Obligation to declare a newborn

If the parents are not married to one another, they must both sign the Declaration of Birth to establish maternal and paternal parentage.

To register your child's birth, you can take the Declaration of Birth to the Directeur de l’état civil (Registrar of Civil Status) yourself. The Attestation of Birth will then be sent to the Registrar directly by the physician.

However, we recommend you leave the Declaration of Birth with the hospital staff, who will send it along with the Attestation of Birth to the Directeur de l’état civil within the deadline prescribed by law.

Once the declaration is entered in the register of civil status, the Directeur de l’état civil will confirm the registration in writing. Upon request and after payment of the applicable fees , you can obtain your child’s birth certificate or a copy of the act of birth. You can obtain, free of charge, a Request for a certificate form from the offices of the Directeur de l’état civil in Montréal or Québec City, from any caisse populaire (credit union), Local community services centres (CLSC), courthouse or Services Québec office.

Once the child is entered in the register of civil status by the prescribed deadline and the Régie de l'assurance maladie or RAMQ (health insurance board) has verified the child's eligibility, the parents will automatically receive the child's Health Insurance Card.

Useful link

• Directeur de l’état civil
  Registering a birth and civil status acts