How to Get a Honduran Birth Certificate from the United States

A Honduran birth certificate can be obtained from the United States without traveling to Honduras when the birth is already registered with the Registro Nacional de las Personas (RNP) and the person can verify their identity with a Honduran DNI through RNP MÓVIL, also identified by the RNP as SIN RNP. The system can generate the certificate as a PDF with a QR code used to verify its authenticity.[2] If the document is needed for a U.S. immigrant visa case, however, do not assume that a standard birth certificate is sufficient: the U.S. Department of State identifies the Copia de Folio del Libro de Nacimientos, or Copy of Birth Folio, as the required Honduran birth document for immigrant visa processing.[1]

There is also a separate situation for someone born in the United States to a Honduran parent whose birth has never been entered into the Honduran civil registry. In that case, there is not yet a Honduran birth certificate to download. The birth must first be registered in Honduras.

A Birth Certificate and a Copy of Birth Folio Are Not Always Interchangeable

Before requesting a document, identify exactly what the receiving agency has asked for. Terms such as birth certificate, partida de nacimiento, acta, and certificación de nacimiento may be used informally for proof of a Honduran birth registration, but an agency can require a specific version of that record.

How to Get a Birth Certificate Through RNP MÓVIL

The Imprimir Documento module in SIN RNP is designed to allow a person to obtain a birth certificate without appearing at an RNP office. To identify the applicant, the app reads the two-dimensional code on the back of the Honduran DNI and requests access to the phone’s camera, location, and storage.

What Is Required to Use the App

• An existing birth registration in the RNP database.
• Your Honduran Documento Nacional de Identificación (DNI) with a readable code on the back.
• A smartphone with a camera.
• Permission for the app to use the camera and location services.
• Available device storage for the generated PDF certificate.

The RNP’s published technical information also states that geolocation must be active on the phone. The camera is used to read the DNI and can also be used to validate QR codes on documents issued through the RNP system.

Generate and Save the Certificate

1. Install and open RNP MÓVIL.
2. Open the Imprimir Documento module.
3. Select the birth certificate option displayed by the application.
4. Allow camera access and scan the code on the back of your DNI.
5. Review the civil-registration information shown before continuing.
6. Generate the document and save the PDF to your phone.

The document generated through the RNP system includes a security QR code. It is not simply a photograph of the civil registry entry; the QR code provides a way to check whether the document corresponds to information issued through the RNP system.

Check the QR Code Before Submitting the PDF

RNP MÓVIL includes a Validar Documento module. A QR code on an RNP-issued certificate can be scanned to verify the document’s authenticity. The RNP describes this functionality as available for document verification by both national and foreign entities.

What to Do If RNP MÓVIL Finds an Inconsistency

The application compares information in the Civil Registry with data in the national identification system. If one or more inconsistencies are detected after the DNI is scanned, the RNP states that a solicitar ayuda option becomes available. The user provides an email address and telephone number so RNP citizen-service personnel can review the issue.

An inconsistency can prevent the certificate from being generated correctly. In other cases, a certificate may be produced but display a name, birth date, birthplace, or other civil-registration detail that differs from what the person expected.

If the Birth Certificate Contains Incorrect Information

Downloading another copy does not change the underlying registration. The RNP defines rectificación as the correction of errors, omissions, deletions, or alterations in a registration through the applicable administrative or judicial procedure. When the discrepancy exists in the underlying civil record rather than only in the app display, the registration itself must be corrected.

When You Need a Copia de Folio del Libro de Nacimientos

A copia de folio is a photocopy of the original registry-book page on which the birth was recorded. The RNP states that this document has no fee and can be requested from the Registro Civil Municipal where the birth was registered or, subject to the RNP’s stated exceptions, from Archivo Central in Tegucigalpa.[3]

The distinction is especially important for a U.S. immigrant visa. The U.S. Department of State identifies the Copy of Birth Folio (Copia de Folio del Libro de Nacimientos) as the Honduran birth document used for immigrant visa processing and states that expedientes de vida, hojas de vida, literales, certificaciones, and their annotations are not accepted as substitutes for that purpose.

An Older Birth Folio May Be Handwritten

The appearance of a folio depends on when the registration was created. The U.S. Department of State notes that folios from before 1984 may be handwritten and bear an RNP seal or logo. It also states that folios were typewritten beginning in 2000. A handwritten older copy is therefore not automatically an incorrect document.

