The National Authority for Child Care (NACC) has raised concern over the continued simulation of birth records involving adopted children, saying the practice persists despite the availability of legal adoption and corrective mechanisms under existing law.

NACC is an attached agency of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

During a DSWD media forum on June 18, NACC Executive Director Maria Gabriela “Gaby” Concepcion urged parents to pursue proper legal adoption instead of falsifying birth certificates to make it appear that they are the biological parents of a child.

“You need to go through that process kasi nga ang ginagawa ng iba, ay dini-diretso sa birth certificate, pini-fake nila yung birth certificate by making it appear that they are the birth parents, but that process has nothing in it for the child. Kailangan talaga ampunin natin nang tama ang ating mga bata (You need to go through that process because some people go straight to the birth certificate and falsify it to make it appear that they are the birth parents, but that process has nothing for the child. We really need to adopt our children the right way),” Concepcion said.

She said simulation of birth, or the tampering of a child’s civil registry documents, remains a criminal offense that continues to be reported in some cases, particularly in hospitals and lying-in clinics.

Under Republic Act No. 8552 or the Domestic Adoption Act, simulation of birth and tampering with civil registry records carry penalties of six years and one day to 12 years’ imprisonment and fines of up to ₱50,000.

“Kung talagang mahal niya yung anak ninyo, at gusto niya siyang bigyan ng lahat ng karapatan bilang isang anak, gawin natin yung tamang proseso (If they truly love the child and want to give them all the rights of a child, let us follow the proper process),” Concepcion said.

She added that legally adopted children are entitled to the same rights as biological children, including inheritance rights and the right to use the surname of adoptive parents.

Under Republic Act No. 11222 or the Simulated Birth Rectification Act of 2019, individuals who simulated a child’s birth record on or before March 28, 2019 may apply for amnesty if the act was done in the child’s best interest and the child has been continuously treated as their own.

The law allows the correction of simulated birth records and formalization of parent-child relationships through administrative adoption without criminal liability.

Applications for rectification and administrative adoption may be filed through Local Social Welfare and Development Offices until March 29, 2029.