Haaretz in 2013: The state plans to cease issuing birth certificates to children of foreigners born in Israel, thereby depriving them of any official government document confirming their birth. The lack of such a document could cause serious problems later in life, when moving to another country, getting married or even attending college.
The new policy, revealed in a brief filed by the state with the High Court of Justice on Monday, will require foreigners to make do instead with the handwritten birth notices issued by hospitals. But these notices aren’t official government documents.
The government said it is making this change because it fears migrants might exploit official birth certificates to try to obtain legal status in Israel. But the Association for Civil Rights in Israel said the change would cause children disproportionate harm.
The birth certificates issued to children of foreigners – meaning everyone from diplomats to asylum seekers to legal and illegal foreign workers – were never the same as those issued to Israeli citizens or residents. About a year ago, however, the state made two additional changes in these documents: It stopped listing the name of the child’s father, and started listing the mother’s maiden name as the child’s surname.