Requesting a Copy of Birth Folio From the United States Through a Representative

The U.S. Department of State states that people residing outside Honduras can send a representative to request official documents. The RNP office retains the right to request a notarized authorization from the document holder, and the authorization can be executed at a Honduran consulate and sent to the representative in Honduras.[1]

For a Copy of Birth Folio, the RNP states that the applicant presents a national identification document to the Registrador Civil Municipal. When another person will handle the request, determine with the office holding the registry book what authorization it requires before the representative attempts to obtain the document.

Where the Folio Is Requested in Honduras

• At the Registro Civil Municipal where the birth was originally registered.
• At the RNP Archivo Central in Tegucigalpa when applicable.
• For registrations identified by the RNP as municipality 0801, the request is made through the Registro Civil Municipal in Tegucigalpa.

The RNP does not publish one nationwide processing time for a Copy of Birth Folio. Its service information states that delivery time depends on the working procedure of each Registro Civil Municipal.

Whether You Need an Apostille or Translation Depends on the Use

The RNP’s general instructions for using a Copy of Birth Folio abroad state that it must first be endorsed by the Registrador Civil Municipal with the registrar’s signature, seal, and date. It must then be authenticated through the Secretaría General of the RNP. The RNP document lists a fee of L 200.00 for that authentication, paid using a TGR-RNP receipt, followed by apostille processing through the Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores.[4]

A different instruction applies when the folio is being presented specifically at an immigrant visa interview at the U.S. Embassy in Tegucigalpa. The Embassy asks for the birth registry folio with the original signature and seal of the RNP registrar and explicitly states that no apostille or English translation is required for that document.[5]

If You Were Born in the United States and Do Not Yet Have a Honduran Registration

A birth certificate issued by a U.S. state proves the birth that occurred in that state, but it does not by itself create a birth registration in the Honduran Registro Nacional de las Personas. If the birth has never been incorporated into the Honduran civil registry, there is not yet a Honduran birth certificate available to download.

The RNP states that children born abroad to a Honduran father or mother can be registered through Honduran diplomatic or consular agents, who transmit the corresponding certification so the birth can be incorporated into the Honduran registry. When the registration was not completed through that route at the appropriate time, the RNP also provides a procedure initiated at the request of the interested party.[6]

Registering a birth that occurred abroad has its own requirements and should not be confused with requesting another copy of a registration that already exists. The RNP publishes separate requirements for the consular route and for processing through its Secretaría General.

Review These Details Before Submitting the Certificate or Folio

• Document type: determine whether the agency asked for a standard birth certificate or specifically for a Copy of Birth Folio.
• First and last names: make sure they correspond to the Honduran civil registration and the file where the document will be used.
• Date and place of birth: if the underlying registry information is incorrect, printing the certificate again will not correct it.
• QR code: when using an RNP digital certificate, make sure the QR code can be validated.
• Signature and seal: for a Copy of Birth Folio used in immigrant visa processing, review the requirement for the registrar’s original signature and seal.
• Apostille or translation: follow the rule that applies to the specific proceeding where the document will be submitted.
• Original file: retain the PDF generated by the RNP in addition to any printed copy you provide.

Official Sources

1. [1] U.S. Department of State — Honduras: Visa Reciprocity and Civil Documents — Identifies the Copy of Birth Folio as the Honduran birth document for immigrant visa processing, describes its format, and explains document requests through representatives for people residing outside Honduras.
2. [2] Registro Nacional de las Personas — Sistema de Identificación Nacional SIN RNP — Explains the Imprimir Documento module, DNI scanning, PDF certificate generation, QR verification, device permissions, and the assistance option for inconsistencies.
3. [3] Registro Nacional de las Personas — Servicios Varios — Defines the Copy of Birth Folio, states that it has no fee, identifies where it can be requested, and describes procedures for rectifying civil registrations.
4. [4] Registro Nacional de las Personas — Requisitos para solicitar una Copia de Folio — Publishes the endorsement, authentication, and apostille requirements for use abroad and the L 200.00 fee for authentication of the document.
5. [5] U.S. Department of State — U.S. Embassy Tegucigalpa: Immigrant Visa Instructions — Specifies the conditions for the birth registry folio presented at an immigrant visa interview and states that the Embassy does not require an apostille or English translation of that document.
6. [6] Registro Nacional de las Personas — Nacimiento — Explains registration of children born abroad to a Honduran father or mother through diplomatic or consular agents and subsequent incorporation into the Honduran civil registry.