Afghanistan

In a 2009 report to the CRC, Afghanistan stated that the Department of Birth Registration had adopted reforms in its procedures for the registration of newborn babies to include both the mother’s and father’s name in the birth registration. With this provision, in theory, children born out of wedlock could be registered. In 2011 the CRC urged Afghanistan to take all necessary measures to ensure that all children, including children born out of wedlock, are properly registered at birth. According to the Afghan Civil Code, a child can only be related to the father in cases where they were born via a ‘true marriage’ according to Sharia jurisprudence. Being a ‘legitimate’ child is the basis for citizenship acquisition by origin according to the citizenship law of Afghanistan. Babies born outside of marriage remain unregistered and stateless.