PNM: Paying more to register births, deaths ‘insulting’

Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles. - File photo

OPPOSITION Leader Pennelope Beckles has blasted government’s decision to raise the cost of registering births and deaths, effective January 1, describing it as “reckless, desperate, and insulting.”

She suggested the fee hikes contradicted some of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s general election campaign pledges.

Speaking to Newsday recently, Beckles said, “One must ask the prime minister, where is the baby grant she once promised? This is a government that has chosen to attack citizens.”

She argued that taxing citizens at the moment of birth and death was neither a sustainable revenue strategy nor a responsible approach to economic management.

The revised schedule introduces higher costs across a range of civil registry services.

The late registration of a child – more than three months but under one year – now incurs a fee of $40.

For children over one-year, which requires written authority from the Registrar General, the fee is $100 at the registrar’s office and $150 at the superintendent registrar’s office.

A declaration of birth in another district costs $20, while correcting errors in the register attracts a fee of $30.

General searches of the register now range from $20 to $50, depending on the type of search requested. Certified copies of birth or death entries will cost between $25 and $30, while certification of a birth or death certificate issued by the registrar or superintendent registrar is set at $50.

The re‑registration of a birth incorrectly recorded now carries a fee of $100

“The Opposition does not view the increase in birth and death registration fees as necessary or prudent,” said Beckles in a message to Newsday on December 28.

She warned the measures amount to government overreach and punishment of ordinary people.

Beckles’ comments come in the wake of a series of legal notices gazetted on Christmas Day, which together usher in higher costs across multiple areas from January 1.

Customs declaration fees will double from $40 to $80 per package, while container examination charges rise from $375 to $750 and from $525 to $1,050 depending on size.

Traffic fines have also been sharply increased, with penalties for speeding, seatbelt violations, and driving without insurance all increasing twofold.

Beckles said government’s reliance on fee hikes reflects poor fiscal management.

“The Government has adopted a new policy of bleeding the pockets of the population in order to obtain revenue to run the country,” she told Newsday. She argued that revenue estimates from the 2025/26 budget were not materialising, leaving the administration scrambling to raise funds while still trying to keep election promises.

She warned that raising customs charges places immediate strain on the economy by increasing the cost of doing business, driving up prices, slowing commercial activity, and ultimately forcing consumers to shoulder higher costs for everyday goods.

SMEs, she said, will be the first to absorb the blow, but the costs will inevitably be passed on to households already under severe financial pressure.

“These increases point to Government overreach and punishment of the citizens. It leaves me to wonder when Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Dave Tancoo will come out of hiding and address the nation on these draconian and harsh measures.”