PICA Corner - Establishing Jamaican citizenship in cases of doubt

 

Q: I am a Jamaican living in the United Kingdom (UK) and have since been granted permanent residency status in that country. I am trying to procure a copy of my birth certificate, however, the Registrar General's Department (RGD) has indicated that I was never registered.

An application for late registration was submitted, but the RGD has advised that they do not have sufficient information for registration and has suggested instead that I contact PICA to be naturalised. Is that possible, having regard to the fact that I do not reside there and am not the holder of a British or Jamaican passport? My initial trip to the UK was as a stowaway.

A: Persons who are born in Jamaica but whose birth was never recorded will require a document that will identify them as citizens of Jamaica.

Section 10 of the Jamaican Nationality Act makes provision for persons whose citizenship of Jamaica, whether on a question of fact or law, is in doubt. In such an instance, you would be able to make an application for a Certificate of Citizenship In Case of Doubt.

Your first step in obtaining this certification would be to obtain a written referral from the RGD. You would then take the referral letter to the Citizenship Unit at PICA in order to begin your application. However, as you are living in the UK, you would instead visit the Jamaican Consulate office in Britain and initiate the process from there.

To apply for Citizenship of Jamaica in Case of Doubt, please note the following steps:

1. Write a letter of request to the minister of national security for a document that will identify you as a Jamaican and the reason for the request. Include as much useful information as possible regarding your birth and background. For example, please state:

a) The date and place of your birth;

b) Your parents' names;

c)The number of children born to your parents;

d) Whether you were baptised during infancy;

e) The schools you attended;

f) Your present occupation.

2. The next step in the process is to obtain three statutory declarations. The statutory declaration forms are obtainable at PICA or on its website at www.pica.gov.jm. The statutory declarations forms should be completed by three different persons, preferably relatives, who are at least seven years older than the applicant. Paragraph seven of the form should include the following information:

a) How many children were born to the applicant's (your) parents?

b) Of the number of children, what position does the applicant take?

c) Was the applicant baptised during infancy? If this is the case but the record is unavailable, state why.

d) Did the applicant attend school? Where? If the record of admission is unavailable, state why.

3. Having completed steps one and two, your application should be submitted to the Jamaican High Commission in the UK and must be accompanied by the following:

a) Evidence that unsuccessful efforts were made to secure a birth certificate from the RGD;

b) Two passport-size photographs of the applicant, certified by a justice of the peace or notary public;

c) School record;

d) Baptismal record, where possible

e) Birth certificate of the applicant's two eldest children.

The fee for the certificate of citizenship is J$5,000 or £60 and is payable when the application is submitted. It is important to note that this is not a birth certificate, but a document to certify that you are a Jamaican.

For further information, visit the website of the Passport, Immigration & Citizenship Agency at www.pica.gov.jm or email queries to: info@pica.gov.jm.