Huduma Kenya Explains ID Registration Rules For Kenyans Without Birth Certificates

If you’ve been hoping to get a national ID card without first sorting out your birth certificate, Huduma Kenya has some news for you: it’s no longer possible.

The agency addressed the matter after a Kenyan reached out asking whether ID registration could proceed without a birth certificate on hand. The answer was a firm no.

Huduma Kenya explained that anyone in this situation needs to sort out their birth certificate first, then come back for the ID.

“Please apply for a birth certificate first through the Civil Registrar’s Office or a Huduma Centre in the county of birth before applying for an identity card,” the agency said.

This marks a shift from how things used to work. In the past, Kenyans without a birth certificate still had a path to an ID, they could submit school records, religious documents, and a signed affidavit instead. It wasn’t exactly simple, though. Those applications typically faced extra scrutiny, going through a longer, more detailed vetting process before approval.

That workaround is now off the table. Huduma Kenya has done away with it, insisting that a birth certificate has to come first, full stop.

In practice, this means anyone without one will need to go through what’s called a late birth certificate application, a process with noticeably more requirements than what a newborn’s parents would deal with.

For a late application, applicants need to provide secondary evidence of identity and birth, such as a primary or secondary school leaving certificate, a clinic card, or a baptismal card.

On the cost side, the State Department for Immigration and Citizenship Services has set the late application fee at Ksh500, with a further Ksh200 charged for the certificate’s issuance.

Steps to Apply for a Late Birth Certificate

1. Log into your eCitizen account and head to the Civil Registration Services section.
2. Select the Late Birth Certificate application option.
3. Enter your personal and family information as required.
4. Scan and upload your supporting documents.
5. Pay the applicable late registration fee.
6. Print out the completed application form along with the payment invoice.
7. Take the printed documents, together with your original supporting papers, to your nearest Huduma Centre or sub-county Civil Registration Office for verification.

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