Births and Deaths Registration Act 1957
Akta Pendaftaran Kelahiran dan Kematian 1957
Deals with the registration of births and deaths.
Read the copy (English) — PDF, 42 pagesBahasa Melayu — PDF, 39 pages
Copy of the official text captured from the Laws of Malaysia portal (AGC) on 26 October 2026. Always check the official portal for the authoritative current version. Amendments made after the official “last updated” date are published separately as amending Acts (Act A…) on the portal.
| Number | Act 299 |
|---|---|
| Type | Federal Act |
| Applies to | Federal |
| Subject | Immigration & citizenship |
| Year | 1957 |
| Official “last updated” | 1 March 2018 |
| Published by | Attorney General's Chambers — Laws of Malaysia portal (lom.agc.gov.my) |
| Text as at | 1 March 2018 |
| First enacted | 1957 (Ordinance No. 61 of 1957) |
| Revised | 1983 (Act 299 w.e.f. 19 January 1984) |
| Latest amendment (as printed) | Act A1524, in force 1 August 2017 |
Long title
An Act relating to the registration of births and deaths.
Contents — Parts and sections
52 sections in 4 Parts, headings copied from the “ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS” of the official text (copy of 26 October 2026). Read the full wording in the PDF.
Definitions: section 2 (Interpretation).
Part I PRELIMINARY (7)
- s 1 Short title and application
- s 2 Interpretation
- s 3 Appointment of Officers
- s 4 Provision and maintenance of registers
- s 4A Where records missing, re-registration permitted
- s 5 Annual reports
- s 6 Inspection of registers, etc.
Part II REGISTRATION OF BIRTHS (13)
- s 7 Particulars of births to be registered
- s 8 Information concerning birth to be given to Registrar within sixty days
- s 9 Information concerning finding of new-born child to be given to Registrar within fourteen days
- s 10 Special provision as to registration of stillbirth
- s 10A Special provision as to registration of birth
- s 11 (Deleted)
- s 12 Authority of Registrar-General required for late registration
- s 13 Provisions as to father of illegitimate child
- s 13A Surname of child
- s 14 Certificate of birth
- s 15 Registration of name of child or of alteration of name
- s 16 Registration of objectionable or undesirable names
- s 17 Re-registration of births of legitimated persons
Part III REGISTRATION OF DEATHS (11)
- s 18 Particulars of deaths to be registered
- s 19 Information concerning death
- s 19A Special provision as to registration of death
- s 20 Delayed registration
- s 21 Authority of Registrar-General required for late registration
- s 22 Duty of medical practitioner as to certification
- s 23 When post-mortem examination is held
- s 24 Duty of Coroner or Magistrate holding inquiry to forward copy of finding
- s 24A Registration of presumed death
- s 24B Certificate of Presumed Death
- s 25 Certificate of death
Part IV GENERAL (21)
- s 26 Registers to be forwarded to Registrar-General
- s 27 Correction of errors and alteration in register
- s 28 Duty of Superintendent-Registrar and Registrar to procure registration
- s 29 (Deleted)
- Searches and Certificates
- s 30 Indices
- s 31 Searches
- s 32 Issue of Certificates of Birth, Certificates of Death and Certificates of Presumed Death
- s 33 Entry in register as evidence of birth, death or presumed death
- Offences
- s 34 Offences relating to registers
- s 35 Penalties for failure to give information, etc.
- s 36 Penalty for false information, false entry, or destruction of entry
- s 36A Public servants
- s 37 Authority for prosecution
- s 37A (Deleted)
- s 37B Power to hold inquiries
- s 37C Power to investigate
- s 38 Power to compound offences
- s 39 Rules
- s 40 Sending documents by post
- s 41 Savings, etc.
- s 42 Repeal
Schedules: SCHEDULE
Related laws
Medical Act 1971 (Act 50)Legitimacy Act 1961 (Act 60)Married Women and Children (Maintenance) Act 1950 (Act 263)Interpretation Acts 1948 and 1967 (Act 388)Penal Code (Act 574)Criminal Procedure Code (Act 593)
Federal Acts that this law's official text itself refers to (as “[Act N]”), most-referred first.
Cited on these pages
Births and Deaths Registration Act 1957Glossary of legal termsChildrenDeath, wills, hibah, faraid & estatesIdentity & documents
Amendment history
| Amending law | Short title | In force from |
|---|---|---|
| Ord. 6/1958 | The Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment) Ordinance 1958 | 01-08-1958 |
| Act 60 | Legitimacy Act 1961 01-01-1971 | 23-03-1961 |
| L.N. 348/1965 | Modification of Laws (Births and Deaths) (Borneo States) Order 1965 | 23-09-1965 |
| Act 50 | Medical Act 1971 | 01-10-1971 |
| Act A296 | Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment) Act 1975 | 30-05-1975 |
| Act 160 | Malaysian Currency (Ringgit) Act 1975 | 29-08-1975 |
| Act A1524 | Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment) Act 2017 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 299 BIRTHS AND DEATHS REGISTRATION ACT 1957 | 01-08-2017 |
Copied from the “List of amendments” printed in the official text. Amendments made after the text's “as at” date are not in this list — check the portal for later amending Acts.
Version history
| Captured | Language | Official “last updated” | Pages | SHA-256 | File |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 October 2026 | Bahasa Melayu | 1 May 2013 | 39 | c3382b20b0d2 | PDF 0.3 MB |
| 26 October 2026 | English | 1 March 2018 | 42 | 2686e8082481 | PDF 0.4 MB |
A new version is kept only when the official file changes (different SHA-256 fingerprint). Older versions are never overwritten, so you can see what the text said on an earlier date.
Official source
- Official text (English) ↗
- Official text (Bahasa Melayu) ↗
- Attorney General's Chambers — Laws of Malaysia portal (lom.agc.gov.my) ↗
Official texts of a legislative or regulatory nature are not protected as literary works (Copyright Act 1987, s 3, definition of “literary work”). A downloaded or printed copy is not a copy of the Gazette and is not evidence of its contents — see the portal's own terms. MyLegal2u adds nothing to the text; our explanations are on our guide pages, not in these copies.