Senegal
A well developed and functioning civil registration system ensures the registration of all vital events including births, marriages and deaths and issues relevant certificates as proof of such registration. Civil registration promotes efficient government planning, effective use of resources and aid, and more accurate monitoring of progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Birth Registration
| Legal framework for birth registration | Law No. 72-61 (12 June 1972) on the Family Code
Law 2013-10 (28 December 2013) on the general code of local authorities |
| Official authorities in charge of registering births | Mayors, ambassadors and consuls general (under supervision of the National Centre for Civil Status, Ministry of Decentralization and Local Authorities) |
| Organizational structure | Decentralized |
| Is there a legal obligation to register the birth of a child? | Yes (article 30) |
| Is an official birth certificate issued as a result of birth registration? | Yes, immediately |
| Legal informant to register a birth | Father or mother, An ascendant or close relative, Doctor, Midwife, Matron, Any other person attending the birth (article 51) |
| Time allowed for registration | 1 month (article 51) |
| Fee for birth registration | No |
| Can the fee be increased or waived? | No |
| Fee for birth certificate | No, only for copies |
| Penalty for late registration | No, but payment of the costs of constitution of the judgments and legal costs |
| Other official fees involved in the birth registration process | No |
| Requirements or fees specific to children who are eligible for citizenship but were born outside the country | No |
| Requirements or fees specific to children whose parents are foreign nationals | No |
| Requirements for birth registration | Identification of the child’s father, Identification of the child’s mother, Birth notification, Name of the child, Mother and father’s address |
| Information collected | Regarding the child: Name, Date of birth, Date of registration, Place of occurrence, Place of registration, Sex,
Regarding the mother of the child: Date of birth or age, Place of usual residence, Occupation Regarding the father of the child: Date of birth or age, Place of usual residence of the father, Occupation |
| Processing | Manually (on paper) |
| Place of registration | Vital event declarations will be received by registrars in the main centres (municipalities) and secondary centres attached to a main centre (article 31). |
| A birth certificate is required for: | Identification, Education, Voting |
| Process for establishing vital statistics on births | The Civil Registration Act does not contain clear provisions on the collection and publication of vital statistics, but, in parallel, the Law on national statistics provides for the collection, compilation and dissemination of vital statistics on the basis of civil registers. |
Download sample birth registration form
Data sources: Information on civil registration systems was compiled over a period from December 2016 to November 2017 using the existing relevant legal frameworks and in consultation with CRVS experts, officials within the relevant national institutions, and UNICEF country offices. All reasonable precautions have been taken by UNICEF to verify this country profile; updates will be made to reflect changes in policy and implementation and/or new information.
Marriage Registration
| Legal framework for marriage registration | Law No. 72-61 (12 June 1972) on the Family Code
Law 2013-10 (28 December 2013) on the general code of local authorities |
| Official authorities in charge of registering a marriage | Mayors, ambassadors and consuls general (under supervision of the National Centre for Civil Status, Ministry of Decentralization and Local Authorities) |
| Organizational structure | Decentralized |
| Legal age for marriage | 18 years for males and 16 years for females (article 111) |
| Is there a legal obligation to register marriages? | Yes (article 30) |
| Is an official marriage certificate issued as a result of marriage registration? | Yes, immediately |
| Legal informant to register a marriage | The spouses |
| Time allowed for registration | 6 months in the case of religious or customary marriage (article 147) |
| Fee for marriage registration | No |
| Can the fee be increased or waived? | No |
| Fee for marriage certificate | Yes |
| Penalty for late registration | No |
| Other official fees involved in the marriage registration process | No |
| Additional registration requirements or fees if one spouse was born outside the country or has dual citizenship | No |
| Requirements for marriage registration | Husband’s presence at registration, Wife’s presence at registration, Proof of wife’s age, Proof of husband’s age |
| Information collected | Regarding the spouses: Date of birth or age of bride, Place of birth of the bride, Place of usual residence of bride, Date of birth or age of groom, Place of birth of the groom, Place of usual residence of groom, Occupation of bride and groom
Regarding the marriage: Date of occurrence, Date of registration, Place of occurrence, Place of registration |
| Processing | Manually (on paper) |
| Place of registration | Vital event declarations will be received by registrars in the main centres (municipalities, sub-prefecture) and secondary centres attached to a main centre (article 31) |
| A marriage certificate is required for: | Inheritance, child registration |
| Process for establishing vital statistics on marriage | No statistics are available on marriages. |
Data sources: Information on civil registration systems was compiled over a period from December 2016 to November 2017 using the existing relevant legal frameworks and in consultation with CRVS experts, officials within the relevant national institutions, and UNICEF country offices. All reasonable precautions have been taken by UNICEF to verify this country profile; updates will be made to reflect changes in policy and implementation and/or new information.
Death Registration
| Legal framework for death registration | Law No. 72-61 (12 June 1972) on the Family Code
Law 2013-10 (28 December 2013) on the general code of local authorities |
| Official authorities in charge of registering a death | Mayors, ambassadors and consuls general (under supervision of the National Centre for Civil Status, Ministry of Decentralization and Local Authorities) |
| Organizational structure | Decentralized |
| Is there a legal obligation to register deaths? | Yes (article 30) |
| Is an official death certificate issued as a result of death registration? | Yes, immediately |
| Legal informant to register a death | A relative, Any person having the required information
The declarations may be made by one of the relatives of the deceased or by any other person possessing in his or her civil status the information necessary for the establishment of the deed (article 67). |
| Time allowed for registration | All deaths must be reported to the registrar within 1 month. If the deadline expires on a holiday, the return will be validly received on the next business day (article 67) |
| Fee for death registration | No |
| Can the fee be increased or waived? | No |
| Fee for death certificate | No, only for copies |
| Penalty for late registration | No, but after 1 year, a judgment must be sought for registration in the court |
| Other official fees involved in the death registration process | No |
| Registration requirements or fees specific for the deaths of people who were residents in the country and also of foreign nationality | No |
| Requirements for death registration | No |
| Information collected | Regarding the deceased: Name, Sex, Date of birth or age, Place of birth, Place of usual residence
Regarding the death: Date of death, Date of registration, Place of occurrence, Place of registration |
| Information collected in case of fetal death | When a stillborn child is declared, the declaration is recorded on his or her date on the register of deaths and not on that of births. It merely mentions that he or she was declared a lifeless child without a presumption as to whether the child had lived or not (article 54) |
| Processing | Manually (on paper) |
| Place of registration | Vital events declarations will be received by registrars in the main centres (municipalities, sub-prefecture) and secondary centres attached to a main centre (article 31) |
| A death certificate is required for: | Inheritance |
| Process for establishing vital statistics on deaths | The Civil Registration Act does not contain clear provisions on the collection and publication of vital statistics, but, in parallel, the Law on national statistics provides for the collection, compilation and dissemination of vital statistics on the basis of civil registers. |
Data sources: Information on civil registration systems was compiled over a period from December 2016 to November 2017 using the existing relevant legal frameworks and in consultation with CRVS experts, officials within the relevant national institutions, and UNICEF country offices. All reasonable precautions have been taken by UNICEF to verify this country profile; updates will be made to reflect changes in policy and implementation and/or new information.