10 Actions to End Statelessness Action 7: ENSURE BIRTH REGISTRATION FOR THE PREVENTION OF STATELESSNESS (It is not possible to provide a Starting Point for this Action. According to figures from 2010 reported by UNICEF, 230 million children under the age remained unregistered. There is no available data on how many of these children were left stateless as a result.) MILESTONES GOAL BY 2024 - • No reported cases of statelessness due to a lack of birth registration. CONTEXT Individuals can be at risk of statelessness if they have difficulties proving that they have links to a State. Lack of birth registration can create such a risk. This is because birth registration documents where a person was born and who their parents are – key pieces of information needed to establish which country’s nationality a child can acquire. As a result, birth registration is important for the achievement of the goals under Action 2. In some countries, children may not be registered because registration procedures are complex or establish documentation or other requirements which are difficult to fulfil. Specific groups may face particular problems, especially children born out of wedlock, nomadic populations and children of non-citizens including refugees and migrants. Low levels of birth registration can be difficult to correct subsequently because procedures for late birth registration have not been established or are lengthy, costly and complex and therefore inaccessible to undocumented populations. Because nationality is generally acquired on the basis of each State’s nationality law, lack of birth registration on its own does not usually make people stateless. UNHCR will continue to work with UNICEF and other partners to gather more data on gaps in law and policy relating to birth registration which create heightened risks of statelessness (also relevant under Action 10). Proof that parents are married can also influence whether a child can be registered at birth and whether it acquires a nationality and this is another area where more data is required. HOW CAN STATES IMPLEMENT THIS ACTION? Registering births that occur in the territory is the duty of every State. It is vital that every child is registered at birth. However, given that birth registration does not always occur in a timely manner, States also need procedures for late and delayed birth registration and may consider undertaking campaigns to register older children and adults. Birth registration needs to be free, accessible and undertaken on a nondiscriminatory basis. U N H C R > G LO B A L AC T I O N P L A N TO E N D S TAT E L E S S N E S S : 2 0 1 4 – 2 0 2 4 23