If you are not already in possession of your child’s Unabridged Birth Certificate, and still need it, then you can apply at your preferred Department of Home Affairs branch or a South African embassy, mission, or consulate.

The documents you will need include:

• The Identity Documents of the parents and the child’s ID number
• All documents need to be original or certified copies
• Completed BI-24 Form, (filled in with black ink only) to register child’s birth

If your intended travel date is within this period, inform the Department of Home Affairs of this, and they will give you an official letter to use in place of the Unabridged Birth Certificate.

Please note

• Certified copies of documents are usually only valid for six months.
• Minors traveling in school groups or with their grandparents are not exempt from the requirement
• After April 2016, the Department of Home Affairs changed the term Unabridged Birth Certificate to Birth Certificate.
• All birth certificates issued after April 2016 contain the information travelers require to exit or enter South Africa.