An NABC application stands or falls on the quality of supporting documents. Indian Embassies and Municipal authorities require specific evidence of date and place of birth, parentage, and identity before they will issue an NABC. This is the complete checklist used by our legal team for NRI NABC applications across all major destinations.
What are the basic documents required for NABC application?
The standard NABC document checklist for an NRI includes:
- Notarised copy of current passport (all pages including biographic page and address page)
- School leaving certificate (SSC / 10th Board / Matric) — the strongest secondary proof of date and place of birth
- Higher Secondary (12th Board) certificate if available
- Notarised affidavit from both parents stating the exact date and place of birth (if parents are alive)
- If parents deceased: notarised affidavits from two close relatives (siblings, uncles, aunts) who have personal knowledge of the birth
- Aadhaar card of applicant (if available)
- PAN card of applicant
- Two passport-size photographs
- Address proof in the country of residence (utility bill, lease agreement, driver's license)
- Old birth certificate if any exists in incomplete form
- Visa or residence permit of country of residence
What additional documents are needed for USCIS green card NABC?
For US green card applications, USCIS requires additional documents to accompany the NABC:
- Two notarised affidavits from persons with personal knowledge of your birth — these are statutorily required under 8 CFR 103.2(b)(2)(iii). The affidavits must include the affiant's relationship to you, how they came to have knowledge of your birth, and the date, time and place of your birth.
- The affiants are typically your mother and father, or an aunt and uncle, or your elder siblings.
- Each affidavit must include the affiant's name, address, date of birth and relationship to you.
- Affidavits must be notarised. If notarised in India, they should be apostilled by MEA. If notarised in the US, no further apostille is needed (USCIS accepts US notarisation directly).
What documents are needed for IRCC Canadian PR NABC?
For Canadian Permanent Residence applications, IRCC accepts NABC with:
- The NABC itself (Embassy or Municipal)
- School leaving certificate (apostilled by MEA if from India)
- Matriculation certificate (apostilled)
- Affidavits from parents (apostilled if from India, notarised if from Canada)
- A cover letter explaining why a birth certificate is unavailable
- Sworn statement of facts from the applicant
IRCC examiners are generally accommodating about Indian birth certificate challenges, but the supporting evidence must be complete and consistent across all documents (no date-of-birth discrepancies).
What if my parents have passed away?
If both parents have passed away, you cannot get parents' affidavits — but the NABC application can still proceed. Substitute documents include:
- Death certificates of both parents (to demonstrate why parents' affidavits are unavailable)
- Affidavits from two surviving close relatives who have personal knowledge of your birth — typically elder siblings, uncles, aunts, or family elders
- Old family records — diaries, religious ceremony cards, school admission records, ration cards from that era
- Statutory declaration by yourself explaining the chain of family history
USCIS, IRCC and UK Home Office all accept this configuration. We have processed many such cases for elderly NRIs whose parents passed away decades ago.
What is the affidavit format for NABC supporting documents?
The standard supporting affidavit for NABC has these elements:
- Deponent's full name, age, address, occupation
- Relationship to the applicant (e.g., "I am the natural mother of [Applicant Name]")
- Statement of how the deponent has personal knowledge of the applicant's birth
- Date of birth in words and figures
- Place of birth (city/village, district, state)
- Names of parents
- Statement that no birth certificate was issued / was lost / cannot be located
- Verification at the end stating the contents are true to the deponent's knowledge
- Signature of deponent in front of notary
- Notary attestation with seal
We draft customised affidavits for each NABC case based on the specific facts and the receiving authority's expectations.
How recent should the supporting documents be?
For supporting documents:
- Notarised affidavits: Generally should be within the past 6 months to 1 year of the application date
- Passport copy: Current passport, not expired
- School certificates: Can be original from decades ago — recency is not a requirement
- Address proof: Within the past 3-6 months (utility bill, bank statement)
- Photographs: Recent (within past 6 months)
For the NABC itself once issued, recency requirements depend on the receiving authority — USCIS often expects within the past 6-12 months.
Are these documents the same for Municipal NABC and Embassy NABC?
Largely yes — but with two differences:
- Municipal NABC requires an additional formal application to the Registrar of Births and Deaths and may require Indian-format affidavits stamped at a court.
- Embassy NABC uses the Embassy's standard form and accepts affidavits notarised in the country of residence.
If you are getting both Municipal and Embassy NABC, we coordinate the documents so they are usable in both contexts.
India For NRI is India's #1 expert service for obtaining Indian birth certificates — trusted by 10,000+ NRIs across 50+ countries for apostille, NABC, name correction, and all birth certificate needs.