Births and Deaths Registration Act

This section provides definitions for terms used in the Act: "child by marriage", "register", "Registrar General", and "registrar".

The Attorney General must divide Uganda into births and deaths registration districts and may alter, amalgamate or subdivide those districts by statutory instrument.

The Attorney General must, by notice in the Gazette, appoint a registrar general of births and deaths for Uganda.

The Attorney General must appoint a registrar for each births and deaths registration district by notice in the Gazette; the Attorney General may appoint a deputy registrar by notice in the Gazette.

Every registrar must have an office in their births and deaths registration district at the place the Attorney General may direct.

Anyone who finds a live newborn child exposed, or who is given charge of such a child, must immediately report it to the nearest police station, hospital or chief; the officer in charge or chief must then register particulars of the birth with the local registrar.

The registrar of a births and deaths registration district must register a child's birth if applied for after three months but not later than six months from the date of birth or finding; after six months details must not be registered unless the registrar is satisfied, directed by the Registrar General, and the prescribed fee paid.

Every registrar must keep a births register book in the prescribed form in their office.

The father or mother must register prescribed particulars of a live birth with the local registrar within three months; if both parents are dead or unable, the occupier where the child was born, any person present at the birth, or any person having charge of the child must register; registration by one person relieves the others of the duty.

Persons registering a child's birth must certify the correctness of the birth particulars by signing the register; the registrar must sign and date the register after the particulars are entered.

The father of a child not born in marriage is not required to register the birth, and no one may be entered as the father unless the father consents by signing the register or signing a prescribed consent and sending it to the registrar.

An adult (over 21, or widower/widow/divorced/married person) who wishes to change their name must publish a notice in the Gazette; not less than seven days after publication they may apply to the registrar; the registrar must amend the register upon satisfaction and payment of the prescribed fee and sign and date the amendment.

Parents or a child's guardian may apply, in the prescribed form, to the registrar where the child's birth is registered to change the child's name; the registrar must, upon payment of the prescribed fee, amend the register and sign and date the amendment.

When a registered child changes sex and a medical doctor certifies the change, the local births and deaths registrar must, with the Registrar General's approval and on application by the parent or guardian, alter the child's particulars in the births register.

Every registrar must keep a deaths register book in the prescribed form in their office.

Specified persons must register particulars of a death with the local registrar within one month of the death or finding of the body.

People registering a death must certify the particulars by signing the register at the time of registration; the registrar must sign and date the register after the particulars are entered.

The district registrar must register a death between one month and three months after the death (or finding of the body); after three months particulars must not be registered unless specific conditions are met.

The Registrar General must supply registrars with prescribed registers, records, indexes and other forms, and must keep monthly returns and prepare alphabetical indexes of registered births and deaths.

Every registrar must, within ten days after the last day of each month, forward to the Registrar General a copy of all entries made during the preceding month in the births and deaths register books.

Registers, monthly returns and indexes held by the Registrar General and the registrars of births and deaths registration districts must be open for public inspection during prescribed hours and upon payment of the prescribed fee.

The Registrar General and a district registrar must, on payment of the prescribed fee, provide certified copies of register entries or certified extracts of those entries.

The Registrar General or any registrar, when authorised by the Registrar General, may correct any error in any register, return, index or certificate.

The Attorney General may, on the Registrar General's recommendation, direct that fees under this Act be waived, reduced, or refunded (in whole or in part).

Persons under a duty to register births or deaths must register within the prescribed period and not refuse prescribed particulars; failure is an offence punishable by up to fifty shillings fine or one week imprisonment. Willfully providing false registration information is an offence punishable by up to five hundred shillings fine or three weeks imprisonment.

The Attorney General may make regulations for various procedural matters under this Act, including forms, fees, registration procedures, record-keeping, inspections, certified copies, hours and places of registration.

The registrar of any births and deaths registration district may register a birth or death that occurred before this Act if satisfied of the particulars and if registration was not previously compulsory under the former Act.

A person giving particulars under section 27 is not required to pay any fee for late registration.

Registers and records of births and deaths that were kept by local administrations at gombolola headquarters (or equivalents) prior to commencement of the Act are deemed to be registers kept under the Act and shall be kept in the custody of the registrars of the births and deaths registration districts in which those gombolola headquarters (or equivalents) are situate.