Birth Certificates Can Be Printed on Any Paper, Attorney General Says

Public complaints about the appearance of birth certificates following changes at the Vital Statistics Unit have prompted the Attorney General to explain why the documents no longer look the way Belizeans are used to.

Attorney General Anthony Sylvestre said the shift is part of a deliberate move to widen access to the service, allowing people to receive their birth certificate electronically and print it themselves without having to visit an office.

Under the old system, birth certificates were printed on pre-prepared paper with a serial number and a recognisable official appearance. Sylvestre said the government considered maintaining that format alongside the new electronic option but decided against it, out of concern that having two visually different versions of the same document in circulation could cause problems for agencies that routinely verify them, including the Social Security Board and the Immigration Department.

“You won’t necessarily have to come into the office or have your birth paper printed on a ‘pretty paper’. Having accessed the service and received your e-copy, you could print it on any paper,” he said.

He said nothing prevents a person from printing their electronic birth certificate on higher-quality or more distinctive paper if they prefer, but that the government will no longer be supplying it.