My wife delivered a baby nearly two-and-a-half months ago. When I went to get the residence stamped I was referred to the investigation officer in my area. Why is this? People tell me I may land in court. As I understand I have to complete all formalities within three months, so why is such an action being taken?

Name withheld

Answer: No, you are wrong and seem to have been misinformed. You have to complete all formalities within 60 days and not 3 months. This includes getting the birth certificate, endorsement of the baby’s name on the passport, getting the residence stamped and applying for the baby’s civil ID.

What the Immigration Office has done is exactly according to the law. Even if you exceed the 60-day limit by one day, the Immigration officials can do nothing but refer you to the investigation office. Here your statement will be taken and your case will be referred to court.

You will then be called by the Prosecution and again asked to give a statement. After that you will get a court date. The court could decide that it has just been an oversight or ask you to pay a fine. It would be  in your interest to help in speeding up the proceedings because if the case lingers on, it could take as long as a whole year to complete. And in the meantime you won’t be able to get the baby’s residence or take it out of the country.