Lebanon

In Lebanon, authorities are reluctant to issue birth certificates for children of Syrians residing there. At the beginning of the conflict in Syria, there was fear that all the Syrians being born in Lebanon would be born Lebanese if they were issued a birth certificate. Despite advocates’ insistence that a birth certificate is not proof of citizenship in Lebanon, registrars’ refusal to issue birth certificates for children born to Lebanese mothers and Syrian fathers remained all too common. When mothers attempt to sign instead of fathers, many mukhtars refused to authenticate the birth certificate. In 2016, the Lebanese government reported issuing migration permits for children born in Lebanon to Lebanese mothers and foreign fathers.