KAJANG: Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution has urged Malaysians, who marry abroad, to register their marriages with local religious authorities to avoid complications in securing their children's citizenship.
He said this after assisting with a case involving a single mother whose four children lacked birth certificates.
The situation arose because her second marriage, conducted outside the country, was never registered in Malaysia.
"This incident serves as an important lesson. Any marriage abroad must be registered with the religious authorities once the couple returns to Malaysia.
"Failing to do so will complicate matters, especially regarding the citizenship status of children," he said after meeting with the mother, Hasmida Hamid at Kajang Hospital.
He handed over birth certificates and Mykid for the mother's four children.
In the case of Hasmida which went viral, her second marriage, conducted outside the country, resulted in the birth of four children.
However, because the marriage was not officially registered, none of the children were eligible for Malaysian birth certificates at the time of their birth.
"Without a proper marriage certificate, determining the children's citizenship becomes a challenge, as it is a key document in the process," Saifuddin added.
He reminded parents that it was mandatory to register their children's birth within 60 days.
Failure to do so would result in the birth being classified as a "late registration", which lead to more issues.
"The law gives parents 60 days to register their child's birth. Delaying this can make things difficult for the child later in life, especially when it comes to accessing basic rights and privileges," he added.
Saifuddin said the National Registration Department also conducted the Menyemai Kasih Rakyat (Mekar) outreach programme, aims to address cases of delayed birth registrations.
Meanwhile, when asked about potential legal action against the mother's ex-husband for failing to register the children, Saifuddin said the focus was on resolving the birth registration issues first.