Your newborn's papers in Canada: birth registration, SIN, health card, passport

The order that works

1. Register the birth (within 30 days in most provinces).
2. Order the birth certificate with parental information, in the same form.
3. Tick the SIN option (Newborn Registration Service).
4. Tick the Canada Child Benefit option and consent to sharing with the CRA.
5. Enrol your baby in the provincial health plan.
6. Add your baby to workplace insurance, within your plan's deadline.
7. Apply for a passport if you will travel.

Province by province

Sources: Ontario.ca, Québec.ca, B.C. Vital Statistics FAQ and Alberta.ca, as of October 2026.

Ontario

The 5-in-1 newborn bundle works if your baby was born in Ontario, is under 12 months old, and the birth has not been registered before. A Notice of Live Birth is completed by qualified medical staff and sent to ServiceOntario. All parents must be present to certify the birth online.

Québec

File the declaration of birth with the registrar of civil status within 30 days, with a copy of the attestation of birth from the hospital or birth centre. The registrar then draws up the act of birth. If you used simplified access, the Directeur de l'état civil notifies specific Québec and federal departments. Registration with the public health insurance plan is needed only for children born or adopted outside Québec, or if you did not use simplified access.

British Columbia

One registration per child, including twins. Each parent being included must certify separately; if the other parent is not being included, the mother declares this on the form. A certificate is issued only once the online registration and the hospital's Notice of Live Birth are both received: about 4 to 6 weeks.

Alberta

You enter the information in the Online Birth Registry, and the hospital or registered midwife sends a confirmation of birth to Vital Statistics. A co-parent who is not present cannot be recorded and can be added later by amendment, with fees after 90 days. For a birth without a physician, midwife, nurse or nurse practitioner, a special process applies, including a letter from a medical facility visited within 48 hours.

The SIN for your baby

Service Canada explains that if your child is under one year old and the birth is not yet registered, you can apply for the SIN through your province's Newborn Registration Service, available in all ten provinces but not yet in the territories. In a territory, apply directly through Service Canada. There is no fee to apply for a SIN. You will need it to open a Registered Education Savings Plan.

The health card

• Ontario: fill in the Ontario Health Coverage Infant Registration form from the hospital or registered midwife. Keep the bottom section: it shows your baby's health number. The card is mailed within 8 weeks.
• Québec: handled through simplified access for a baby born in Québec; otherwise register your child with the public plan. For the public prescription drug plan, no action is needed if a parent is covered and the child was born in Québec.
• British Columbia: tick MSP enrolment in the electronic birth registration.
• Other provinces: check your health plan's newborn page.

The passport

From Canada.ca: a child passport is valid for a maximum of 5 years and cannot be renewed. You need proof of citizenship (such as a birth certificate with parental information), proof of parentage, a guarantor who has known you for at least 2 years and knows the child, two identical photos, and the signatures of all parents or legal guardians. Check the current fee on Canada.ca's passport fee list: many in-Canada passport services cannot be paid online.

Single parents and newcomer families

• Registering alone is possible. In B.C. the mother declares that the other parent is not being included. Adding a parent later is possible but involves an amendment, sometimes with fees.
• If you are not Canadian, also contact your own country's embassy or consulate about registering the birth abroad and your baby's passport from that country.
• Do not skip the CCB box: see the Canada Child Benefit for your newborn.

Checklist

• Birth registered (date: ______)
• Birth certificate with parental information ordered
• SIN requested
• Canada Child Benefit requested
• Health card form submitted; health number noted
• Baby added to workplace insurance
• Passport (if travelling)

Questions parents ask

Sources

1. Ontario — Register a birth (new baby) checked October 13, 2026
2. Gouvernement du Québec — Declaration of birth checked October 13, 2026
3. British Columbia Vital Statistics — Electronic Birth Registration, FAQ checked October 13, 2026
4. Alberta — Register a birth checked October 13, 2026
5. Service Canada — Social Insurance Number, apply (Newborn Registration Service) checked October 13, 2026
6. Government of Canada — Canadian passports for children checked October 13, 2026

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