Caribbean News Now!

By Brittany Lyte
Connecticut Post

BRIDGEPORT, USA (MCT) -- A three-month window lawmakers established for Puerto Ricans to apply for new, more-secure birth certificates is three weeks from closing.

On September 30, Puerto Rican birth certificates issued before July 1 will become invalid.

The deadline is significant to US residents who were born in the US territory and must soon display proof of their birth certificate for a transaction or official purpose. Residents of Puerto Rican descent who soon plan to get married, register a child for school for the first time or apply for a driver's license or passport for the first time will need the new certificate to do so.

The document upgrade was conceived on the heels of a recent finding that Puerto Rican birth certificates enabled more than 40 percent of 8,000 American passport fraud cases recently investigated by the US State Department and the Department of Homeland Security.

The island government began issuing new certificates with enhanced safety features July 1 in an effort to reduce identity theft, passport fraud, narcotics trafficking and other crime associated with illegal use of the documents.

The upgrade comes hand-in-hand with a new law that prohibits any public or private entity from retaining a birth certificate.

The law allows residents to simply display a birth certificate during most transactions that require proof of the document.

Citizens will no longer be required to submit multiple, original copies of their birth certificates for common transactions in Puerto Rico.

These measures aim at eliminating the surplus of Puerto Rican birth certificates. According to the U.S. Department of State, past widespread use of original birth certificates for ordinary transactions like sports team enrollment in Puerto Rico has given criminals easy access to the documents.

The new certificates cost $5 and do not expire. This fee is waived for veterans and people over age 60.

Puerto Rican-born residents 18 and older can apply for their new certificate by mail or online at www.pr.gov. The application form is available at www.prfaa.com/birthcertificates. A bilingual call center for orders or information is also available through VitalChek at 866-842-6765.

Copyright (c) 2010, Connecticut Post, Bridgeport
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