STREAMLINING BIRTH AND DEATH REGISTRATION PROCESSES; DIGITAL CERTIFICATES TO REPLACE PHYSICAL CERTIFICATES FROM 29 MAY 2022

From 29 May 2022, the birth and death registration processes will be made simpler, and digital birth and death certificates will be issued in place of physical certificates. This is part of the Government’s ongoing effort to streamline and digitalise services to serve citizens better. 

Registration of births

2. The LifeSG application (previously known as “Moments of Life”) was launched in June 2018 as a one-stop, integrated platform for parents to register their child’s birth and apply for the relevant Government programmes and schemes (e.g. Baby Bonus).¹ Since then, 80% of all eligible births in Singapore have been registered digitally and LifeSG has been downloaded more than 400,000 times. Parents shared feedback that the LifeSG application has simplified the birth registration process, which has given them more time to care for and bond with their newborns. 

3. With the introduction of digital birth certificates from 29 May 2022 onwards, parents will no longer need to make a trip to the hospital or the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) Building to collect a physical birth certificate.  Parents will have to register the birth of their newborns via LifeSG. Following the registration on LifeSG, parents will be notified to download the digital birth certificate of their child via an ICA e-Service known as the “electronic Retrieval of Certificates and Instant Verification”, which can be accessed on the ICA website (www.ica.gov.sg) or via MyICA Mobile.² With this, in-person registration services for birth will cease at the hospitals and the ICA Building. Please refer to Annex A for more information on the new birth registration process, and Annex B for more information on LifeSG.

Registration of deaths

4. The Government is also streamlining the death registration process to ease the administrative burden of post-death matters on bereaved family members. 

5. Currently, a medical practitioner will issue a Certificate of the Cause of Death (CCOD) bearing the death particulars of the deceased to the next-of-kin (NOK).³ The NOK will have to register the death of the deceased at either the public hospitals, Neighbourhood Police Posts/Centres (NPPs/NPCs) or the ICA Building by producing the CCOD and the deceased’s identity documents. A physical death certificate will then be issued upon completion of the registration, which the NOK can use to proceed with post-death matters.

6. From 29 May 2022, there will no longer be a need for the deceased’s NOK to register the death. After the death is certified by a registered medical practitioner, an NOK will be able to receive a digital death certificate from the My Legacy portal (https://mylegacy.life.gov.sg/).⁴ We hope this will give the bereaved family more time to focus on other matters in their moment of grief. Please refer to Annex C for more information on the new death registration process, and Annex D for more information on My Legacy portal. 

Going digital to serve citizens better

7. The digitalisation of the birth and death registration processes is part of the Government’s continuous efforts to integrate and improve the delivery of services. Parents of newborns and NOK of the deceased will be able to conveniently download and store the digital certificates on their personal mobile devices and laptops. 

8. Parents who are unsure how to register their child’s birth through LifeSG may approach hospital staff. If further assistance is required, they may contact ICA. NOK may approach staff at hospitals (if their loved one passed on in the hospital), general practitioners, nursing homes and hospices for assistance on how to download the digital death certificate. 

9. We understand that there will be citizens who are unable to go online and may not have someone to assist them with the new processes. These citizens can call a 24-hour hotline at 6589 8707, which is a temporary dedicated hotline to assist citizens with their queries relating to the new birth and death registration processes. They may also visit the ICA Building and the network of ServiceSG Centres located across Singapore for assistance.  Please refer to Annex E for more details.

Ensuring digital authenticity and preventing fraud

10. The digital certificates are official and legal documents issued by ICA. Data protection and privacy measures are also in place to prevent data loss or theft, unauthorised access, as well as undue disclosure. For example, parents who are Singpass users and who wish to retrieve their child’s digital birth certificate will be required to log in using Singpass, which requires two-factor authentication (2FA). All information on LifeSG, My Legacy and ICA’s systems will be stored and secured in the government database.

11. Digitising the certificates also allows ICA to incorporate an additional means to verify their authenticity. Government agencies and private entities, such as industry associations and financial institutions, can use QR codes included on all digital certificates to verify their authenticity. The QR code will be linked to an ICA system, where details on the digital certificate can be verified against ICA’s database. Any person caught giving false information can be investigated and charged under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act or the Penal Code.

12. ICA’s Deputy Commissioner (Policy and Transformation), Cora Chen, said: “The digitalisation of the birth and death registration processes, and issuance of digital certificates will provide greater convenience for parents of newborns, and reduce administrative hassle for NOK of the deceased so that they may focus on other immediate tasks on hand, such as funeral arrangements. These parents and NOK can transact with us on-the-go and save a trip to ICA or the registration centre. This initiative will bring us another step closer to ICA’s vision of Services Centre Next Generation (SCNG), where online transactions and digital documents will become the norm. In anticipation of the growing number of digital documents, there are also plans to launch a secure one-stop digital document repository for our citizens to access their official documents with ease.”

13. With the digitalisation of the registration processes, ICA will no longer issue physical birth and death certificates from 29 May 2022.⁵ Brochures, posters, and videos in four official languages will be put up at key touchpoints including hospitals, nursing homes and hospices to familiarise the public with the new processes. 

[1] New parents can access the LifeSG birth registration service, which enables them to also apply for Baby Bonus, create a Child Development Account, and sign up for a child library card.

[2] MyICA Mobile is a mobile application that provides a one-stop platform for transactions with ICA. It is available for download on the App Store or Google Play.

[3] Next-of-kin (NOK) refers to a spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, aunt, uncle, nephew, niece, step-child, step- or half-sibling.

[4] My Legacy offers informational guides on end-of-life planning and support, as well as for managing post-death matters (e.g., arranging for funeral services).

[5] Physical certificates issued before 29 May 2022 remain valid.

IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
SMART NATION AND DIGITAL GOVERNMENT GROUP
PUBLIC SERVICE DIVISION
MINISTRY OF HEALTH