Burundi: Procedures for obtaining a passport for a minor; whether a minor can take possession of his or her own passport

In a telephone conversation with the Research Directorate on 18 February 2008, an administrative attaché at the Embassy of the Republic of Burundi in Canada stated that all persons, including minors, must obtain a passport in order to travel. The provision that allowed children to be listed on a parent's passport is no longer in effect pursuant to ministerial order No. 515/089 dated 28 January 2005 (Burundi 30 Nov. 2007; see also Burundi 18 Feb. 2008). According to 30 November 2007 correspondence from the Embassy of the Republic of Burundi in Ottawa, this order states that children are entitled to their own passports, regardless of their age.

However, according to the Administrative Attaché, minors cannot apply for a passport by themselves (Burundi 18 Feb. 2008). Burundians are authorized to apply in their own names once they have reached the age of majority, 18 years (Burundi 18 Feb. 2008). All passport applications must be made either to the police responsible for airspace surveillance, border control and registration of foreigners (Police de l'air, des frontières et des étrangers, PAFE), which is under the Ministry of the Interior (ministère de l'Intérieur), if the application is made from within the country, or to the nearest Burundian embassy if the applicant lives outside Burundi (Burundi 6 Feb. 2007).

According to correspondence from the Canadian consulate in Burundi sent to the Research Directorate by a migration integrity assistant at the Canadian High Commission in Kenya, the following documents are required for a passport application for a minor: a birth certificate, a parental authorization to travel signed by the parents and by a notary, a photocopy of the parents' national identity cards, a school certificate (attestation de scolarité), and a photocopy of the most recent document received by the PAFE (Canada 4 Mar. 2008). If one of the parents is deceased, the other parent must provide a death certificate for his or her spouse (ibid.). If one of the parents is abroad, the applicant must provide his or her spouse's residency permit, as well as a power of attorney (ibid.). If a guardian has legal responsibility for the child, he or she must prove this by submitting the document issued by the family council or the court that granted the guardianship (ibid.).

Information on whether a minor can take possession of his or her own passport could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Burundi. 18 February 2008. Embassy of the Republic of Burundi in Ottawa. Telephone interview with an administrative attaché.
_____. 6 February 2007. Embassy of the Republic of Burundi in Ottawa. Telephone interview with the First Secretary.
_____. 30 November 2007. Embassy of the Republic of Burundi in Ottawa. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate from the First Secretary.

Canada. 4 March 2008. Canadian High Commission in Kenya. Corresponsdence sent to the Research Directorate from a migration integrity assistant.

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral source: Attempts to contact the Police de l'air, des frontières et des étrangers (PAFE) were unsuccessful.