates.
I am not saying that they should conduct these searches for free, but when you think about the amount an individual has to pay to be registered late, it's as if the individual is paying for the negligence of his/her parents, instead of for the process itself. Wouldn't it be far easier if the RGD had something put in place to locate and retrieve an individual's records at a lower cost, instead of allowing them to pay these exorbitant fees to have someone manually search an archive if the record is present, which in many cases comes up empty-handed as there was no registration done.
I strongly believe it is about time that the RGD be revamped, as there are many individuals without birth certificates, not because they don't care, but simply because they cannot afford to pay these exorbitant fees.
Abiegay Castle
Lluidas Vale, St Catherine
brownabie@yahoo.com
High RGD fees hurting Jamaicans
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As a nation-builder, I know the importance of having a birth certificate — aside from just merely having it as proof that you were born on a particular date, to parents John Tom and Jane Doe. However, the Registrar General's Department (RGD) has made it difficult for many — especially those who are without birth certificates — to acquire one.
One, if you are not a newborn, and you are without a birth certificate, a fee of $250 is required to conduct a search — which is understandable. However, the part which is hard to swallow is the additional fee of $12,000 to conduct a form search in the event that the first search was futile. It is also important to note, too, that this fee is generated based on the parish in which you live. Hence, it can be more or less.
After paying this $12,000, if no record is located for the person for whom the search was conducted, he or she will be required to pay another $8,000 or $12,000 for late registration. While I can agree that parents need to register their children on time and apply for their birth certificates, I still believe that the RGD can do better, in terms of their fees, to help those who have never been registered to acquire birth certificates.
I am not saying that they should conduct these searches for free, but when you think about the amount an individual has to pay to be registered late, it's as if the individual is paying for the negligence of his/her parents, instead of for the process itself. Wouldn't it be far easier if the RGD had something put in place to locate and retrieve an individual's records at a lower cost, instead of allowing them to pay these exorbitant fees to have someone manually search an archive if the record is present, which in many cases comes up empty-handed as there was no registration done.
I strongly believe it is about time that the RGD be revamped, as there are many individuals without birth certificates, not because they don't care, but simply because they cannot afford to pay these exorbitant fees.
Abiegay Castle
Lluidas Vale, St Catherine
brownabie@yahoo.com
High RGD fees hurting Jamaicans
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